The Importance of Understanding Local Markets

Yesterday Zillow announced that they are abandoning their iBuying program, Zillow Offers. This service sought to buy, renovate and resell homes. Zillow hoped to capitalize on their massive database to determine home prices, make quick renovations and resell the homes. What Zillow failed to recognize is that their giant algorithms don’t translate well into hyper localized residential real estate markets, where there are so many hidden and subtle factors that can determine the market rate for a home.
We all love to scroll through Zillow and dream about exotic new locations to call home. Many folks also regularly look to Zillow for the estimated value of their home. We often get calls from potential sellers who quote Zillow’s “zestimate”, hoping to list at that price. Unfortunately, that estimate is rarely accurate and fails to take into account the multitude of factors that an experienced and professional broker will use to determine a realistic list price. As we often like to say, Zillow isn’t using their five senses inside your home, touring your neighborhood or living in your community. It takes much more than a fancy algorithm to provide the proper listing price.
We are proud of the work we do and the understanding we have of our local market. We provide a detailed Competitive Market Analysis to all prospective sellers, detailing how we arrive at a suggested list price. While we never celebrate someone else’s failure, it does vindicate what we have known all along- hard work, great customer service and a thorough understanding of the local market still win when it comes to being successful in local real estate.