Can I trust a computer to appraise the market value of my property in The Fairways?
Zillow is a popular Internet marketer that provides "z-estimates" which purport to figure the market value of each home in the United States. Zillow tries to achieve this this task by using a sophisticated logarithm that crossreferences factors which alter real estate values, but here's a 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 research the Internet for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll discover countless posts by angry homeowners and leery 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 astounding 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. Property owners and real estate purchasers should know that there is not a single community in The Fairways 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 great deal of disappointment.
Contact one of our agents today for a free comparative market analysis of your property's worth. We promise that a computer won't set the ideal price. Instead, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty real estate agent will take into account the unique variables which make up your property's market value.
