Zillow is a popular Internet marketer that "gives" computerized estimates which purport to calculate the sales value of every home in the United States. Zillow tries to achieve this this task by using a fancy logarithm which compares factors which alter property 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 find countless posts by angry homeowners and leery home buyers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in Hamptons Grove 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 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 still remains popular with some buyers and sellers. Property owners and home purchasers should know that there is not a single community in Hamptons Grove where either a bank or tax collector uses Zillow for tax assessment or appraisals. Our professional advice is to take "valuations" from any computer with a grain of salt. Putting too much trust into a computer can cause a great deal of irration.

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