Guide · November 9, 2026
How to price your house without a realtor, from public sale records
The price is the biggest choice in a sale by owner, and it is the part an agent is paid to get right. In Florida and Arizona the prices your neighbors received are public records. This guide shows where to find them, how to pick the ones that compare, and how to work out the least you can accept.
Key points
- Start with the least you can accept: your loan payoff, plus the costs the contract puts on you, plus any deed tax.
- Use recorded sales, which show what buyers paid. Asking prices on listing websites show only what sellers hoped for.
- In Florida the deed tax stamped on a recorded deed shows the price: at 70 cents per $100, $2,100 of tax means a price between $299,901 and $300,000 (section 201.02).
- In Arizona the affidavit of property value states the price, and the Maricopa County Assessor publishes those sales with the price and date.
- Compare houses on the same street or in the same subdivision, of the same size and age, sold in the last few months, in the same condition as yours.
- BIMINIO sends each written offer with the comparable sales we used, within 24 hours. Our cash offer is below full market value.
Why price is the biggest choice when you sell alone
When you list with an agent, the agent studies recent sales and suggests a price. When you sell by owner, that work is yours. A price set above what buyers have been paying keeps the house on the market while your mortgage, taxes, insurance and utility bills keep coming. A price set below what buyers have been paying gives money away on the first day.
This guide shows a method you can follow with public records. The recorded sales near your house supply the numbers.
Step 1: the least you can accept
Before you look at other houses, work out the lowest price that still closes. Add up these lines:
- Your mortgage payoff and any home equity loan, from a written payoff statement. Federal rules give a servicer 7 business days to send one after a written request.
- Any lien, judgment or unpaid property tax recorded against the house.
- In Florida, the deed tax of 70 cents for each $100 of the price, if the contract puts it on you.
- The title or escrow company's fees, the HOA papers and recording fees the contract puts on you.
- Any money you agree to pay toward the buyer's costs or the buyer's agent.
Work out what you keep with the net proceeds calculator →
Recorded sales show what buyers paid
Listing websites show asking prices. An asking price is what a seller hopes for, and some houses sell below it or never sell. A recorded sale shows what a buyer actually paid on a real day. Price from recorded sales and use active listings only to see what a buyer will compare your house with this week.
Both states put sale prices into the public record, by different routes.
Florida: read the price from the deed tax
Florida taxes every deed at 70 cents for each $100 of the price, or part of $100 (section 201.02). The tax paid is written on the recorded deed. Divide it by 0.007 and you have the price, to within $100. A deed with $2,100 of tax sold for a price between $299,901 and $300,000. In Miami-Dade County the rate on a single-family home is 60 cents per $100, so divide by 0.006 there.
You rarely need to do the sum yourself. Your county property appraiser is the first place to look. The Hillsborough County Property Appraiser's site, for example, has a Sales Search next to its Basic and Advanced searches. The clerk of court keeps the recorded deeds themselves.
Read the guide: Florida seller closing costs and the deed tax →
Arizona: the affidavit of property value
Arizona records each sale deed with an affidavit of property value, signed by the seller and the buyer, that states the total price, the date of sale, the cash down payment and how the buyer paid (section 11-1133).
The Maricopa County Assessor publishes sales data taken from these recorded affidavits, with the parcel number, the seller, the buyer, the sale date and the sale price. Phoenix and Glendale are both in Maricopa County. The affidavit also says whether personal property worth 5 percent or more of the price came with the house, which can explain a sale that looks high.
Step 2: choose sales that compare
A comparable sale is a recent sale of a house a buyer would treat as a close substitute for yours. The closer the match, the less you have to guess. Use these rules in order:
- Same area: the same subdivision or the same few streets first, then a wider circle only if you must. A school zone line or a busy road can change prices from one side to the other.
- Same type: a single-family house against single-family houses, a condo against condos in the same building or complex.
- Similar size: living area within a close range of yours, and the same number of bedrooms and bathrooms if you can.
- Similar age and build: a house from the same years, with the same kind of roof and the same kind of construction.
- Recent: the last few months first. Prices move, and an older sale tells you about an older market.
- Same condition: a renovated house against renovated houses, a house needing work against houses that needed work.
- A normal sale: a sale between relatives, or a sale that included furniture, may not reflect the market. The Arizona affidavit asks about both.
Keep a comparison sheet
Put every sale you find into one sheet, one row per house, so you can see the pattern instead of remembering it. Leave out any sale you cannot fill in, because a missing figure can hide a real difference.
| Column | Where to find it |
|---|---|
| Address and parcel number | The county property appraiser or assessor record |
| Sale date and price | The recorded sale, or the Florida deed tax worked back to a price |
| Living area, bedrooms, bathrooms | The same county record |
| Year built and lot size | The same county record |
| Condition at sale | Old listing photos, or what neighbors tell you |
| Notes | Pool, garage, roof age, water view, busy road |
Step 3: adjust for the differences
No two houses match. Write each comparable sale in a row, list what it has that yours lacks and what yours has that it lacks: a pool, a garage, a newer roof, a larger lot, a view of water. A house with more than yours sold for more than yours would. A house with less sold for less.
Keep each adjustment honest. If you cannot say why a feature changes the price, leave it out. When three or four close matches agree, their prices tell you more than any adjustment you make.
Condition changes the buyer, and the price
A house that needs a new roof, new plumbing or foundation work sells to a different group of buyers. A buyer using a loan needs the house to pass the lender's appraisal. Buyers paying cash for a house that needs work subtract the repairs, the months the work takes and their own costs from the price of a finished house.
If your house needs work, price it against houses that sold needing work, and say so in the ad. Telling the buyer about problems you know is also your legal duty in both states.
Read the guide: how a cash offer is worked out →
Help with the price, if you want it
You can sell by owner and still pay for a price opinion. A licensed appraiser gives a written appraisal for a fee, using the same recorded sales. Some agents give an opinion of value. A buyer's lender orders its own appraisal in any case, and a loan can fail if that appraisal comes in below the contract price.
Read the guide: buyer's agents and paid help →
Common pricing mistakes in a sale by owner
Each mistake below costs time or money, and each has a fix.
- Pricing from what you paid plus what you spent. Buyers pay what the market pays today.
- Pricing from asking prices. Use recorded sales.
- Using a sale from a different subdivision or a different kind of house.
- Leaving out costs. Work out the least you can accept first.
- Waiting weeks before lowering a price that brings no showings. Review the price after each two weeks with no offer.
- Ignoring the condition of the house. A buyer's inspector will find what you skip.
How BIMINIO prices an offer
BIMINIO uses the same public records. Each written offer comes within 24 hours, with the comparable sales we used, so you can check our numbers against your own list. We buy as is, pay the closing costs and charge no fees.
A cash offer is below full market value, because we pay for the repairs, the costs of the sale and the months we own the house. Price your house both ways, then compare what you keep from each.
Read the guide: cash offer vs listing, the costs →
Want a number to compare? BIMINIO buys in Florida and Arizona, as is, with no agent and no commission, and pays the closing costs. A written offer comes within 24 hours.