I see advertisements for “free CMA”. What is a CMA and how much does it usually cost? sometimes is a “comparative market analysis” and sometimes it the letters stand for “competitive market analysis”. A market analysis is how real estate agents determine how much a house will sell for. The CMA compares homes that are similar to the subject home and are in the same area and have sold in the last year.
Most real estate agents will do a CMA to determine how much a property might sell for so that it can be priced right.
To date I have never found a real estate agent who charges home owners for a CMA, yet many advertise that they will provide a free CMA. Agents and real estate companies sometimes charge banks for a BPO, which is a “broker price opinion”, which is pretty much the same as a CMA but it isn’t free.
The free CMA should not be confused with the appraisal which is done by and appraiser and costs a few hundred dollars. They use the same methodology that is used for the CMA but the appraisal is more detailed. The “zestimate” on Zillow is more similar to a CMA but not as accurate because the zestimate is an “auto valuation” done with software using data which may or may not be accurate. The CMA is more accurate than the zestimate.
Is a free CMA a goof value? I guess it depends upon who is doing it.
