Be Careful of Zillow's Zestimates

Baltimore Real Estate Podcast with Lee Tessier

Whether you're buying or selling a home, you've probably come across Zillow and their Zestimate tool. Allow me to explain why you should tread lightly with the Zestimate and your home's value.

We have a lot of clients who get worked up over Zillow and their Zestimates. However, these Zestimates—Zillow's home value estimation tool—are wildly inaccurate sometimes. In fact, the Zillow CEO actually sold his house in 2016 for 40% less than what his site's Zestimate said it was worth.
Zillow hasn't walked through your property and they don't know about any upgrades you've done, and they can't factor in location. Your home's upgrades compared to features of other homes that have recently sold are crucial in determining its value. Zillow aggregates and average of area home values rather than doing a fine-tuned valuation of your property.

"Many sellers price their home inaccurately because of a Zestimate."

This is especially true with the market moving at as fast of a pace as it is right now. Many sellers think they can do it all on their own, but we see them end up pricing their home inaccurately thanks to a Zestimate.
Similarly, when buying a home, you want a real estate agent to help you compare properties to determine values of the homes you're looking at since Zestimates can be so far off. Zillow is the top website for real estate searches right now, but you need to work with an agent to see how homes you're interested in compare.
If you have any questions about Zillow when buying or selling a home or you'd like to know what your home is really worth, give us a call or send us an email. We'd be glad to help.