Earlier this month, we reported the top five reasons why your home could be spending too much time on the market. The first and most common reason was listing a home price significantly more expensive than its worth. Now, with homeowners better than ever at predicting home prices, it’s even more important to list an accurate home price to make a speedy sale.

According to the latest National Home Price Perception Index, homeowners are listing their properties for about 1.7 percent more than the appraisal estimate—that’s the first time in nearly eight months that the gap between estimate and homeowner listing has decreased.

Although a slightly narrower gap between appraisal value and listing price may not seem immensely important, it could actually mean a quicker and smoother closing for both the homebuyer and the home seller. In some cases, if the listing price is much higher than the appraisal value, then the homeowner may have to bring additional cash to make the mortgage work.

With 71 percent of respondents to the Housing Opportunities and Market Experience Survey agreeing that it’s a great time to sell, appraisal rates throughout the country have drastically increased. In fact, they have grown 1.25 percent since May and 5.35 percent since this time last year.

Overall, as more sellers continue to join the housing market, it’s important to stay up-to-date on your home’s value so you know where you stand amongst the competition—and while appraisals may be increasing, this is not the only way to do this. A quick and easy method is simply asking your realtor to complete an analysis prior to listing your home. For more information about buying or selling a home, or to learn more about home financing, contact one of our mortgage specialists today.