REAL ESTATE UPDATE: Is Zillow An Accurate Source For Brevard County Property Values?

SPACE COAST DAILY TV REAL ESTATE SHOW

SPACE COAST DAILY TV: Real Estate Update With Brevard County Realtor Bobby Freeman –  Is Zillow an accurate source for Brevard County property values?

BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – Anyone in the real estate industry has probably heard of a company called Zillow.

According to their Facebook page, Zillow is the “leading real estate and rental marketplace dedicated to empowering consumers with data and knowledge around the place they call home.”

Zillow.com states it’s “the leading real estate marketplace. Search millions of for-sale and rental listings, compare Zestimate home values and connect with local professionals.”

While it is true you can search millions of properties for sale or for rent how does Zillow’s Zestimate empower their consumers with data and knowledge?

In my professional real estate opinion, their “Zestimate” is not accurate in Brevard County. How can a computer algorithm accurately estimate your home’s value?

In fact, Zillow is trying its best to improve the Zestimates and is actually offering a $1 million award to the “person or team” who can improve their Zestimates . Zillow officials say the contest has been in the works for over a year.

About a year ago, I expressed my opinion in a Space Coast Daily article regarding their Zestimates. Let’s see how accurate Zillow is for our Space Coast real estate market.

My listing at 171 June Drive in Cocoa Beach is asking $299,900, but the Zestimate says $334,409. Should I tell my seller to raise his asking price?

425 Pierce Avenue, Unit 205 is scheduled to close at the end of this month for less than our asking price of $599,900. Zillow says it’s worth $622,391. Is my seller leaving money on the table?

Currently, we are in a seller’s market, especially at the beach. According to Zillow, the market temperature is “very cold” in Cape Canaveral.

I just closed 134 Starboard Lane, Unit 206, for $322,500. Zillow says $340,295.

Next door, Unit 207 just closed for $262,500. Zillow said it closed for $190,000 and the Zestimate says it was worth $381,223. The reason this listing sold for much less than my listing is that it was full of mold.

• 6318 Depot Avenue in Cocoa just closed for $175,000. Zillow says it was worth $166,321.

• 4280 Sherwood Boulevard in Melbourne just sold for $108,000. Zillow says it was worth $102,966.

• 2726 Summer Lake Court in Melbourne just sold for $336,500. Zillow says it was worth $340,054. (Congrats to Zillow on this one)

• 1670 Whittier Street SE in Palm Bay just sold for $194,000. Zillow says it was worth $175,601.

• 472 Lanterback Island Drive just sold for $1,100,000. Congrats Zillow you said it was worth $1,132,093.

• 2538 Ventura Circle in Melbourne just sold for $229,600. Zillow says it was worth $221,477

Looks like Zillow’s Zestimates have not improved and I really don’t think they will get any better in the future. Why? Because a computer can’t see inside or outside of your home.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bobby Freeman, a life-time resident of Brevard County, has been a top Realtor in the area for two decades. In his first year as an agent, Freeman received a Rising Star award from his Brokers. Since then he has achieved numerous sales awards including the prestigious RE/MAX Hall of Fame Award.

Freeman, Jennifer McCoy and Nikki McCoy-Freeman are family partners for RE/MAX Elite’s McCoy-Freeman Group. Together they have more than 30 years of extensive experience in all aspects of the real estate industry and have sold over $300 million.

Among McCoy-Freeman Group’s achievements are RE/MAX Hall of Fame, RE/MAX Platinum Club, Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist (CLHMS), Certified Distressed Property Experts (CDPE), Accredited Buyer’s Representative (ABR) and voted Best Realtor in Brevard County.

The group has been featured in many news publications including CNN Money Magazine, CNNMoney.com, WFTV 9 News, News 13, WKMG News 6, Coastal Condo Living Magazine, Hot Retirement Towns Magazine and SpaceCoastDaily.com.

For more information log on to BrevardRealtyConnection.com

TO SEE CONDO LISTINGS LOG ON TO CocoaBeachCondoGallery.com

A computer doesn’t know the condition of the property for sale or the ones recently sold. A Realtor does know this and we take all conditions into account before listing a property for sale.

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