A transparent, 0–100 measure of a home's condition and health — grounded in the same standards appraisers, inspectors, and lenders already use. This page is the citeable reference for agents, appraisers, inspectors, and investors.
The POM Score is a component-weighted effective-age / condition index from 0 to 100: it estimates how a home is actually holding up — its structure, systems, updates, documentation, and resilience — by scoring each part against its known useful life, and it improves only when real facts improve.
| Discipline | Standard we use | What it grounds |
|---|---|---|
| Appraisal | Cost approach — effective age ÷ economic life depreciation (Appraisal Institute / Marshall & Swift)1 | How condition & age convert to a score; how it depreciates over time; the 0–100 ceiling. |
| Inspection | NAHB Study of Life Expectancy of Home Components2 + InterNACHI Estimated Life Expectancy Chart3 | The useful-life years for roof, HVAC, water heater, etc. |
| Lending | Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac UAD condition C1–C6 & quality Q1–Q64 | The band labels — defensible to a lender or appraiser. |
| Cost & ROI | RSMeans (Gordian) construction cost data5 + Cost vs. Value (Zonda)6 | Renovation cost ranges and recouped-value %. |
The score is a weighted blend of five pillars. Weights favor what actually costs a homeowner money and risk — the structure overhead and the systems inside — while still rewarding updates, transparency, and a resilient location.
| Pillar | Weight | What it measures (and its standard) |
|---|---|---|
| Structure | 25% | Roof, foundation, walls, windows — scored on remaining useful life (NAHB/InterNACHI). |
| Systems | 20% | HVAC, water heater, electrical, plumbing — remaining useful life. |
| Interior & Updates | 15% | Kitchen/bath recency & build quality (UAD Q1–Q6). |
| Documentation | 15% | Permits, disclosures, inspection on file, clean title. |
| Resilience & Location | 25% | Hazard exposure (FEMA NRI), insurability, neighborhood trend. |
Each component scores on how much of its useful life remains (new ≈ 100, end-of-life ≈ 10). Each pillar blends what we measured with how confident we are in it:
confidence × measured + (1 − confidence) × conservative priorround( min( Σ (weightᵢ × pillarᵢ), confidence ceiling, quality ceiling ) ), clamped 0–100Confidence rises with the source of each fact: public record → owner-stated → permit-matched → documented → independently verified. Better evidence both moves the score toward the truth and lifts the ceiling that gates the top "Pristine" band — which is what makes proving facts worthwhile.
| POM | Tier | Plain meaning | ≈ UAD |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90–100 | Pristine | New or fully renewed, top build quality, verified, low risk. Rare. | C1 |
| 80–89 | Excellent | Well kept, updated, strongly documented. | C2 |
| 70–79 | Healthy | Normal wear for its age, well maintained. | C2–C3 |
| 55–69 | Fair | Deferred maintenance creeping in, systems aging. | C3–C4 |
| 40–54 | Needs Attention | Significant deferred maintenance. | C4–C5 |
| 0–39 | At Risk | Major systems failing or a safety issue. | C5–C6 |
Thresholds are a display layer over the same 0–100 number and are tuned against real outcomes; the underlying math is unchanged.
When a component's age is unknown, we do not assume the worst. Following standard appraisal practice (absent contrary evidence, a component is presumed to date to the home), we seed its age from year built and mark it lower-confidence. The home shows a "Limited data — confirm to sharpen" note rather than a punitive label. Confirming the real age moves the number toward the truth and raises confidence.
Because each component scores on remaining useful life, the score drifts down naturally as a home ages — exactly like straight-line appraisal depreciation — as long as it is recomputed against today's date. POM recomputes on a monthly cadence, so the number reflects aging. Maintenance and renovations lower a component's effective age (raising the score); time raises it (lowering the score).
This is the question a sharp reviewer asks, so here is the precise answer:
The POM Score is never an additive point tally. It is always a fresh recompute from the home's current facts, clamped 0–100. A home at effective age 0 (as-new) is the best a condition score can be — you cannot be "younger than new," so 100 is a true ceiling, mirroring the appraiser's 0% depreciation / C1.
That's why the plan panel shows a recomputed projected total ("your plan takes you 70 → 81"), not the sum of the individual "+N"s. The individual numbers are labelled directional estimates; the plan total is the honest, clamped recompute. And because reaching 100 requires near-new condition across all five pillars plus full verification and low risk simultaneously, the ceiling almost never binds in practice. Where two homes both top out, the POM Verified badge and the dollar value continue to differentiate them — so motivation doesn't stop at the cap.
Costs are never a flat number. They follow the contractor/appraiser method — unit cost × quantity × regional factor — where quantity derives from the home's size:
| Project | Driver (quantity) | Unit cost basis5 |
|---|---|---|
| Roof | Roof squares = footprint × pitch (≈1.1–1.4); 1 sq = 100 sq ft | ≈ $350–$900/sq (3-tab) · $500–$1,500+/sq (architectural) |
| HVAC | Tons ≈ sq ft ÷ 500–600 (climate-adjusted) | ≈ $1,900–$2,300 / ton installed |
| Kitchen / bath | Tier (minor / mid / upscale) × size | Cost vs. Value tier ranges6 |
A ~1,700 sq ft single-story has ~18–22 roof squares; a 10,000 sq ft home is several multiples — so its roof cost is proportionally higher. Production source: RSMeans (the construction industry's standard cost database) and Zonda Cost vs. Value, regionalized by ZIP. Confidence: directional (±~20–30%) on a unit-cost model; tighter with a licensed RSMeans / Xactimate feed. Always shown as a range, labelled an estimate — not a bid.
Two different numbers, kept separate: the condition (POM Score) and the dollar value. Value is built in layers, most-rigorous last:
| Layer | Method | Confidence |
|---|---|---|
| 1. AVM baseline | ATTOM/CoreLogic estimate from public data | ±~7% (off-market)7 |
| 2. Condition adjustment | POM shifts value within the AVM band (capped); updated facts (sq ft, beds, baths, quality) re-run the AVM | directional |
| 3. Project recoup | Cost vs. Value % recouped per project (regional) — never the full cost | directional |
| 4. Agent CMA / appraisal | A licensed professional's opinion — overrides the AVM for material changes | highest |
~88%. Built entirely on established appraisal, inspection, and lending standards (above). An appraiser or inspector can follow every step.
~65% and rising. The weights and value magnitudes get validated against real sale prices and appraiser ratings as volume grows.
To raise it: (1) calibrate weights against actual sales & appraiser C-ratings (the data flywheel); (2) license RSMeans/Xactimate for cost precision; (3) a formal review by licensed appraisers & inspectors ("validated by…"); (4) track prediction error and recalibrate quarterly. The model is versioned (snapshots are immutable) so every historical score is reproducible and auditable.
2018 build · roof 2020 · HVAC 2018 · tankless water heater 2018 · PEX plumbing · well maintained · Tallahassee, FL (moderate wind risk).
| Pillar | Score | × weight |
|---|---|---|
| Structure | 78 | 19.5 |
| Systems | 66 | 13.2 |
| Interior & Updates | 59 | 8.8 |
| Documentation | 70 | 10.5 |
| Resilience | 74 | 18.5 |
| POM Score | 70 · Healthy | |
A well-kept 8-year-old home with young-but-original systems reads Healthy (70) — not "Fair." (An earlier build mislabeled it 62 by scoring unknown facts as zero; §5 fixes that.)