Luckily it is not only you that wants to ensure that you are spending your money on an asset of equal or greater value. Your lender will want to know the answer to the same question. He will therefore employ the help of an assessor. The assessor will visit the property and do a market analysis on similar properties that have sold in the area over the last few years. The fewer comparables he has the harder it will be for him to use that information for finding a market value of the subject property. An alternative method would then be to try to determine the cost of replicating the structure and working from the land value and building costs.

Your lender and yourself will then know that the property you are looking to acquire is worth what you intend to pay for it. A problem could arise if the assessor deems the value of the property smaller than the agreed purchase price. If your REALTOR has done a good job for you he should have insured that there is a provision in the contract to buy real estate that allows you to terminate the contract if the property does not value to the intended purchase price.