Zillow is a billion-dollar Internet marketer that provides "z-estimates" which claim to figure the ideal price of each home in the United States. Zillow tries to reach this goal this task by using a complicated program that compares factors which alter real estate values, but here's a typical story I have heard from home sellers in Northern Virginia:

Our home was recently appraised for 650K. Zillow estimates the value at 521K. The estimate makes us one of the lowest priced homes in the subdivision. We have all upgrades in our home and it is the largest of the homes that were originally built in this subdivision. It was appraised at 750K before 2009. Our home has a basement. Neighbors do not have basement on one side and you appraised higher. Really? -- James E. - Fort Hunt

If you Google the web for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll discover countless complaints by upset property owners and leery home purchasers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in Northern Virginia say that Zillow's valuations have a margin of error of approximately 20%. Even if we assume the margin of error is only 10%, in Northern Virginia that means a "z-estimate" is only within $50,000 of the actual market value. If the margin of error is an unlikley 5% that means that a z-estimate is only within $25,000 of the asking price.

Yet Zillow (for now) remains popular with some people. Home sellers and home buyers should know that there is not a single neighborhood in Northern Virginia where either a mortgage lender or tax collector uses Internet for tax assessment or appraisals. Our professional advice is to take estimates from any online site with a grain of salt. Putting too much stock into a website can cause a lot of irration.

Phone Nesbitt Realty today for a free comparative market analysis of your property's worth. We promise that a website won't set the ideal price. Instead, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty real estate agent will take into account the many variables which make up your property's ideal price.