Why Do Zillow, Redfin And Realtor.com Show Different Values For My Home?
The short answer
Each site runs its own computer model on its own data, so each one lands in a different place. None of them has walked through your home, so they can't see your updates, condition, layout or the feel of your street. Use them as a starting point, then get a realistic range from someone who has seen the house.
You look up your home on three websites and get three different values. Sometimes they’re close. Sometimes they’re far apart. Now you don’t know which one to believe, and that’s a problem if you’re trying to decide whether to sell.
You’re not doing anything wrong. The sites are doing exactly what they’re built to do. They’re built to estimate millions of homes at once, not yours.
Why The Estimates Don’t Match
Each site uses an automated valuation model: a computer formula that estimates value from data it can collect. They disagree for a few plain reasons:
- Different data. Each pulls from public records, past sales and listing data, but not always the same sources or the same sales.
- Different formulas. Each company weighs things like size, bedrooms, lot, location and recent sales its own way.
- Different timing. One site may have already counted a sale down the street that another hasn’t picked up yet.
- Wrong records. If public records list the wrong bedroom count or square footage, every site that uses those records starts from the wrong place.
So three sites, three formulas, three answers. None of them is lying. None of them has seen your house either.
What Online Estimates Can’t See
A computer model knows your home’s size, bedroom count, lot and the sales around it. It doesn’t know:
- Whether your kitchen was remodeled last year or still has the original cabinets.
- What condition the roof, floors and bathrooms are in.
- How the layout works, how much light the rooms get, or what the backyard is like.
- Whether your street is quiet or busy.
- What’s for sale right now that buyers will compare to your home.
Those are the things buyers pay for. They’re also why two Burbank homes with the same size and bedroom count can sell at prices that are far apart. One looks cared for and updated. The other needs work. To a model, they look almost the same.
Which Estimate Should I Trust?
I’d trust them as a rough starting point and nothing more. If all three are close together, that tells you something. If they’re far apart, it usually means the data on your home is thin or off, or your home is different from the homes around it in ways a model can’t measure.
Where people get into trouble is picking the estimate they like best. A seller can list at the highest one and sit on the market. A family handling a parent’s house can accept a low cash offer because it matched the lowest one. Either way, the estimate made the decision instead of the facts about the house. If a cash offer is part of your decision, I wrote about how to tell if a “We Buy Houses” cash offer is fair.
How To Get A Realistic Range Instead
A realistic range starts where the websites stop. Here’s how I’d do it:
- Look at the home in person. Updates, condition, layout and lot, the things a model can’t see.
- Compare it to the right sales. The recent sales, pending sales and active listings most like your home, adjusted for the differences.
- Give you a range by prep level. What the home could sell for as-is, with a few light touches, and fully updated, so you can decide what’s worth doing.
I call that the EPIC® Report, and it’s the first thing we do in Discovery, the first step of The Show-Ready-Seller® System. If you want the step-by-step on how a list price comes out of that range, read how agents decide what to list a house for.
What You Get Out Of It
Instead of three guesses, you get one range you understand, built from real sales and your actual home. You’ll know why the price is what it is. And when someone quotes you a value, an offer or a list price, you’ll be able to tell whether it holds up.
Want The Range For Your Home?
You can request your free EPIC® Report here. And if you want to see how pricing fits with prep, marketing, offers and escrow, request the free How To Sell Your Home Guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which home value website is the most accurate?
For your specific home, none of them can be called the most accurate, because none has seen the inside. Each site explains its own method on its own website. I'd use them to get a rough idea, not to set a list price.
Can I fix a wrong estimate on Zillow or Redfin?
Some sites let an owner claim the home and correct details like bedrooms, bathrooms or square footage. That can move the estimate, but the model still can't see your updates or condition.
Should I average the three estimates?
I wouldn't. Averaging three guesses that each missed your updates or condition gives you a fourth guess. A range built from recent nearby sales and an in-person look at the home is a better place to start.
Free Guide
How To Sell Your Home Guide
This guide comes from what I've learned selling homes in Burbank and the San Fernando Valley since 2015, not from general advice written for every market in the country. It shows you the steps I'd take on your home, so you know what to do before you spend money or sign anything.
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