You're better than that (better than Zillow, Trulia, etc.)

You’ll want to read the attached article on the role that websites like Zillow, Trulia, etc. are playing in our industry. It always helps to use analogies that are easy to understand. In this case, these sites are at best to real estate as Kelly Blue Book is to the auto industry. I say at best, because much more must go into the process of evaluating a home than a car. First the auto sites list every single vehicle feature for you to check, as well as the mileage and condition specifics. Unlike valuing a home, there’s nothing else to consider – not even location, which is one of the biggest determining factors in real estate!

Kelly Blue Book can’t say that the car is worth $10,000 parked on this side of the street but only $8,000 if parked on that side of the street. The side of the street doesn’t matter in pricing a car, but in real estate if my home backs up to a busy street vs my neighbors who is on the quiet side of the cul-de-sac, it makes all the difference! The online house estimate sites are similar to the Kelly Blue Book, however, in that they tell you the car is worth $8,500 to $10,000, but when you go to trade it in, the dealer might only give you $5,000!! The dealer, just like a home buyer, is the market. Bottom line, these sites provide some rough estimates or trends, but you, as a professional, offer the solution for more accurate values and how sellers can best take advantage of the market.

• Though they are fine for spotting trends, these home valuation services only offer rough approximations by computer programs.
• The sites all us
  
  
  e "automated valuation models" or AVMs to aggregate mountains of data for a broad and perhaps inaccurate valuation.
• "While not reliable for determining the precise value of a particular home, the services do a decent job of capturing overall market trends.
• Property valuations by these automated sites often vary from one to another by at least 10%. Couple this with their inaccuracies and they could be off by 15-20% or more.
• The figures are only averages of highs and lows in that area and doesn’t account for all of a home’s specific features, upgrades, conditions, or even exact location.

Good luck!

Patrick