Can I depend on Zillow to calculate the sales price of my real estate in Big Rocky Forest?
Zillow is a popular Internet marketer that provides automated estimates that claim to figure the ideal price of every residence in the United States. Zillow tries to accomplish this feat by using a fancy program that compares factors which alter home values, but here's a typical story I have heard from real estate 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 countless posts by upset homeowners and leery home shoppers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in Big Rocky Forest report that Zillow's estimates have a margin of error of around 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 sales 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 still remains popular with some buyers and sellers. Home sellers and real estate shoppers should know that there is not a single neighborhood in Big Rocky Forest where either a bank 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 trust into a computer logarithm can cause a lot of unnecessary anxiety.
Contact us today for a free comparative market analysis of your property's worth. We promise that a computer won't set the value. Rather, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty Realtor will account for the many variables which make up your real estate's sales value.
