Can I rely on some Internet company to appraise the sales price of my real estate in Stratford Hills?
Zillow is a billion-dollar website that "gives" automated estimates that claim to calculate the ideal price of every property in the United States. Zillow tries to achieve this this feat by using a fancy logarithm which compares factors which alter home 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 Internet for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll discover many complaints by angry homeowners and skeptical home purchasers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in Stratford Hills claim that Zillow's valuations have a margin of error of about 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 buyers and sellers. Home sellers and home buyers should understand that there is not a single neighborhood in Stratford Hills where either a mortgage lender or tax collector uses Internet for tax assessment or appraisals. Our expert advice is to take "valuations" from any website with a grain of salt. Putting too much trust into a website can cause a great deal of confusion.
Email one of our local experts today for a free comparative market analysis of your property's market value. We promise that a website won't set the value. Rather, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty real estate pro will measure the unique variables which make up your real estate's market value.
