Zillow is a billion-dollar website that "gives" automated estimates that claim to calculate the market value of every home in the United States. Zillow tries to accomplish this task by using a complicated logarithm that compares factors which affect real estate values, but here's a typical story I have heard from real estate 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 research the Internet for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll find many testimonials by upset property owners and skeptical property buyers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in Alexanderia say that Zillow's estimates 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 astounding 5% that means that a z-estimate is only within $25,000 of the asking price.

Yet Zillow still remains popular with some people. Home sellers and property shoppers should understand that there is not a single community in Alexanderia where either a mortgage lender or tax collector uses Internet for tax assessment or appraisals. Our professional advice is to take "valuations" from any website at arm’s length. Putting too much trust into a website can cause a lot of unnecessary anxiety.

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