What matters most
- check_circle
The strongest comp set is usually smaller than homeowners think.
- check_circle
Distance, age, size, lot, condition, and utility should all tighten before you add more sales.
- check_circle
A comp is only persuasive if you can explain why that buyer would have considered your home a practical alternative.
Start with the subject property profile before you chase any sales.
Advanced comp work begins with discipline about the house you are defending. Build a one-page subject profile: living area, lot size, year built, bed and bath count, stories, garage, condition, updates, view, pool, and any obvious functional issues. Without that baseline, every comp choice becomes arbitrary.
This is the part homeowners skip because it feels obvious. It is not obvious. If your own profile is fuzzy, you will quietly accept bad comps that look close enough on paper but are stronger homes in the ways that actually move buyers.
Tighten the ring before you widen it.
The first pass on comp selection should stay tight. Same neighborhood if possible. Similar age band. Similar square footage. Similar lot utility. Similar level of renovation. Once you have the best nearby sales, only widen the map or date range if the first ring does not give you enough quality evidence.
Homeowners often reverse that logic. They collect everything remotely nearby, then try to explain the differences away. That is backwards. The better approach is to start with the closest substitutes and expand only when the market data forces you to.
- arrow_right_altUse the smallest reasonable geography first.
- arrow_right_altKeep the sale dates as close as practical to the valuation date.
- arrow_right_altThrow out obvious outliers, even if they help your argument.
Condition is not a footnote. It is often the case.
In residential protests, condition differences do real work. A renovated kitchen, newer roof, updated systems, or strong curb appeal can make a nearby sale a bad comp for an older, tired house. The county may still use it because it is simple to slot into a mass-appraisal model. Your job is to show why a real buyer would not see the homes as equivalent.
That is why photos matter. Buyers pay for condition. Appraisers know this. ARB panels know this. You should be ready to show the difference, not just say it exists.
Build a grid that reads like an argument.
Once you have the sales, lay them out in a simple grid. Address. Sale date. Sale price. Price per square foot. Living area. Year built. Condition notes. Any standout feature differences. A clean grid lets the reader compare the sales quickly and see where your property belongs.
This is where advanced work separates itself from amateur work. Advanced comp packets do not merely list sales. They show why those sales point toward a narrower value range than the district chose.
What not to do
Do not dump screenshots without a summary. If the panel has to guess why you included a sale, the sale is not helping enough.
How Caddy Pro thinks about comps.
The point of an advanced comp workflow is not to imitate a spreadsheet hobby. It is to reduce noise until the remaining evidence feels undeniable. Caddy Pro approaches that the same way a sharp analyst would: tighten the subject profile, narrow the comparison set, document condition, and turn the final packet into a concise narrative instead of a photo album.
Homeowners do not lose protests because they lack access to every data point. They lose because they do not know which data points matter most. Better comp work fixes that.
FAQ
How many comps should I bring to a typical residential protest?
Usually three to five strong comps are more persuasive than a huge stack. The goal is clarity, not volume.
Should I include a comp that helps my case even if it is obviously superior to my home?
No. Weak comps damage credibility. The district only needs to show that your comparison set is sloppy to weaken everything around it.
