Can I trust Zillow estimates?

Zillow is a popular website that provides automated estimates which claim to calculate the market value of every residence in the United States. Zillow tries to accomplish this feat by using a sophisticated logarithm that crossreferences factors which affect property 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 search the web for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll find countless posts by upset property owners and leery home shoppers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in The_palazzo report that Zillow's estimates 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 market value. If the margin of error is an improbable 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. Real estate sellers and real estate shoppers should know that there is not a single neighborhood in The_palazzo where either a mortgage lender or tax collector uses Internet for tax assessment or appraisals. Our professional advice is to take estimates from any computer at arm’s length. Putting too much stock into a computer can cause a great deal of unnecessary anxiety.

Reach out to us today for a free comparative market analysis of your property's value. We promise that a computer won't set the market value. Instead, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty expert will account for the complicated variables which make up your home's market value.