With homes fetching record-high prices across Oahu, some homeowners may be wondering just how much their homes are worth.

Whether you are thinking about selling your home this year or not, it’s a good idea to know your home’s current value. You could use the equity in your home to purchase a new home, upgrade your exsisting home or cover other life expenses. Most people are familiar with national real estate websites that provide an instant home value estimate.

Unfortunately, these mainland websites are not well-suited for Hawaii’s unique market.

How are Locations' home value estimates different?

Unlike those mainland websites, which use ZIP codes to estimate home values, the Locations Home Valuator was designed to use neighborhood boundaries. While ZIP codes work just fine to determine values on the mainland, where neighborhoods tend to be larger and more homogenous in terms of housing types, on Oahu neighborhood data provides a more accurate home value estimate.

For example, one of the island’s most densely populated ZIP codes, 96816, stretches from Kapahulu to Kahala and includes everything from condos priced below $200,000 to beachfront estates that can command tens of millions of dollars.

No automated tool, no matter how sophisticated, can produce an accurate home estimate for a ZIP code this varied. In our tests, the home values provided by the Locations Home Valuator were within 10 percent of actual sold prices 94 percent of the time, whereas the leading national website’s estimates were only within 10 percent of sold prices only 83.7 percent of the time.

Using the same technology as institutions like Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae and Bank of America, the Locations Home Valuator uses 27 data points to determine home value estimates. Because this state-of-the-art technology is continuously updated, you can rest assured that your home’s estimate is the most accurate for Hawaii’s market.

How do I find out what my home is worth?

Using the Locations Home Valuator is easy. If you don’t have a free LocationsHawaii.com account already, you’ll need to take a minute to create one. In addition to your home estimate, you’ll see a low- and high-end value, past quarterly estimates, nearby sales and a confidence rating.

You can also choose to receive monthly or quarterly updates on your home’s value, delivered for free to your inbox.

No online tool can replace your REALTOR®

Keep in mind that the Locations Home Valuator can’t replace the expertise of an experienced REALTOR®. Home features that may affect the accuracy of your home valuation include waterfront properties, luxury homes, view planes and more.

So, what are you waiting for? Find out how much your home is worth using the Locations Home Valuator and then contact your Locations agent for an even more detailed home value analysis.