Since the
age of the internet, everyone has relied on it for information. With the abundant amount of information out
on the internet you can almost get PHD using Google. However, the information out there may not
always be the most up to date or accurate.
Wikipedia, a popular online encyclopedia is a well known lighting rod of
criticism for having inaccurate data since anyone can edit it. So it is no surprise that a study conducted
by the WAV Group on behalf of Redfin found that online real estate sites are
not giving consumers the full or accurate picture.
Zillow is
one of my favorite sites because of all the intuitive tools they have like the
mortgage calculator, however, when it comes to the data, I would not rely on
it. If you look up their Zestimate home
value estimate, it is terrible with complaints on their forum board left and
right. Their estimate is either way too
high or way too low. Unfortunately some
home owners and buyers take this information as if it was the law so you end up
with sellers listing too high and buyers offering too low.
It is
important to note that market value changes from time to time. The most effective way to determine the value
is through comparables of similar homes which is what my competitive market
analysis does to get the best price for my buyers and sellers. It is more than just comparing the homes with
the same amount of bedrooms in the same city which is what some of the internet
real estate sites do. The condition, lot
size, and building size must also be factored in to get an accurate picture. A competitive analysis goes into much more
detail especially since a similar home a few blocks away even in the same city is
valued differently.
Remember
this, don’t just always trust what is presented to you, VERIFY.
Study Finds Gaps in Online Listing Information
DAILY REAL ESTATE
NEWS | THURSDAY, OCTOBER 04, 2012
Some home shoppers may
not be getting a full or accurate picture when they view listing information on
some popular real estate Web sites, suggests a study conducted by the WAV Group
on behalf of Redfin.
The study evaluated
the accuracy of information contained in more than 6,000 listings among 33 ZIP
codes on five sites: Zillow, Trulia, Redfin, and two regional real estate
brokerages — Windermere and Long & Foster.
The Redfin study found
that 36 percent of the agent-listed homes shown as active listings on Zillow
and 37 percent of those on Trulia were no longer for sale on the local multiple
listing service.
“Zillow and Trulia do
not dispute that their listings have some gaps and inaccuracies, though they
dispute some of the particulars of the Redfin study,” The New York Times
reports. “There’s a simple reason they don’t have everything their rivals do:
Neither of them belongs to the local MLSs, which provide the most complete set
of agent-listed properties.”
Zillow and Trulia are
not real estate brokerages. Real estate brokers can provide electronic feeds or
add their listings so they appear on the real estate sites. As such, some
agents that do provide feeds to the sites don’t take listings down quickly
after the property sells, says Glenn Kelman, chief executive of Redfin.
Trulia says it is
forming stronger relationships with brokers so that it can improve the accuracy
and completeness of its listing information, according to The New York Times.
Zillow said it was making a similar effort.
“There is no gold
standard for listings data, so comparing Zillow’s MLS-only listings to an MLS
isn’t going to give you the whole picture,” says Cynthia Nowak, a spokeswoman
for Zillow, adding that Zillow also includes items that aren’t often listed on
the MLS, like for-sale-by-owner listings and new construction.
