Zillow is a billion-dollar website that provides automated estimates which claim to calculate the market value of each home in the United States. Zillow tries to achieve this this feat by using a fancy program which compares factors which impact property 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 search the web for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll discover countless posts by upset property owners and skeptical home purchasers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in Marcey_creek 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 improbable 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. Real estate sellers and real estate buyers should know that there is not a single neighborhood in Marcey_creek where either a bank or tax collector uses Internet for tax assessment or appraisals. Our professional advice is to take "valuations" from any online site at arm’s length. Putting too much stock into a computer logarithm can cause a great deal of irration.

Talk to us today for a free comparative market analysis of your property's worth. We promise that a website won't set the value. Instead, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty real estate pro will measure the many variables which make up your real estate's market value.