Zillow is a billion-dollar website that "gives" computerized estimates which purport to calculate the market value of every home in the United States. Zillow tries to achieve this this task by using a sophisticated algorithm that crossreferences factors which impact home values, but here's a 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 Internet for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll discover many complaints by angry homeowners and leery real estate buyers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in Tremont Gardens report that Zillow's valuations have a margin of error of approximately 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 (for now) remains popular with some real estate shoppers. Home sellers and property buyers should know that there is not a single neighborhood in Tremont Gardens where either a mortgage lender or tax collector uses Internet for tax assessment or appraisals. Our professional advice is to take estimates from any website at arm’s length. Putting too much trust into a computer logarithm can cause a great deal of disappointment.

Call Nesbitt Realty today for a free comparative market analysis of your property's market value. We promise that a website won't set the value. Instead, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty real estate pro will account for the complicated variables which make up your real estate's ideal price.