What is a CMA in real estate?
A CMA, or comparative market analysis, is an agent's estimate of what a home should sell for, based on similar homes that have sold nearby. It's the document behind most appraisals.
CMA meaning, in plain words.
CMA stands for comparative market analysis. The agent lines up the home being appraised against a handful of comparable properties that sold recently, adjusts for the differences, and lands on a likely price range.
You'll also hear it called a market appraisal, an appraisal report or a price opinion. In Australia the document is usually part of a listing presentation: the agent walks the owner through the comparables and explains where the home sits among them.
A CMA is an agent's opinion of a likely sale price. It is not a formal valuation, and it shouldn't be described as one. If an owner needs a valuation for a lender, a court or tax, that's a separate job for a valuer.
What goes in a CMA.
| Part | What it covers | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 1. The subject property | Address, land size, bedrooms, bathrooms, parking, condition, recent work. | Everything else is measured against it. |
| 2. Comparable sales | Three to six similar homes sold recently, close by, in the same price tier. | Owners trust sales that really happened more than an agent's say-so. |
| 3. Adjustments | Notes on how each comparable is better or worse: a bigger block, a renovated kitchen, a busier road. | No two homes match. The adjustments show your working. |
| 4. Market conditions | How many similar homes are on the market, how long they take to sell, whether prices are moving. | A sale from six months ago may not describe today. |
| 5. The price range | A range with the reasoning behind it, not a single number. | A range is honest about what a CMA can and can't know. |
A worked example.
Here is a fictional one. The streets, prices and homes below are made up to show the method.
The subject. A three-bedroom, one-bathroom house on a 600 square metre block at 14 Wattle Street. Original kitchen, good condition otherwise.
| Comparable | Sold | Price | How it compares |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 Banksia Avenue | 6 weeks ago | $905,000 | Same size and block. Renovated kitchen, so slightly better. |
| 31 Wattle Street | 3 months ago | $860,000 | Smaller block at 480 square metres. Same condition. |
| 2 Correa Court | 4 months ago | $880,000 | Same size. Quieter street, no through traffic. |
The agent weighs these up. The renovated kitchen explains why Banksia Avenue sold highest. The smaller block explains why Wattle Street sold lowest. The subject has the larger block and the older kitchen, so it sits between them. A fair range to show the owner might be $870,000 to $895,000, with the reasoning written next to each comparable.
That's the whole method. The skill is in choosing comparables the owner will accept and explaining the differences without bluffing.
Three common CMA mistakes.
- Picking comparables to flatter the number. Owners can check sales too. A CMA built to win the listing falls apart at the first question.
- Using old sales without saying so. Recent, nearby sales should carry the CMA. An older sale can sit beside them as supporting context with a note on how the market has moved since, but it shouldn't stand in for a recent comparable. Some states set rules on how recent and how close comparable sales must be (Queensland does), so check your state's requirements and write down why if you can't find enough suitable sales.
- Giving one number. A single figure promises more than the evidence can back. Show a range and say what would move it.
The CMA nobody asked for yet.
The best moment to offer a CMA is when a nearby home has just listed. The neighbours are asking what it means for their own place, and a new listing shows what they'd be competing against. It isn't a sale, so it has no achieved price. It's a reason to call, and the updated CMA should still rest on recent completed sales.
That makes it a good reason to call people already in your CRM: past appraisals, past vendors, owners you met at open homes. Keep the call short and local:
“Hi Sarah, it's Jess from [your agency]. Number 18 on your street has just come on the market with another agency. I'd be happy to update the appraisal I did for you, based on recent sales nearby, so you can see where you'd sit against it. Would that be useful?”
The free playbook has the rest: who to call first, the voicemail and text wording, replies when they push back, and the contact rules to check before you dial.
Where First Knock fits.
A CMA is something you do once you're talking to the owner. First Knock helps with the step before that. When another agency lists in your patch, it checks your CRM for every contact within 100 metres and emails the call list to the agent who owns that area, usually within 10 minutes. It doesn't write the CMA, and it doesn't decide who to call or what to say. That's still your job.
First Knock runs on LockedOn today and is offered to one agency per suburb. It needs a CRM you already keep up to date.