posted on February 9, 2006 10:00:27 PM newReal estate website values US properties free of charge
Thu Feb 9, 10:30 AM ET
SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) - A real estate valuation website that could alter US home-buying terrain launched on the Internet.
Zillow.com was crammed with more traffic than it could handle shortly after the beta service went online Wednesday providing estimated home prices, tax records and sales histories.
More than 300,000 pages were viewed at the Seattle-based website between its midnight launch and 7:00 am, causing intermittent shut-downs of the site, said chief financial officer Spencer Rascoff.
"We've had a busy morning, but it looks like we're out of the woods," developer Bill Nordwall wrote in a company blog. "Feel free to kick the tires and let us know if you run into any problems."
The website made its debut backed by 32 million dollars in venture capital funding and headed by chief executive Rich Barton, creator of online travel service Expedia.
"Until now, finding out a current market value of any home -- whether it's yours or one you want to bid on -- has been quite difficult," Barton said in a statement.
"We believe you shouldn't need a computer science degree or a real estate license to find out what a home is worth."
Among the Zillow features are free "Zestimate" values of most US homes, according to Barton.
A random request for a Zestimate on a condominium in the long-sizzling San Francisco-area housing market resulted in a value 10 percent lower than the purchase price two years ago.
Home prices in the neighborhood rose 35 percent during that time period, according to appraiser William Brinkman.
"How good can the service be if it shows values have declined when they've gone up in the real world?" Brinkman asked.
The website charts how specific home values have changed over time and compared to others in chosen neighborhoods. Satellite and aerial views of some homes were available, along with details about properties and tax rates.
Zillow is aimed at generating profit from advertising and is not intended to put real estate agents out of work by letting home shoppers and sellers do their own research, according to Barton.
Industry experts expected Zillow to pressure US real estate agents to do more for their money. Agents for buyers and sellers typically split commissions equalling six percent of sales prices.
posted on February 9, 2006 10:13:10 PM new2 Web Sites Push Further Into Services Real Estate Agents Offer
Redfin, though less well financed than Zillow, is perhaps even more ambitious in its aim to take on the work of agents. The site, which maps listings with other sources of real estate data for Seattle, added a feature last week that allows a visitor to buy a property online.
A real estate agent is not cut out of the process; in fact, Redfin is itself a real estate brokerage company. But the site automates the paperwork of making a bid and then rebates to the buyer two-thirds of the buyer's agent's commission, which is usually 3 percent. Redfin, as the buyer's agent, takes only a 1 percent commission.
Redfin shows the potential savings on every listing. For instance, the "direct savings" on a $699,000 house currently for sale in the Queen Anne district in Seattle is $13,980. The buyer gets the money at closing so it can be used for the down payment or to pass to the seller if it was used to sweeten an offer.
Right below the description of that property are two buttons, one to "see it" and the other to "buy it." A click on the see button helps the potential buyer arrange a tour of the property. Clicking on the buy button leads the visitor through online forms that generate the paperwork for an offer.
"We won't replace the agent," said Glenn Kelman, Redfin's chief executive. "We let people who are self-reliant do the legwork and gain 2 percent." Redfin has been financed with $1.25 million, with most of that coming from the Madrona Venture Group of Seattle. The company said it was seeking additional financing to expand to other cities.
All of these real estate sites are chipping away at the agent's business of matching clients with a property and then negotiating a deal. The Web is already displacing the initial contact that agents have with customers. A recent National Association of Realtors survey found that 77 percent of home buyers use the Internet to search for a home. About 24 percent said they first learned of a home from the Internet, up from 15 percent in a 2004 survey.
posted on February 10, 2006 07:25:34 AM new
They had this on our local news this last week. The site crashed because so many people were on it. I got on it yesterday and put our address in, and the value blew me away!
Now I think I'll put the house up for sale when Mike is at work Damn, its gone up more after 1 year (we did a refi a year ago)
posted on February 10, 2006 02:59:32 PM new
The values were funny in our area. They are basing their values on sales data. Refugee investments from 911 stock losses drove up values in our area. Many, many investors came to Fresno and bought up rentals, cheap. That part of the market seems to be satiated, try and get foolish investors like that, again. Try and get that rate of return on a property, especially one not suitable as a rental and I guarantee you will have a long row to hoe.
So, this sight is telling people that homes in Fresno are worth 20-25% more than locals are willing to pay for them. I'm glad I don't have to explain market vagaries to listing clients. Yeah, take the over-price listing to satisfy your broker, maybe they'll re-list at a marketable price.........
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The Islamofascist fig-puckers are fighting to spread their culture and religion, and to destroy ours
posted on February 10, 2006 03:42:43 PM new
Overpriced is the key word there parklane, in this area the address I put in is not worth anywhere near the amount it highlighted, but if you look closer there is a price range and the home could be closer to the low end.
Ron
"If you can't refute the words, accuse the poster of being someone else."
posted on February 10, 2006 05:56:52 PM new
It might be great for urban areas, but I spent some time with it on smaller properties near the ranch, smaller being 50 acres or less, and the values listed aren't even remotely representative of what places are selling for here. Not useful, although the maps are pretty nice and fairly recent. Better than Google Earth for this region.
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posted on February 11, 2006 07:50:36 AM new
Not terribly accurate in Deroit Area. Wrong info on alot of houses, too - # of bathrooms, bedrooms, square footage etc. Great idea though.
posted on February 11, 2006 09:19:44 AM new
Ours were right, only because I knew how much, because of a new estimate we got for the refi
But then, Seattle is the most overpriced city
I put my friends acerage in it, with her home and barn, in Maryland, and it gave no value.
Its hit and miss, but not for Seattle.
posted on February 11, 2006 09:29:18 AM new
The Zillow site is still in the Beta stage and they do not have all the info on properties so there is room for improvement . There is a page noting the 'zestimates' accuracy.
Almost everyone I know uses the internet when searching for a home to purchase and it saves lots of legwork as the unsuitable houses and neighborhoods can quickly be weeded out.
Most of my houses I have been able to sell without the help of a realtor so haven't had to pay a commission but often use a realtor for buying. I used a realtor to sell my last home because I wanted to quickly take advantage of a business opportunity in a new city and he was excellent to work with when it came to the paperwork and negotiations but others are worthless.
Home inspections are almost becoming mandatory here before purchasing so there is more confidence for a buyer as any problems or potential problems are usually noted.
Banks here don't always favor those who are self-employed so mortgage brokers can usually find the lowest rate very quickly and save a buyer from going bank to bank trying to find the best deal.
posted on February 11, 2006 10:42:57 AM new
ROFL! My "zestimate" is about 4x UNDER what it should be! My neighbors' houses as well. Great location, great schools, amazing neighborhood, and it still says $35,000. ROFL!
posted on February 12, 2006 06:39:46 AM new
My cousin sold his hoouse for 347k 2 months ago, and it shows estimate of 238k. Not even close. It doesn't even have mine on there, and I just bought it in September. If it ever gets out of beta, perhaps it will be great, but for now it is useless in most areas.
posted on February 12, 2006 10:12:36 AM new
Bank of America has a website which shows the final sales price of houses /condos sold in the country.
/ lets all stop whining !! /
posted on February 13, 2006 12:04:31 AM new
My house is listed under a non-existent address. The 1000 sq ft house across the street sold several months ago for $268,000 to some mouth-breathers from the bay area. To understand how stupefyingly awesome that is, you need to know that quality houses here are sitting unsold on the market at $200 a sq ft. Unless the value of the dollar starts taking an even bigger annual dump, I estimate it will be at least seven years before they are right side up in their new home purchase.
Yet all the values in this area are being keyed to that one purchase.
One dumbass buys a pig in a poke and that sets the standard? What a flawed system.
__________
The Islamofascist fig-puckers are fighting to spread their culture and religion, and to destroy ours
Damn, its gone up more after 1 year (we did a refi a year ago) 
My neighbors' houses as well. Great location, great schools, amazing neighborhood, and it still says $35,000. ROFL! 