In the appraising world these 3 words come up often to say the least. We sometimes tend to use them interchangeably - more often than not because in the non appraising world they can be to an extent. It’s easy to get caught up in that cycle but when the lines need to be clear at work here is how they break down. 

Price (noun): the amount of money expected, required, or given in payment for something. This is what the seller is asking for when selling a good or service - in our case the home that we are appraising.  Let’s say we have a motorhome we want to sell and we want to ask $30,000 for it. That does not mean it’s worth it and it does not mean that is what we will get but that’s what we would like to ideally sell it for. 

Cost (noun): an amount that has to be paid or spent to buy or obtain something. This is what the buyer is looking for/willing to pay for a good or service. Imagine you are out in the city on a hot day and you are thirsty and all you can think about is water. Then you come up on someone selling ice cold water out of a cooler for $2.00 a bottle. What is that water worth to you? Probably much more than the $2.00 at that point but either way you buy it just to cool down. 

Value (verb): estimate the monetary worth of (something). This is what the buyer and seller are willing to agree on as a fair price for the good or service. We make choices daily based on what we think the value of things are. Think about the bargain shoppers out there who will visit two, three maybe even four stores to get their grocery shopping done for the best deals. Or the people who will drive an extra mile or two to get gas cheaper. We choose what we buy and where we buy it based on the value we place on these things. 

Just like most things in the world these days this is not all just cut and dry but will hopefully help you keep things a little more clear in your mind when doing appraisals.