Zillow is a billion-dollar website that provides automated estimates that purport to figure the sales value of every residence in the United States. Zillow tries to accomplish this task by using a fancy program which crossreferences factors which affect home values, but here's a story I have heard from property 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 web for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll discover many testimonials by upset homeowners and skeptical real estate purchasers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in The Fairways 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 value. 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 (for now) remains popular with some real estate shoppers. Real estate sellers and property shoppers should understand that there is not a single community in The Fairways where either a bank or tax collector uses Zillow for tax assessment or appraisals. Our expert advice is to take estimates from any computer with a grain of salt. Putting too much reliance into a website can cause a lot of disappointment.

Phone Nesbitt Realty today for a free comparative market analysis of your property's market value. We promise that a computer won't set the value. Rather, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty real estate pro will take into account the complicated variables which make up your property's value.