Illustrative composite — not a live listing, not an appraisal.
RAAM score
76.4/ 100
Scored for a relocating buyer
Weighted toward value, condition, and outdoor access — the buyer who is priced out of Asheville or Charlottesville and still wants mountain access.
Roanoke is the affordable Southwest Virginia hub. A mid-$300s listing is the product you can actually put in front of a remote worker or retiree who will not write a $550k check.
Price
$329,000
Beds
3
Baths
2
Living area
1,620 sqft
Lot
12,197 sqft
Year built
1968
What holds up
Price sits near the local median, so the value conversation is about this house, not about whether they can enter the market at all.
Wasena gives walkable access to the greenway and a short drive to downtown and Carilion — useful when the buyer is comparing “mountain town” against a spreadsheet.
Lot is large enough for a relocator coming from a denser metro; light and outdoor space are the reasons they left.
The report can say plainly what the listing photos will not: systems age, remaining useful life, and what the price actually buys per square foot.
Watch-outs
Confirm city versus county versus Salem. The listing city string is not a jurisdiction. Tax rate, assessment cycle, and school assignment can change at that line.
1968 mechanicals are the negotiation. Budget a furnace/AC conversation before the first showing, not after inspection day.
This is not an appraisal and not a condition report. It is pre-work so the buyer arrives with fewer fantasy must-haves.
Score breakdown
Value for money86/100 · 28% → 24.1
Condition & systems68/100 · 20% → 13.6
Lot size & light82/100 · 18% → 14.8
Commute access74/100 · 14% → 10.4
School quality70/100 · 10% → 7.0
Home age58/100 · 6% → 3.5
Community mix75/100 · 4% → 3.0
How you'd use this with a client
Some agents attach the brief; others keep it as prep. Both work.
Send it with the listing
Send it before the showing so the first conversation is about this house, not about Roanoke versus the internet.
Use the watch-outs as your question list. You already know the answers — they need them written down.
If the score is mid-70s, say so. An honest 76 beats a brochure that pretends every listing is a 92.
Or use it as prep
Not ready to put a scored report in a client's inbox? The brief still earns its keep on your side of the conversation.
Read it before the showing. Highlights and watch-outs tell you what will land and what will push back — so you are answering questions, not discovering them in the driveway.
Use the weight breakdown to rehearse trade-offs: what this house wins on, what they are giving up to hit their top criteria, and whether that math still works for them.
Walk into price talk knowing where the score supports the ask and where it does not. A strong value line can hold the number; thin condition or age gives you room to counter — or permission to walk.
Want this on a client's shortlist?
Send me five addresses — a live shortlist is ideal, a listing you're taking to market works too. Reply to the email or use the form below. Same format, no cost. I want the blunt notes on what's wrong. White-label and bulk are on the table if this is useful; they're not required for the five free reports.