Home Value Estimates

Portland Home Value Estimate, Realtor Vs. Online 2022

July 29, 2022

The real estate market is shifting fast in Portland, Oregon and around the country. We’ve got your latest month by month report on the Portland market here. If you’re looking for tips on remodeling to improve your home value before going to market, we’ve got that too. You Can’t Trust Online Home Value Estimates When the real estate market is shifting fast, online estimates designed by algorithms get worse and they weren’t good to begin with. In fact, Zillow’s Zestimate is so bad, it nearly bankrupted the company in 2021 when they briefly turned into an online cash home buyer before loosing half a billion dollars in the process. But again, when the real estate market is actively shifting, the...

Homeowners Overestimate Home Value as much as 150%

May 17, 2022

If you’re thinking of selling your home, you’re probably wondering how much it has appreciated since you bought it. According to a survey conducted by Rocket Homes, which polled 2,058 homeowners, if you were to guess, the accuracy of that guess probably depends on how long you’ve owned your home. (Learn more about the survey’s methodology.) When someone buys a home—probably the biggest investment of their lives—they naturally expect that the home will build equity and grow in value. It’s a reasonable expectation to have, after all, but the rate at which that value builds depends on a number of factors: location, neighborhood comps, the home’s age and condition, updates and upgrades, and the state of the current market, to...

Is the Zillow Zestimate Accurate? 2022 Update

May 9, 2022

If your look up your home’s value on Zillow’s valuation tool, Zestimate®, you may feel strongly impacted by the price that comes up. It may not be accurate, though. Zillow even says so on their site. So, why is that? And what good is it if you can’t count on it to give you an accurate estimate on your home’s worth? They post this disclaimer: “A Zestimate incorporates public, MLS and user-submitted data into Zillow’s proprietary formula, also taking into account home facts, location and market trends. It is not an appraisal and can’t be used in place of an appraisal.” (They even provide a table of error rates for cities across the U.S. within 5%, 10%, and even 20%...

Top 4 Free Home Value Estimates to Check, Before Selling a Home

April 21, 2021

4. Redfin.com’s Home Value Estimate Redfin.com Statistical Home Value Rating: D On Redfin.com’s home value estimate explanation page they claim to be the most accurate on-market (listed for sale) estimator. This as we’ve already explained in previous articles, is no great trick. Basically the online portal can simply adjust their estimate so it closely aligns with the advertised for sale price tag. Simple, and not helpful. Most homes are still sold by a Realtor in the U.S., a licensed professional who advised the homeowner on setting the list price. Redfin or any other online website taking credit for that is nonsensical. Notice Redfin.com says their off-market home value estimate has an off-market median error rate of 6.94%. Wow. That’s like...

Is the Zillow Zestimate Accurate? 2021 Update

April 19, 2021

We’ve all been there: you get that email from Zillow telling you how much more your home is worth than what you paid for it even a few short years ago. It’s an enticing idea, to think your house has gained so much equity, and that you could profit off of that. And Zillow’s Zestimate tool, which gives you a quick estimate of your home’s value has been around for years. On top of that, the site gets a ton of traffic, and it’s generally a good idea to have your home listed there. So that must mean the Zestimate is pretty reliable, right? Think again. While the Zestimate is undoubtedly tempting, it doesn’t tell the whole story. And Zillow...

Home Value Estimates – Online vs. Realtor

July 20, 2020

Online Home Value Estimates are Fast and Hassle Free There is no reason not check your home value online on occasion. In most cases the online value will be in the general range of its real estate market value. However, when you’re getting ready to sell, say anytime in the 12 months prior, you should have a professional, a top real estate agent come out and see your home and give a true value. Online estimates, even in 2020, are not at all close to the actual homes value! See our report on Zillow Zestimates in 2020, and how off they are (and how Zillow cheats to make them look better then they are). While there are more sources for...

Portland Home’s Values Higher than Owners Think – 2020 Report

June 8, 2020

The common perception of home sellers is that they are al too attached to their homes, and always overestimate value. This is not true! Sellers actually both over-value and under-value their homes depending on market conditions. When the real estate market is stable, sellers tend to estimate their homes value fairly accurately. When the market is dropping fast, sellers tend to lag behind and think their homes are still worth more than they are. When the market is increasing fast, sellers lag behind and often think their home is worth less than it is. Quicken Loans has been putting together a yearly report on the difference between seller estimated value and actual appraisal value and the results are illuminating. Portland...

Is the Zillow Zestimate Accurate? 2020 Update

May 1, 2020

Anyone buying or selling a home in 2020 will frequently come across Zillow’s listing platform and the home-value estimation tool it uses: The Zestimate. Most take the Zestimate as a semi-accurate prediction of the home’s final sales price. But how often is that true? And what goes into creating the Zestimate? Off by $20,000 to $50,000 in most cases. Using Portland, Oregon as our subject for testing the Zillow Zestimate we look closely at the data. First we should note, Zillow has never claimed that the Zestimate is perfect. In fact, Zillow’s website clearly states that the Zestimate “is not an appraisal and it should be used as a starting point.” The disclaimer encourages buyers, sellers and the merely curious...

Home Sales Price vs. Seller’s Home Value Estimate – 8%

June 28, 2019

One of the biggest selling mistakes a Portland homeowner can make is pricing their home incorrectly when it first goes on the real estate market. Unfortunately, it’s a mistake that happens all the time because there’s no perfect formula for pricing a home.  Home Owners Overvalue by 8%. According to the Journal of Housing Economics home owners on average value their properties 8% higher than the home’s actual market value. Home Value vs. Home Sales Price Before the home actually sells, any dollar amount attached to it is not actually a price — it’s a value. What’s the difference? A value is what we think the home can sell for. The value is not up for negotiation. However, it’s the...

Portland Home Value Estimate – 2019 Update

June 21, 2019

Curious about your Portland home value estimate? The Portland real estate market has been up and down for the last few years with some housing segments increasing in value and others decreasing. So it is important to know what your best sources of information are for finding your home value. 3 Ways to Find your Home Value Sure you can read the titles and get the basic idea, but the real tips are in the paragraphs themselves, so don’t skim read this one! 1. Free Online Home Value Estimates The Zestimate, a home value estimate from Zillow, gets a lot of press. As a top Portland real estate agent with over 1,000 sales, I’m often comparing my pricing research with...