Just twelve months ago many homeowners had a pretty good idea of what their houses were worth, and after a decade of house price gains most were very happy with the level of equity that they had in their homes. However, over the past year house prices have been falling and this has resulted in many homeowners simply losing track of what their property might now be worth.

There are many reasons for the falling prices of homes for homeowners, mainly being the current credit crunch, which will new home buyers off the market as there are no mortgages available anymore.

There are a number of reasons why you may be looking to get your property valued. You may be thinking about putting your home on the market and moving on, in which case you clearly need an idea of what you will get for it. You may be thinking about borrowing against the equity in your property, and will need to provide the lender with details on the value of the home. You may simply be curious to find out what your house is not worth of nearly a year of month on month home price falls.

It is vital in the current climate to try and get the most accurate valuation on your property so that you know what the house is worth following nearly a year of home price drops. You can get an estate agent to come out and provide you with a valuation on the property. However, there is a risk that you could end up with a valuation that is either too high or too low depending on whether the estate agent is looking to get increased commission on the sale of the house or whether the estate agent wants to try and get your property sold as quickly as possible.

This is why it is a good idea to get a valuation from around three different estate agents in the area. Once you have received the figure from each estate agent you can compare them to see whether the valuations are vastly different from each agent or pretty much the same sort of figure. You should not let on that you have already had a valuation to the second and third estate agents otherwise you may find that they provide a valuation based on the one that you have already received rather than a totally independent valuation.

You can also help yourself further by doing your homework. All you need to do is check the prices of other houses for sale in your area that are similar to yours and see whether they are going for the same sort of price that the estate agent has priced your property at. By checking out the prices of other properties that are already for sale you can get an even better idea of the true price of your house.

Homeowners should be prepared for disappointment when getting a valuation, as the chances are that you property is worth a lot less than it was this time last year. However, try to avoid inflating the asking price if you are putting the house up for sale as otherwise you could find that your property is simply overpriced and will not sell.

If your property does not sell at your desired price and you still have equity in your home, then home owner loans could help to improve your current home removing the need to move. For more information on property prices and finding out your properties worth read the articles on try and buy your next home