Can I rely on some Internet company to figure out the market value of my property in Blue Mountain?
Zillow is a popular website that "gives" computerized estimates which claim to calculate the ideal price of each property in the United States. Zillow tries to accomplish this feat by using a fancy logarithm that crossreferences factors which affect property 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 search the Internet for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll find many testimonials by upset homeowners and leery home buyers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in Blue Mountain 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 market 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. Property owners and real estate buyers should know that there is not a single community in Blue Mountain where either a bank or tax collector uses Zillow for tax assessment or appraisals. Our expert advice is to take estimates from any online site with a grain of salt. Putting too much trust into a website can cause a great deal of irration.
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 market value. Rather, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty expert will take into account the unique variables which make up your home's market value.
