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Zillow is finding Home Buyers and Sellers. It is somewhat new unlike House Values and other websites that you might find in cyberspace to see what the value of your house is.
Are these good places to find your value no, not really. You should not play monopoly with your home this is the largest investment in most peoples lives. Your home deserves more.
I stayed away from discussing Zillow for quite sometime but when it negatively effects my potential Sellers and Home Buyers, I feel the need to express my concerns.
Many times the values are either off in your favor or off in such a way that it hurts your listing or as a Home Buyer you offer too much.
Lets take an example say your house is showing a value of $400,000 in Zillow. Your Realtor produces a CMA (comparative market analysis of the homes that have sold in your area along with the homes for sale and in pending sale) and concludes that your house value is $450,000.
At this point, Zillow and the other home value websites will hurt your chances of getting your price. Home Buyers as well as Sellers are visiting these websites and concluding that the value they see is the correct value. Which is a mistaken premise, most of the time.
Zillow also offers Sellers as well as Realtors another place to advertise a home for sale which is a way of gathering more information for their website.
I have noticed on the Zillow site that there have been some owners who have asked that there home be removed from Zillow. It is important to realize that once you place your home in Zillow it is Zillows information to keep think twice before doing this. It might come back to bite you!
I found an excellent article written by Christine Forgione, a Realtor in Queens County, New York that is worth reading. Christine writes to a Seller as to why she did not list their house in Zillow. Be sure to read this great article, Mr. Seller and decide if it makes sense to you.
Zillow should only be used as a starting point but not as an absolute value. Even Zillow, states that the home value that they compute is NOT an appraisal and is merely a starting point. Recently, the State of Arizona has asked Zillow to Cease and Desist in their State
Of course there are also those values on Zillow which are too high. This too, can hinder a Seller. If you list your house over market value, the days on the market count against you with a Buyer. By the time you realize that your asking price is too high, you have lost many potential Buyers and will more than likely receive a lower offer.
A Realtor not only uses the history of Solds in the neighborhood, the Realtor also uses the condition, the added amenities of a home and concessions of Sellers in compiling the value of a house. Until a computer and algorithm can replace Realtors and Appraisers, take in concessions and amenities, it is best to obtain your value from a professional and not a website.
Food for thought anyone up for discussion? love to get your comments on this below or simply email me perhaps you would like to have a CMA
Articles for Buyers and Sellers:
What Does A Realtor Do When I Want To See A House or Condo?
Should I Remodel How Much Do I Get Back?
Why Should A Seller or Buyer Choose Remax?
First Time HomeBuyers Check Off List Part II “ Write An Offer
Fist Time HomeBuyers Check Off List Part I
Sellers, Do You Know What You Should Expect?
Tips in Preparing Your Home For Sale
Hey Gena – Great, loved it! Thank you and yes it was great talking with you today!
btw, you have a very pretty blog – it is so organized and neat.. (I am being serious).
Thank you Christine. I was very impressed with your article as you can see and after reading it, I was compelled to address the Zillow option.
Hi Gena,
Zillow is a double-edged sword. There are many instances when I have had borrowers go to Zillow and their property value is significantly lower than what they thought it would be per the site. Then an actual appraisal more often than not is much higher than zillow. Then I become the hero! On the flip side, in newer areas, zillow tends to inflate comps and doesn’t take into consideration days on market. When refinancing homes built within the past 2-3 years, zillow is almost always 3-5% above peak value.
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I always check the Zestimate before deciding whether or not to place a sellers listing on Zillow. If it is lower I will not place the listing because I do not want my sellers to have to go head to head with a buyer sporting bad advice. What is the point if you are priced fairly?
Jodie, absolutely correct. The other thing Zillow does not and cannot get is the changing market until after the fact as well as the condition of the house. Both playing huge rolls in the value.
Hello Tucson, sorry to have picked your brain without asking…I think a lot of us have had the same thoughts but have been sitting on the sidelines thinking that as long as it didn’t effect “my buyer” or “my seller” we would just look the other way. But, in the long run it effects everyone just as the irresponsible bad loans have and are going to effect everyone. It’s time to stand up and be heard. Let the public know what they are getting into and how this could effect them adversely. Thanks for taking the time to comment. Hope your brain is ok after being picked!
Laurie, that is what I think a lot of Realtors have thought…as long as it benefits my client, it’s ok but I feel that we need to step up and realize that it can also effect negatively and look at the overall effect which I believe can come back and bite our clients. The more the client knows, the better decsions they can make.
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