Can I trust Zillow estimates?

Zillow is a billion-dollar Internet marketer that "gives" automated estimates which claim to calculate the market value of each home in the United States. Zillow tries to achieve this this task by using a sophisticated algorithm which compares factors which impact real estate values, but here's a typical story I have heard from home sellers in Northern Virginia:

Is Zillow accurate? — Many consumers have serious doubts about the accuracy of Zillow home value estimates.

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 Internet for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll discover many posts by angry homeowners and skeptical property shoppers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in Place_one say that Zillow's valuations have a margin of error of around 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 ideal price. If the margin of error is an impressive 5% that means that a z-estimate is only within $25,000 of the asking price.

Yet Zillow still remains popular with some buyers and sellers. Home sellers and property purchasers should understand that there is not a single community in Place_one where either a bank or tax collector uses Internet for tax assessment or appraisals. Our expert advice is to take estimates from any online site with a grain of salt. Putting too much trust into a computer logarithm can cause a lot of disappointment.

Talk to Nesbitt Realty today for a free comparative market analysis of your property's market value. We promise that a computer won't set the sales value. Rather, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty real estate agent will measure the many variables which make up your property's ideal price.