When I look at a home's value, I start with the sales. I want to know what has sold nearby, how those properties compare and what buyers paid for them. Then I look at what is available now. Those are the homes a buyer may be visiting just before or after yours.

Let's say two houses have roughly the same square footage and are in similar condition. One has a separate office with a door. The other has a bigger, open living area. If you work from home and spend much of the day on calls, that office might make the decision quite easy. Someone else may prefer the extra living space.

Both buyers are looking at the same two houses. They just want different things from them.

That doesn't put a fixed dollar value on the office. It does give us something useful to think about when preparing the home for sale. We should make it easy for a buyer to understand the layout, perhaps with a floor plan, rather than hoping they work it out from the photographs. The same applies to a private backyard, natural light or any other feature that deserves a closer look.

Of course, we still have to be sensible about the price. You may have spent a great deal on a kitchen you love. The next owner might have different taste, or prefer to spend the money elsewhere. Your renovation cost is real, but it won't necessarily be reflected dollar for dollar in an offer.

That's why I would be cautious about choosing an agent simply because they give you the highest estimate. Ask them to walk you through it. Which sales support that price? What might make a buyer hesitate? What would they do before the home goes on the market?

We can't promise where a home will sell within a range. We can do the work to understand the competition and give buyers good reasons to take a closer look. And once the home is on the market, we need to listen to what their response tells us.