How accurate is Zillow “Zestimate”?
Have you ever wondered how accurate the Zillow “Zestimate” really is? In this video, Tom Horn explains how to determine the accuracy of Zillow in an area.
Zillow has gone back in time to compare their historic Zestimate with what the property actually sold for. They claim that their “estimated market value” is not an appraisal, but in reality an estimate of market value is an appraisal, but it’s one that cannot be used by a bank and one that you may want to think twice about before using to determine a sales price for your home. They provide a range in value which can vary widely. This information is based on public and user submitted data, both of which can vary in accuracy. County records in many states do not reflect newly finished areas or additions where a building permit was not obtained. Zillow explains that the further apart the spread from high to low the less accurate their estimate is. The counties in which various sources of information are available are typically the ones that are the most accurate.
- Zillow vs Appraisal Ethics Rules - June 14, 2017
- How accurate is Zillow “Zestimate”? - February 28, 2013
Thank you Appraiser Blogs for sharing my blog post and video about how to find out the accuracy of Zillow in you area.
Thanks for sharing.
Thank you. I try to read everything you publish. Services like yours are more valuable than ever.
The answer is NOT VERY accurate. Even Zillow CEO Spencer Rascoff accepted on a recent Bloomberg TV interview that 17% of Zestimates are more than 25% WRONG. With over 100 million homes with an average price of $200k that means that 17 million of them have zestimates more than 25% incorrect.
That in itself is appalling but Zillow make matters even worse by refusing all requests from homeowners to correct or delete these substantially inaccurate Zestimates. When Zillow behaves in such a socially unacceptable way then it is time it was subjected to some form of regulation so that homeowners can opt out of their nonsense valuations.