Where do we start?

Zillow is one of the worst company concept ever thought up. It has been a company that has no regard for either their customer (as a person searching on the site you are not the customer the customer is real estate agent that buys your information. More about that in a second) or the public. Let’s start with how they screw the real estate agents. It has a business model that is designed to cannibalize the very people that made the company what it is today. They are trying to destroy the real estate industry. Why should that matter to you? Well Orson Hill Realty is a premier agent for Zillow. We have great Zillow reviews but that and $5 will buy you a cup of coffee. When an agent pays thousands of dollars a month to be a premier agent that cost is passed on to the consumer. It is hard for some agents to afford to be on Zillow and reduce their rates for sellers. Luckily we do not have that problem here at Orson Hill but I have had conversations with plenty of other Zillow advertisers. That is all Zillow is, a company that people advertise on and Zillow sells your information to the highest bidder.

Orson Hill Realty Zillow
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All I Did Was Click One Button On Zillow Now My Phone Won’t Stop Ringing

As mentioned above, real estate agents pay a lot of, and I mean a lot money to be listed on Zillow. Our company pays well over $3200 per month to have you tic that box next to our picture.  So as soon as you click that little box your information is sent to real estate agents, mortgage companies and anyone else that pays Zillow. They are not an MLS search site. They are nothing more than data mining service that sells buyer information to the real estate agent that will pay them the most money. That is why agents will relentlessly call, text and email you. Agents pay so much for your information it is like gold!

How Accurate is My Zestimate

Zestimates are about as accurate as the worst real estate agents lucky guess. Find the newest, greenest part time real estate agent from another state, send them a picture of your bathroom and ask them their opinion on price and that is about how accurate your home’s Zestimate is. Unless Mr. Zillow actually came to your home to see your fixtures, floorplan, updates and your land, then it is just a guess from an algorithm that has never seen your home. There is a reason a bank sends someone out to value a home. It is absolutely impossible to tell the value without seeing a home in person. It has hurt the real estate industry far more than it has helped. buyers and sellers have unrealistic expectations of value if they rely on Zestimates to value a property. Realtors see it all the time. Clients that will swear by Zestimates if it benefits them. A seller that wants to list their home for what the Zestimate says as long as it is higher than what the agent says. Or a buyer that wants to make a lowball offer because the Zestimate says it is 25% of the list price.

Zillow Zestimates Accuracy Sucks

Zillow Now Buys Homes

The public should be very concerned about a company that gives your a home value estimate (AKA Zillow Zestimate) on all the homes on Zillow then makes you an offer based on your neighborhood average home value. They have out of date real estate listings and the data is very inaccurate.  Not to mention, it is a huge conflict of interest for a company to make you think they are able to value your home then make you an offer on your home based on a home value they provide? As a real estate professional I would lose my broker’s license if I walked into your home and gave you my opinion of value then offered you that price. It is a disgrace that  Zillow is not held to the same standards ethics as the rest of us. They are destroying the real estate market for their own profit.

True Home Prices VS Zillow Zestimates

Countless times I have had buyers and sellers try to convince me that their home prices were what the Zillow Zestimate indicates. Keep in mind a person can convince themselves anything they want to. The only thing that sets value of a home is the market. Zillow doesn’t set it, your listing agent doesn’t set it, banks don’t set it the buyers in the market sets it. Your sale price should be set by you and your real estate agent. I have walked away from countless listings because a seller used the Zestimate as a starting point and went up from there. They had a wildly unrealistic expectation of their home’s value

Almost any real estate agent will give you a market analysis of your home for free

Most real estate agents will come our and give you a free CMA. That is when they come out and look at your home, go back to the office, find comps, adjust those comps and give a real value of your home. A seller should be skeptical of an agent that gives them a value over the phone without looking at the home. That is what we are saying here. It is impossible to give the true value of a home without seeing the home in person. You should also respect a Realtor that won’t give you a price on the first phone call. The agent needs to see the entire property to give you a list price that is accurate.

According to Zillow, “the vast majority of Zestimates are within 10 percent of theselling price of the home.” But Zestimates are only as accurate as the data behind them, so if the number of bedrooms or bathrooms in a home, its square footage or its lot size are inaccurate on Zillow, the Zestimate will be off.

I will tell you personally that I have seen Zesitmates off by more than that. And since a home that overpriced by even 5% will not get an offer. Also our average sale price in Evergreen is $600, that means if your Evergreen Home Zestimate is off by 10% you are leaving at least $60K on the table!

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