How Much Is My Home Worth? Market Value, Assessed Value, and Equity Explained
Published by Cash Flow Deals · Last updated 2026-08-05 · Published and reviewed for compliance by Camilo Palacio, a Florida Licensed Realtor
Your home has at least three separate numbers attached to it, and they're rarely the same. Market value is what a real buyer would pay today. Assessed value is what your county uses to calculate your property tax bill, usually based on a mass-appraisal model updated on a set schedule, not in real time. Equity is market value minus your remaining mortgage balance and any liens, and it's the number that actually determines what lands in your pocket at closing. Cash Flow Deals works from market value and your actual payoff to build a real net number, not a tax-roll figure.
| Cash Flow Deals | Traditional Listing | |
|---|---|---|
| Value basis | Direct review, current market conditions | Agent CMA plus buyer offers |
| Speed | Often same day for a locked number | Days to weeks for a market analysis |
| Fees | Flat fee, no commission | 5-6% commission split between agents |
| What determines your payout | Locked net price minus payoff, nothing else deducted | Sale price minus commission, closing costs, and payoff |
Market Value Isn't the Same as What's On Your Tax Bill
Your county's tax-assessed value and your home's actual market value are calculated by two completely different processes for two completely different purposes. Assessors typically use a mass-appraisal model, a statistical approach applied to thousands of properties at once, updated on a set annual or biennial cycle rather than continuously. That means the assessed value on your tax bill can lag real market conditions by months or longer, especially in a fast-moving market.
Market value, by contrast, is whatever a real buyer is willing to pay right now. It moves with interest rates, local inventory, and buyer demand in a way a once-a-year tax assessment simply can't track.
Equity: The Number That Actually Matters When You Sell
Market value tells you what your house could sell for. Equity tells you what you actually get to keep. The formula is straightforward: your home's market value, minus your remaining mortgage balance, minus any other liens like a second mortgage or a judgment, equals your equity.
A house can be "worth" a healthy market value and still leave a seller with thin proceeds if the mortgage balance is high or if a home equity loan or lien is attached to the title. Equity, not market value alone, is the number that determines what's actually possible at closing.
How to Get a Real Market Value Number
An online estimate gives you a rough starting figure. A real estate agent's comparative market analysis adds local judgment and recent comparable sales specific to your neighborhood. A licensed appraisal, the most rigorous option, is what a buyer's lender will ultimately require before funding a purchase.
Each step up in rigor costs more time or money, but also produces a number that's harder to challenge.
Turning That Number Into an Actual Sale
Once you know your equity, the next question is how to convert it into cash without losing a chunk of it to fees and delays. Cash Flow Deals reviews your property directly and locks a net price before repairs are scoped, using a novation-based, flat-fee process arranged with a licensed local broker partner instead of a standard listing.
That locked number, minus your actual mortgage payoff, is what you can expect to walk away with, without guessing at commission or closing cost percentages first.
Common questions
What's the difference between market value and assessed value?
Market value is what a real buyer would pay for your home today. Assessed value is a figure your county calculates, usually with a mass-appraisal model updated on a fixed schedule, used specifically to set your property tax bill. The two can be close or far apart depending on how recently your area was reassessed.
How do I calculate my home equity?
Take your home's current market value and subtract your remaining mortgage balance and any other liens on the property, such as a second mortgage or a judgment. What's left is your equity.
Does my home's tax-assessed value equal what I could sell it for?
Usually not exactly. Assessed value is set on a periodic schedule using a mass-appraisal model applied across many properties at once, so it can run higher or lower than what a buyer would actually pay in today's market.
Who determines my home's market value?
No single authority sets it. Market value is effectively whatever a willing buyer and willing seller agree to in an actual sale. Online estimators, agent CMAs, and licensed appraisals are all different attempts to predict that number before a real transaction happens.
Keep reading
What this means for your options
A value estimate is a starting point, not a guaranteed number. Our process tests your home against the real market -- real buyers, real comps -- before you commit to a price.
Wait and see
Keep the property as-is and hope conditions improve. The mortgage, insurance, and upkeep keep costing money while you wait, with no set date for things to turn around.
List with a traditional agent
Standard MLS listing, typically 5-6% in commission, and a financed buyer whose deal depends on appraisal, inspection, and lender approval — any of which can fall through after weeks on market.
Sell to Cash Flow Deals
No repairs, no showings, no financing contingency on your side — our novation structure connects you with a bank-financed buyer at a price locked at signing. Usually within one business day.
See your selling options before you decide anything.