<p>Sorry for the stupid question, but I want to make sure. I know the college that D is applying EA to is will ask for home equity info, but I haven't had a chance to see the form yet since D hasn't gotten a log in ID yet.
Typically, will the college fin aid form ask for home selling price estimate or do they just need the amount you've paid off the mortgage?</p>
<p>Say we bought our home for $200,000 15 years ago. Lets' say $100,000 is paid off.
Is that all I need to know - the $100,000 paid versus $200,000 original mortgage?</p>
<p>Or do we need to figure out what the current market value of the house is?
And if so, how (zillow?) and then how does the market value impact the equity reported (is there any difference if market value is $250K or $300K etc)</p>
<p>Should I ask the admissions office if they have a preferred method for getting home equity?
I think our zillow/recent sales would have an inflated price for our home - neighbors get upgraded/renovated and we haven’t and I’m pretty sure our windows need replacing which we can’t really afford.</p>
<p>Figure the amount that you would sell your house for today, taking into account your home’s condition (not your neighbors’ condition). So, if you would sell your home for $350k and you owe $100k, then you have $250k equity (minus realtor costs). </p>
<p>I’d go with your property tax assessment minus your outstanding mortgage. Tax assessments tend to be on the conservative side while still being defensible.</p>
<p>Nope…property tax assessment is usually a %age of your actual property VALUE. If you use the assessment number, it will likely be low.</p>
<p>Check and see what your %age is used for your assessment.</p>
<p>Also, your assessment could be OLD, like in five or ten years old. Home equity must be done for colleges using the current value if your home not what it was appraised for five or even one year ago.</p>
<p>What M2CK says is exactly what we were told by D’s college when we asked. They said it’s the “I know I could get this much for my house if I sold it TODAY” amount. They told us that people commonly OVERestimate their current home value because they are thinking about what they would WANT to get for their house or a best-case scenario. We had a couple of short sales in our neighborhood, so we had an idea of what our house might sell for in that situation. We went with that amount and no one batted an eye.</p>
<p>I know my daughter’s school used the low end of Zillow’s range which was $965,000 in 2012. I used a slighted lower value. Today, two and a half year’s later, Zillow has the low value of our house at $1,800,000! From what I have been able to ascertain, the school has increased the value about 10% each year, Thank goodness for that! </p>
<p>They did ask but it looks like they increased it. We put in 1,000,020 as this is what it was appraised at later in 2012 when we refinanced. They can use whatever they want to use. The 10% is reasonable for the past two years as prices in our area have risen dramatically. We have a large house in a nice town but it has not been remodeled. No way is it anywhere near what Zillow says. Look up other online appraisal sites such as Eppraisal, realestate.com, realtor.com and chase home valuation. </p>
<p>A property appraisal does not count whether your property is remodeled or not. They appraise based on square footage. A brand new kitchen counts for market value and speeds a sale but it is not counted on appraisal. OP can look up the house on Zillow and subtract the amount owed to find equity. Zillow is not super accurate. They are generally within $20k in my neighborhood. Good enough for your financial aid reports. Do not use your tax assessment for value. </p>
<p>I had to get an appraisal when we refinanced our home. They absolutely want to see the condition of the home and it does matter. And they take photos of each room. </p>
<p>I don’t see how that is any more (or less) accurate than Zillow. We had a professional appraisal done within the past several years as part of a refinancing. The Zillow estimate I just got is much closer to the appraisal figure than the federal housing number provided from the link above.</p>
<p>I think that Zillow uses comparables and specific market data. It looks like the federal housing number is simply based on a broad housing inflation index.</p>
<p>Zillow has always been inaccurate, sometimes on the low side, sometimes on the high side. Plus the estimate should be what you sell today, not in 30 days to get the best price. Just keep that in mind.</p>