Comments on: Should You Trust Zillow for Your Home Valuation?

By: Mike

Mike — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 18:04:45 +0000

You’re absolutely right – these tools are only as good as the information you have. If your home has some valuable price history information, then these home price estimation tools can be quite accurate. But if you have owned your home for many years, if you just purchased new construction, if your home has had major renovation – or is in need of major renovation – then these tools are not going to give you a reliable prediction.

I did a detailed study of the accuracy of Zillow and EstiMike on my own site – estimike.com. I found that Zillow and EstiMike can be accurate when you have useful property information. If you don’t, then I wouldn’t trust the results, either.

By: Miss M

Miss M — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 21:29:30 +0000

Zillow isn’t that accurate but it’s decent for a free online resource and easy to use. Their information is quite current, I’ve seen sold data pop up within a week of a home being sold. It’s also good for checking out your neighbors homes, size, number of bedrooms etc. I’ve used it to scan the homes in neighborhoods I’m interested in, to get a feel for the typical size, age, etc within the area. Los Angeles was one of the first areas they covered so their info is pretty complete.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 04:46:12 +0000

@Ashley: Yea, but the fact that it is simply off to begin with makes me really skeptical.

@Matt: I’ve looked to our online system and I don’t think our mortgage company does that. I’ve looked at what some of the homes are listed for and it’s definitely lower by a few thousand dollars — but those homes haven’t sold. Does that factor in with a mortgage company?

I also plan to call our mortgage company either tomorrow or later next week to ask about a possible refinance.

@GetingUp: Thanks for stopping by!

@TML: Ashley said the same thing, but it makes me nervous that it would off to begin with. Then again those values may be spot on. That’s the tough part about home values. There isn’t a set indicator that this house is worth this much, etc. It’s all dependent on what someone will pay for it.

By: Mr. ToughMoneyLove

Mr. ToughMoneyLove — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 03:27:42 +0000

I think Zillow can help you track changes in value from year to year, even if the absolute values may be off. Also, you should absolutely track real estate as part of your net worth. If you are not building equity in your home, why do you own it?

By: GetingUp

GetingUp — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 01:47:05 +0000

Zillow does not value my home, or any in my area. I could have a Realtor do a comparison for me, but I use the tax valuation for simplicity. It seems to go up gradually, and very seldom go down, but over the long term, it should be a pretty good indicator.

And yes, I do use it in my net worth calculation.

By: Matt SF

Matt SF — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 17:00:37 +0000

I’ve used a couple tactics, and drawn an average between them.

1) Check your mortgage statement. Some lenders will keep track of homes sold around you without you doing any work at all.
2) Check the online resale values of homes in your neighborhood. This can be inaccurate since it’s a buyers or sellers market depending where you live, or it will not post the final selling price at closing, but it can give you a decent range.
3) Call your lender and ask to refinance or get a home equity loan. They will probably know better than you what your home is worth, because in the end, their decision probably matters more than your own.

By: Ashley @ Wide Open Wallet

Ashley @ Wide Open Wallet — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:50:22 +0000

I use Zillow when I’m curious to see what our house is worth. I wouldn’t base decisions on it, like what to sell it for, I would use a professional for that.

It does seem to be a little low and inconsistent. For example, it lists the house across the street from me about $30,000 higher and it’s smaller and backs up to a main street. So I know that’s not right. But I bet it’s pretty close as to the percentage the house has gone up or down.