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I talk to many of my clients who want to know whether or not they can trust Zillow to provide accurate home value estimates. I want to start off by saying that Zillow can be helpful to real estate consumers. There is a ridiculous amount of information available on that site, and most of it is helpful. However, Zillow’s home value estimation tool, the Zestimate, should be avoided. You might as well spin a wheel and pick a random price for your home.
If we go on Zillow's website, this is how they explain it: The Zestimate is created by an automatic software process designed by statisticians, and there is no ability for humans to manually alter the Zestimate for a specific property.
If we go on Zillow's website, this is how they explain it: The Zestimate is created by an automatic software process designed by statisticians, and there is no ability for humans to manually alter the Zestimate for a specific property.
Zillow's estimates are always off by about 8%, which first of all, is a ton of money. At a high price point, the margin error is huge.
To make that more clear, let's say a home is estimated to be worth $500,000. If the Zestimate is off by 10%, that's a difference of $50,000! If the home is underpriced, you're missing out on tens of thousands of dollars. If your home is overpriced by 10%, it will sit on the market for awhile, and you might have to drop the price, causing buyers to wonder what's wrong with the home.
Remember, Zillow can't take features or upgrades on your property and compare them to other recently closed homes in your area, even though doing so gives you a more updated value on your property. Zillow doesn’t know anything about your school district or the value of your location.
To make that more clear, let's say a home is estimated to be worth $500,000. If the Zestimate is off by 10%, that's a difference of $50,000! If the home is underpriced, you're missing out on tens of thousands of dollars. If your home is overpriced by 10%, it will sit on the market for awhile, and you might have to drop the price, causing buyers to wonder what's wrong with the home.
Remember, Zillow can't take features or upgrades on your property and compare them to other recently closed homes in your area, even though doing so gives you a more updated value on your property. Zillow doesn’t know anything about your school district or the value of your location.
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Zillow’s home value estimation tool, the Zestimate,
should be avoided.
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Zillow doesn't walk through your home or your neighborhood, and that's where my team can come in and place an accurate value on your home. As markets shift, Zillow's numbers become even less reliable.
Ultimately, if you want the most accurate price for your home, make an appointment with a real estate professional. We will take our time looking at your home and the local market data in order to give you the most accurate home value.
If you have any questions, or if you're interested in a home valuation, give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you!
