Comparable Sales
Recent sales of similar nearby properties, used to support an appraiser's opinion of value.
Comparable sales, comps for short, are the evidence base behind almost every residential appraisal. An appraiser typically pulls three to six recently sold homes in the same neighborhood, with similar square footage, bedroom count, lot size, and condition, then adjusts each one for differences against the subject property.
Strong comps are recent (ideally within 90 days), close by (often within a mile or even on the same street in dense areas), and genuinely similar in style and quality. When good comps don't exist, appraisers expand the search radius or time window and adjust further, which introduces more subjectivity.
Buyers and sellers can pull their own comps before listing or making an offer to sanity-check pricing. Agents will do this as part of a CMA, comparative market analysis, which is a less formal cousin of the appraisal.
Related terms
Other terms you'll see alongside Comparable Sales
An independent valuation of a property by a licensed appraiser, used to confirm that the home is worth what the buyer agreed to pay.
The most probable price a property would bring in an arm's-length sale between a willing buyer and willing seller.
A licensed real estate agent who represents the buyer's interests in a home purchase transaction.
A licensed real estate agent who represents the homeowner selling a property, also called a listing agent.
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