Zillow is a popular website that "gives" automated estimates which claim to figure the ideal price of each home in the United States. Zillow tries to accomplish this task by using a complicated logarithm that crossreferences factors which affect 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 research the Internet for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll find many testimonials by upset homeowners and skeptical property shoppers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in Clifton_ridge claim that Zillow's valuations 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 ideal price. 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 real estate shoppers. Home sellers and home shoppers should understand that there is not a single community in Clifton_ridge where either a mortgage lender or tax collector uses Zillow for tax assessment or appraisals. Our professional advice is to take "valuations" from any computer at arm’s length. Putting too much trust into a computer can cause a great deal of confusion.

Reach out to one of our agents today for a free comparative market analysis of your property's value. We promise that a website won't set the market value. Rather, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty expert will account for the complicated variables which make up your property's ideal price.