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Learning, Sharing, and Teaching => Real Estate and Landlording => Topic started by: LaineyAZ on July 24, 2019, 10:04:10 AM

Title: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: LaineyAZ on July 24, 2019, 10:04:10 AM
I've been irked to see that the Zillow estimate on my house is the lowest in the neighborhood by $25,000 to $30,000.  These are for houses in the range of $240,000 to $290,000. 
Months ago I had done the recommended edits (which I can do as the homeowner) on their website to include all of the relevant details, so the info is completely updated.  Some of my neighbors have a pool, but basically we all have the same ranch style, same property size 3bd-4bd homes all built at the same time.  My house has been painted within last 2 years, has typical landscape for the area, nothing amiss. 

I understand that Zillow goes by algorithms in determining value, mainly on what they consider recent comparable sales.  There have been recent sales of smaller 2 bedroom homes which I think has somehow gotten attached to my home value; however, there's been no such lessening of value of my neighbors' homes.

Question:  I have no plans to move for many years (if at all), so does it make sense to challenge the Zillow estimate just for accuracy sake?
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: jps on July 24, 2019, 10:08:21 AM
Who cares what Zillow says your house is worth? Why would that matter, are you worried your friends will go find your house on it and think your house is worth $25K less than it is? This seems like a non-issue to me.
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: DadJokes on July 24, 2019, 10:35:45 AM
For net worth tracking, I spent about 3 months using the zestimate. In that time, the initial value was way higher than I expected; then it dropped to below what I bought the house for; and lastly it jumped up another huge amount. I highly doubt my home value changed that significantly in just a few months, so you probably shouldn't put much stock in their estimate.

For record keeping, I just assume a conservative annual appreciation of 1%, though 3% is more historically accurate for real estate.
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: A Fella from Stella on July 24, 2019, 11:17:29 AM
Redfin is a much better site.
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: ilsy on July 24, 2019, 11:27:15 AM
I  totally don't care about Zestimate.
 But if some info is wrong,
-like some realtors like to put themselves as my agents to possibly "show" potential buyers that they have helped purchase in my highly demanded area.
-Or the sqft-age was off a bit.
I file a complaint to correct the info.

One thing in their Zestimate algorithm is the sqft-age. When I adjusted mine the Zestimate went up. BTW, the house next door got remodeled and sold, the flipper tried absolutely everything to get the maximum from it. One of the things he did, he had adjusted the sqft-age of the house on Zillow to be more than it actually is, and the Zestimate for the property shows higher than mine, even though my house in real life is larger.

I would be concerned if my taxes were higher than the neighbors. Check the taxes and house valuations of your neighbors on your county's website. That might give you a more accurate idea of where your house stands compared to your neighbors.
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: Morning Glory on July 24, 2019, 12:34:42 PM
For net worth tracking, I spent about 3 months using the zestimate. In that time, the initial value was way higher than I expected; then it dropped to below what I bought the house for; and lastly it jumped up another huge amount. I highly doubt my home value changed that significantly in just a few months, so you probably shouldn't put much stock in their estimate.

For record keeping, I just assume a conservative annual appreciation of 1%, though 3% is more historically accurate for real estate.

Me too. The Zestimate only works if there are a lot of similar homes in your area. It is completely goofy if you live outside of town or have a unique property. There is no way to challenge it, but you can leave a comment to describe why it is wrong.
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: dougules on July 24, 2019, 03:09:21 PM
Those estimates are always way off in my neighborhood.  I wouldn't pay any attention to them.  Doubly so if you have no plans to sell any time soon. 
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: LaineyAZ on July 24, 2019, 03:54:44 PM
Thanks, all.
Good point about the taxes, I'll check the tax assessor's website to see what's up in our neighborhood.

It's just baffling, especially because $25,000 - $30,000 less is a sizeable difference in the $240-$290,000 price range.
Oh well, I'll leave it and check again in 6 months just to see if it's been adjusted.
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: partgypsy on July 26, 2019, 07:41:30 AM
It doesn't really matter unless you are planning to sell your home, and even then having the right specs to give to the prospective buyers as well as passing inspection matters far more. If you are using to track net worth I would use what you think is a reasonable number by looking at sales in your neighborhood (apples to apples) than be constantly revising it ala Zillow. The only thing I would do which you have done is review the information in zillow (square feet, rooms, amenities) and correct any errors.

I'm in a similar situation. I hope to not have to sell my house and I do like to look at zillow for academic curiosity. 
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: Another Reader on July 26, 2019, 07:51:51 AM
Thanks, all.
Good point about the taxes, I'll check the tax assessor's website to see what's up in our neighborhood.

It's just baffling, especially because $25,000 - $30,000 less is a sizeable difference in the $240-$290,000 price range.
Oh well, I'll leave it and check again in 6 months just to see if it's been adjusted.

Don't bother.  The Maricopa County Assessor is always low, based on old comps.

Realtor.com will also have an estimate and I think Redfin does as well.  Realtor.com and Zillow will also have recent sales.  Input your zip code and look for properties in your immediate neighborhood/subdivision. And look at the current listings in your zip code.  Houses in most areas are selling at or near list price in a few days in most areas because of demand, as long as the property is priced correctly.  Prices in most areas continue to rise because of demand.
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: affordablehousing on July 26, 2019, 03:54:08 PM
It does pose an interesting question though for when you DO plan to sell. I guess you just hope it doesn't anchor people's expectations too low. I'm always intrigued by the variation in the different website's valuations. In our neighborhood, Redfin and Zillow can differ by as much as 30% on a property. Their analysis must be really different.
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: Dicey on July 26, 2019, 06:12:53 PM
It's happened to me twice. Emailed Zillow with the pertinent details. Got a response saying they didn't adjust individual properties. Thereafter, both cases were magically corrected.
Title: Re: Challenge Zillow estimate?
Post by: Telecaster on July 27, 2019, 11:44:01 AM
Thanks, all.
Good point about the taxes, I'll check the tax assessor's website to see what's up in our neighborhood.

It's just baffling, especially because $25,000 - $30,000 less is a sizeable difference in the $240-$290,000 price range.
Oh well, I'll leave it and check again in 6 months just to see if it's been adjusted.

Why bother?  Who cares what Zillow thinks?