We Blog… We Read…And We Do Listen
By: Amy Bohutinsky Director of Communications | February 22, 2006
This morning I went to a panel discussion here in Seattle about corporate blogging and how businesses can use blogs as a conduit for two-way conversations with their customers. Among the panelists were Robert Scoble and Shel Israel, co-authors of Naked Conversations - How Blogs are Changing the Way Businesses Talk With Their Customers. It was incredibly interesting to hear how some companies have embraced blogs (notably Scoble’s experience at Microsoft) and others seemingly have turned their back to this rich source of customer feedback (Dell was the example mentioned). Meanwhile, several people I met asked me about the Zillow Blog, asking what got us started, what have been our challenges, and how it’s going since we launched our beta site about two weeks ago.
When we first decided to have a Zillow blog, we all agreed that this could be a powerful way to talk to people, hear from people, and engage in conversations with real customers using the site. And with this we realized that you can’t have a "real" blog without allowing comments — basically opening up the floodgates for the good, bad and ugly. As Zillow’s head of communications, I’ll admit the idea of providing a raw, open space for people to pontificate on their love or hate of Zillow both intrigued and terrified me - particularly when launching a beta, or "test" site with some kinks to work out.
So how has it been? In a few words — empowering, enlightening — and quite frankly a little exhausting. Empowering to our employees who now have an opportunity to explain things about Zillow that they know best. Enlightening to hear what’s working for site users and what’s not. (Yes, some of the comments make me cringe. But hearing directly from you, our users, is the only way we’re going to make this thing better). And exhausting because, wow — you guys like to talk to us and comment. And we read every single thing you say… whether or not we respond, it’s being noted.
So… we’ll keep using this forum to update you on new additions and changes, and give more explanation as to why things work the way they do (or how we’re changing things to make them better). On your end, please keep telling us what we can do to improve your experience. We think we’re on to something that can be incredibly useful to buyers and sellers of homes. But we also realize that we have a ways to go to get this beta site more useful and accurate for everyone. Thanks for your help.
- Stumble it!
- Categories: Zillow
Comments
45 Comments so far
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john on February 22, 2006 7:52 pm
quite dissappointed with your site.
Your system claims I’ve no homes on my street, I assure you my subdivision has been here for 50 years plus, yet it finds nothing! In my opinion a product should be perfected before being put on the market…stop wasting peoples’ time!!!
Todd on February 22, 2006 8:29 pm
What a failure.
I have a certified appraisal on my house for over twice the value that Zillow.com placed on it. The information on the size of my house is over 2 years old.
Zillow need to be a little more current.
Not impressed.
Dustin on February 22, 2006 9:24 pm
It seems to me that you guys are blogging for all the right reasons. Keep up the great work!
Wes M. on February 22, 2006 9:44 pm
Well oh well.
I am very impressed with the look and feel of Zillow. Yes the data is not on the accurate side of every property, but like anything new or anything on the web it may take a little bit of time to prefect.
As a part of a start up website http://www.emongoo.com , I understand the pressures and time it takes to build a quality website. Give Zillow sometime and who knows what we will be looking at. Real Estate is changing and is changing in many ways some do not like.
Zillow has the backing and the experience to be great. Zillow is a baby in the world of www and given some time to crawl, this site will be walking all over the place.
Zillow has already proven they fill a niche, look at the amount of traffic on the site.
I agree in many aspects it looks like maybe gathering more info before the beta launch could of been beneficial, but all it will take is one article in the USA Today or The New York Times saying that Zillow updated their data and we will all come flying back to the site to see if the information is correct.
Real Estate is changing, and hopefully only for the better! Check us out on the web at http://www.emongoo.com or blog us at http://www.emongoo.blogs.com.
Lori on February 22, 2006 10:48 pm
Tried to get an estimate on your site but for the past two days I just keep getting the error message. I tried the “delete cookies/delete pages” in IE; tried the F5. No success. I tried different addresses/different cities. No luck.
Chris on February 23, 2006 4:48 am
I am very impressed with your new site. Some of the information appears stale, but I think that is where you are pulling the data from that is the problem. I know that word is really getting out since my father asked me if I had been here, and believe me, he is not savvy to new stuff happening on the net. Keep up the great work. I look forward to seeing this site grow.
Toby Yamashiro on February 23, 2006 8:21 am
I think your site should be labled “Danger — Extremely Beta!” I live in a building with 18 condos. Though a dozen of the units are *identical*, Zillow ‘zestimantes’ (man, that’s annoying, cloying constuction) wildly differnt prices — one actually comes out as ONE THIRD the price of another! Worse, because of the ridiculous price discrepancy, the comps availble to use for this one NOT the same as for those with higher estimantes! It is, in fact, IMPOSSIBLE to use as a comp the sale of an identical unit in the building! If I were selling this unit and I found out that a buyer lost interest after looking at your site — and I were the litigious sort — I might file a frivolous lawsuit. I don’t expect you to solve the tech issues to avoid this type of glaring error, but PLEASE make your disclaimers more glaring to match. Jeez, once the money starts rolling in no one gives a rat’s tush who gets rolled over. Does anyone ever bother to consider the unintended consequenses?
iPropertyWebsites.com on February 23, 2006 12:15 pm
I have been watching and anticipating the Zillow.com beta launch for a while now and think that it’s a brilliant concept. I have pulled reports on 4 of my properties and they all have been very accurate. Even on the multi-unit dwellings which I have never had luck pulling AVM’s on in the past (with other services). There are many “pay-per-report” Automated Valuation tools that can be used to help determine the price of your property but they are all pulling data from the same sources as Zillow and as long as they are “automated” there should always be some question about their accurancy. The most powerful aspect about Zillow is that it’s free. I’m excited to see them work through their bugs and am confident it will remain a popular and useful website in the Real Estate community. Keep blogging…
Bradley Twohig on February 24, 2006 6:42 am
Hey Guys,
Where do you pull your real estate data from? I am interested in talking with those companies. We are evaluating investments in the data sales area.
Brad
Greg on February 24, 2006 9:55 am
Zillow is amazing. Sure it’s not going to be 100% accurate yet, but its working version of a great idea. I will be using it considerably as I build my real estate investments.
I have one question though. How does MLS feel about this site? Do they see you as a viable competitor? Will this finally get them to improve their antiquated system? If possible, please reply, either with a blog post or a personal email.
el nino on February 24, 2006 11:28 am
when will zillow start forecasting the weather? all the data is there. i’d like to know when to book my trip on expedia.
Gwen on February 25, 2006 7:55 am
Very cool!! I love the concept, your energy, and your courage. Courage to put this up as a beta site and involve your customers in evolving it to meet customer expectations. That’s a refreshing change from mainstream marketing of a new product or service. The user who posted earlier who wants everything perfect before it comes out doesn’t get what you’re trying to do. In my work I know you have to be brave to open yourself up to unfiltered feedback, so my hat is off to you. Regarding accuracy in my own backyard, my house zestimate looks pretty close. You don’t have enough data from Hennepin Co. in Minneapolis to fill in sq. footage, # rooms, etc. That’ll help when you can get it. On the upside, you had the recent sales in my immediate neighborhood that I watched last summer–this was a very fast and easy way to find those. This data gives a buyer or a seller one more data point in the real estate transaction and helps level the playing field with a realtor. Because, whether they label themself a buyer’s or a seller’s agent, a realtor’s primary motivation will always be their own commission. As long as that conflict of interest exists, the buyer or seller must protect their own interests and information will provide that power. Hang in there–I think you’re on to a great idea.
Ian Bell on February 25, 2006 10:57 am
Congratulations on the concept of finding a product which will draw millions of homeowners to your site which will parley into advertising revenue. The model is a great idea.
However I am not sure how you are going to eventually overcome the GIGO (Garbage In Garbage Out) factor when the base information is probably being loaded by part time entry level clerical staff in governmental organizations where there is little reward for accuracy. Alos how do you overcome non-arms length transactions at reduced values ?
However again as a business model for attracxting consumers and ad revenue generation - well done!
Virgel Allen on February 25, 2006 12:08 pm
Dear People @ Zillow: I want to play Monopoly with you… This may be an unusual request but I know we can make a difference in the Real Estate Market Together. I have a very novel concept called Fripex that will effect the entire real estate (and many other potential) markets… I lack major funding but that doesn’t change the merit of my idea . I would like to know if someone had an Idea that would revolutionize the Real Estate Market would you be interested in helping with funding only for development of the idea as it pertains to real estate (and you of course keeping the lions share of the money in exchange for the funding)… The Fripex concept and idea is based upon a mistake I found in 2002 in a dictionary term. In short if you figure a mistake in the industry standard dictionary of real estate terms( that was written by people that have PH D’s) will lead to millions of people(agents, agencies or brokers) producing results in error of the Federal Law in the real estate market (Note* the mistake could possibly embroil the industry in class action law suits for the foreseeable future). The mistake actually violates a persons right granted under federal intellectual property law(almost all federal laws supersedes state laws). If you think @ all (duh that… means you are using intellectual side of your brain) you might want to contact me to discuss My Fripex Concept further. Your company appears to be a thinking, intellectual & innovative company so with My Warmest Thanks You Contact me @ any time if you want to play Real Estate Monopoly with me…. I did not go to college but in my opinion that has no perceived value on my intelligence (as many lawyers, rich people have told me and have often wondered where I studied @). Virgel
digitalbarron@yahoo.com
If you decide not to help that is fine but you will still hear about me within two-four years when I’m all over your radar screen….with Fripex…
For the time being I think the zillow.com website is good for the real estate industry as is any good concept of change…
Kelly Sinon on February 25, 2006 1:21 pm
I’d already posted somewhere else on how much I love this site, and I do… I did just want to add my two cents worth on the strange discrepancies in identical dwellings.
We bought our house a year and a half ago, and it Zestimated out lower than the others that have the identical square footage as the rest of the 12 home development.Our house was Zestimated for a couple of grand less. Odd. Anyway, Awsome site. LOVE all the info, and I have to say, this is an excellent Beta version. And for the dude who was so upset about his Zestimate, that he would sue, well… we actually had a REAL appraisal done to get the value(for a refi). Just a hint.
(The appraisal came in at about $7,000 more, but that’s pretty good, for an estimate… or Zestimate.)
Keep up the good work! You are now on my Favorites, and I asked for updated emails to be sent. You’re on to a great concept!
Mrs. Kelly E. Sinon
3 cents on February 26, 2006 12:48 pm
Dear Kelly
Would you pay for a Zestimate? My guess is “NO” because you cannot rely on the results to be accurate. And they NEVER will be. You will ALWAYS need a human being to tell you how far off or close the Z is? So how great can a site be if no one will relies on the results and you need an independent opinion?
Kelly Sinon on February 26, 2006 1:12 pm
No, I would not pay for a Zestimate. But…this is meant to be an estimating tool. You do need that human being to acurately give you the information you need. I hope that no one is relying on this site without that professional back up. My comment was just that I can’t imagine that anyone seriously wanting to buy or sell a home… or re-fi, would use this information exclusively.
Just like if you go to WebMD. Do you take their advice about appendicitis, or do you go to a doctor? Same thing. Just a resource tool. Not to be used exclusively. At least, I certainly hope not.
3 cents on February 27, 2006 10:08 am
Then Kelley we agree
Jane Frazee on February 27, 2006 6:10 pm
Eager to learn what you have to teach me about the value of our home, I’ve tried repeatedly to access this site. Always without success.
What role do you fill, if you can’t produce what you promise?
Peter on February 28, 2006 4:33 am
I have just become aquainted with RSS feeds and they are really cool. I was thinking that RSS would be really neat new feature for Zillow. Here are some ideas:
1- Customizable RSS feed that would track recent solds that occur based on search criteria (zip, city, or radius from address, min/max price, # bedrooms, finished sq ft, etc. sorted by most recent date sold). Viewing a sold link in a news reader could show the normal Zestimate view, and viewing comparables and other info would still require entering the wavy numbers.
2- Customizable RSS feed for new lot addresses in a zip code, city, etc. This would be useful for tracking new developments.
3- Customizable RSS feed for brand new solds (just built). This would be useful to track new construction.
An example of a custom RSS generator for iTunes is at
http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZSearch.woa/wa/MRSS/rssGenerator
Any other thoughts out there about this RSS stuff?
Robert Kroon on February 28, 2006 8:59 am
I am dissapointed with the information on your site. Your information is old, stale and outdated. I asked for information on sales in our neighborhood. Of the 5 that came up, 3 were in a completely different neighborhood. One had sold for $ 225,000 - to an investor, who remodeled the home and subsequently sold it for $ 399,000. The $ 399,000 sale was not on your results. There were no sales on your results newer than 9-2005…this is February, 2006. You really ought to post warnings to users, “Please look at search results with a critical eye, there may be other pertinent sales out there that we have missed”. From the technical point, your site is very good, loads quickly, and search results come up in a timely fashion. The maps, however, are not accurate.
jeff corbett on February 28, 2006 11:33 am
I am a serial entrepreneur, father to 6 real estate finance, marketing and construction service startups (Mortgage Broker/ Real Estate Broker/ Contractor). Also have been working with computers and IT applications for 22 yrs (since I was 11). Over the past year I have become very aware that the relative value of service provided by the ‘broker’/Realtor has been significantly reduced by advances in the accessibility of relevant information, once only privy to the industry insiders. In addition, the industries deceptive marketing and cash-flow models are being tested as economically impractical. The long tolerated percentage based commission models still used by most all brokers are ridiculously overpriced, almost predatory. Brokers used to hold the keys to the Holy Grails of information but this is quickly changing, as you are demonstrating. Your growing pains are expected, understood and efforts applauded by someone from within the industries you threaten. I have decided to work from a different platform; one which I believe will become the norm in the real estate broker world, much like their wall-street counter parts. Deceptive marketing and pricing strategies are the norm in almost all brokerages today, is there really a true fiduciary relationship involved between broker and consumer? My solution is to develop a search portal for all of my clients to use so they may research and decide on a piece of real estate and gain access to financing they truly qualify for, not a brokers ‘consumer conflicting’ inflated offer and Zillow.com will be a welcome addition! I go so far (in my blog, so far) to demystify the relatively simple tasks any Realtor or mortgage professional performs, for which they charge a consumer ludicrous amounts of money. I also post how the industries work and spend billions in advertising to take their money, common scams, etc. xbroker.blogspot.com has some compelling content for anyone who needs a broker/Realtor (still very raw though). Again, my hats off to you guys for putting an extraordinary service out there, strictly for the consumers benefit. People will come to understand the incredible logistical task you guys are undertaking and appreciate the power of your information.
Amy Bohutinsky on February 28, 2006 5:24 pm
Hi Peter, Amy at Zillow here. We think RSS feeds are cool too (have you signed up for a feed of this blog?) Thanks for the ideas — we’re currently exploring a lot of ways to make our data better and more accessible.
Derek Debe on February 28, 2006 6:18 pm
I cannot believe that some folks are critical of your site…you guys have done a great job! I am very impressed with the flexibility you have built into the “beta” version.
My question is…how long until Zillow integrates all of the capabilities of the best new MLS listing sites, such as ZIP? That is, when will you fully integrate the MLS so that we can see which houses are for sale on the appraisal maps? Once you give users the ability to search all of the available homes in an area based on the ratio of the sale price to the Zestimate, all hell will break loose! Oh how I long for an efficent RE market!
Also, it might be nice to include a section that discusses the common values that appraisors assign to standard add-ons such as pools and panormaic views. Gives people some reasonable guidelines for modifying the Zestimate…
Anonymous on February 28, 2006 7:04 pm
Zestimate = Estimate. We all know what estimate means. I stand by my original post. This is great site. I can’t believe someone would sue over an estimate, which is marketed as such with the term, Zestimate. So, I am not sure we do agree.
Kelly Sinon on February 28, 2006 7:06 pm
The comment above was mine… forget to put my name.
Carlsbad Jim on March 1, 2006 5:28 am
Please can you folks at zillow read my latest post at bubbleinfo.com
I’d like you to save the world of real estate, and make a truckload of money doing it.
Hopefully you’re already working on it!
Jim on March 1, 2006 7:27 am
I would like to discuss your approach with someone. I currently work in the field for a company that is doing something similar in the commercial market and think you could benefit from their mistakes and their successes.
I have some ideas that you might appreciate but would prefer to discuss it on the phone. How about sending me a name & number or an address and we’ll start the discussion.
Thanks.
Robert on March 3, 2006 10:48 pm
Yes, some zestimates are off. But the estimate is only as good as the public tax records and there are unique details in every market. However if you come to zillow for estimates, I think your missing the point.
It’s the data that I’m after. If I’m interested in a house, I now can see most, if not all of the comparables in the area. If I know that a comp 2 blocks over was sold three months ago at $40k less than the current asking price, I think that’s some pretty good leverage. I’ve been doing the same process using the public tax records for six months now. What use to take hours poring over the data and making spreadsheets, now takes seconds.
One thing I am looking for. If/when zillow incorporates MLS, I’d like the days on the market for the listings. Seems that’s the only piece of data I can’t find, unless you have a realtor. One piece of advice to buyers, I see a lot of re-list in my area. The house stays on the market for a month; the sellers take it of for a week and then re-list the house. So, it looks like the house has only been on the market for a few days. A good realtor will tell you this but hey, aren’t they working on commission?
John on March 13, 2006 11:45 pm
This a a joke. Zestimate should add about 70,000. to the value of my home and it would be correct. Give it up. You’ll never replace realtors.
Eric on March 13, 2006 11:47 pm
When some fool relies on your “Zestimate” and sells for lower than market value, get ready to be sued.
Scott Drum on March 17, 2006 7:25 am
I would love to understand better how your system works (or doesn’t). I am tracking a home that Zillow says is worth $586M today, but two weeks ago you said it was worth $731M. This is just not credible. In another case, you note that a home sold 9/2005 for $1.022MM, yet your chart says that it was worth $1.1MM that month. So you’re not even using the sales data you post. Help me understand how these enormous discrepencies happen.
Amy Bohutinsky on March 17, 2006 3:52 pm
Hi Scott, Amy at Zillow here. I’m emailing you directly for more information so we can investigate.
CD Sanger on March 18, 2006 5:13 pm
Hi folks at Zillow,
Bravo! This is a great site…Flexible and thoughtful functionality with informative data presented in an easy and intuitive user interface. Sure, the estimates are not always accurate, but the framework is there to iterate and improve over time.
I assume this is only free for the Beta…Is the idea to charge for “Zestimates”? Or perhaps move to a subscription model for the service?
Would be cool to see available properties for sale around the area of the address you’re looking up. Just a thought.
Anonymous on March 19, 2006 5:38 am
Not impressed. Let me know when you have the midwest.
Nasir Aziz on March 21, 2006 1:26 pm
Very interesting and well put together. Even in beta version its working out really well in my opinion. I have read good and bad comments here even to a point where someone mentioned how Zillow can potentially get sued for wrong estimates. I think that’s naïve to say since its only providing estimates and NOT claiming it to be accurate and NOT asking you to use the Zestimates for actual sales. You still have to work out a human2human relationship and an actual appraisal and sales process to close the deal. For now Zillow is giving you ideas and helping you plan out your property investments based on your buying power - at least that’s the way I see it.
Zillow is on to something here. Once fully established and kinks worked out, I hope and suggest that they start using GIS data to plot and display a multitude of informational layers that can be useful; like plotting crime, average income, average school grades, transportation facilities/routes, rain, sex offenders and such for an area of interest. This opens up a whole lot of new opportunities in conglomeration of valuable information for the end-user that are otherwise not easily available or accessible. Could be a great user experience. I personally would like to know all this before I invest in some property in an area that I am not familiar with. The ability to filter out a lot of locations and to be able to steer you towards a more realistic and suitable place and a house of your choice are a characteristics of a very powerful tool. I visualize a real estate API!
By using SOAP/WSDL they can share and provide data to Zillow agent and partner (Aren’t you starting such program?) websites with current and close to real-time information. There is a huge potential here also with what they have built so far. Assuming their underlying technology is scalable and ready with all the data hooks such as SOAP/WSDL type interfaces, I predict a lot of positive growth and utilization of this tool.
It already has created some concerns among the “big” real estate players. They are developing and planning to utilize Zillow to their advantage as we speak. I found this out in person while talking to them and also having read some memos suggesting just that. To me this is a good sign. When such players are already talking about adapting Zillow technology and its offerings rather than putting a fight against them, to me its a realization on their part and is potentially a great success story.
John on April 14, 2006 10:32 pm
I am a Realtor. I just sold a client’s home for $105,000., $1,000. more than the listing price. This was one week ago. I just checked the address on Zillow and was informed that the property is worth $34,000. I’m glad that the elderly clients didn’t do a FSBO and rely on your Zestimate. Please do the public a service and shut your site down. It really is a novelty at best and a sad joke at worst.
mark on June 9, 2006 7:27 am
I appreciate the work that has gone into making this site a useful tool in managing my real estate investment - the details about comparable homes and their recent sale prices is very important information that would not be easy to obtain without this FREE site
One question: what goes into determining “construction quality”?
David Gibbons on June 9, 2006 10:08 am
Hi Mark, it’s David from Zillow.
The Constrauction Quality value is provided by the assessor’s office in each county. Assessors give homes a rating from 1-10, with 1 being poorest quality and 10 the best. It is their assessment of how well the building was built.
Homes are rated relative to each other within a county; one county’s value might not correlate to another county’s. It is useful in differentiating between the relative construction quality of homes in the same neighborhood but not across the country.
Thanks for asking.
Arnold Hawkins on June 21, 2006 8:59 pm
I’m frustrated. Last week you listed my whole neighborhood. Today, you state there are no homes on our street. Has someone hacked into your system and removed entire areas from your files? You still show my area but you don’t list any houses on my street. Thanks.
David Gibbons on June 22, 2006 8:24 am
Hi Arnold; It’s David G from Zillow.
Sorry to hear about your frustration; it’s odd that your house would disappear. To look into this further, I’ll need an address. Please comment or e-mail me (davidg[at]z) with that info.
vincent ferranti on February 28, 2007 11:33 am
I recently discovered my house was for sale on thezillow web site…funny thing is I didn’t list it…That’s right, my house is not for sale…Customer service stinks…When I asked them to remove the listing they asked me for all kinds of proof of ownership…When I asked them what kind of proof the false lister gave them there was nothing but silence on the other end of the telephone…Needless to say this matter is very disturbing and just today I received 25 or more telephone calls since they listed the home for about one fifth of its true worth…Is this some kind of scam?
J.L. Moulton on October 31, 2007 9:12 pm
Totally inacurate info on your site!!! Our house has finally gone under contract, no thanks to all of you for the inacurate so called Zestimates……..only off by $25,000!!!
Dan Durand on November 1, 2007 7:16 am
According to Zillow my home value dropped over $100k last month from about $430k to $330k. I realize there has been a contraction in national real estate prices but this seems unusual because:
1) comparable sales in my area have not shown anything near a %25 price drop this would imply.
2) The Zillow values of houses in my neighborhood valued at less than mine (by Zillow) last month have not changed at all.
The above changes could only be true if there were something specifically wrong with my house. But the data remained the same. In fact, I actually had a few substantial improvements over the past month.
I generally enjoy Zillow and appreciate the concept of what you are trying to do. However, I find the sheer lack of causality in this instance discouraging. I agree with downward movement, by why would one particular house move down on its own with little change in the movement of comparable properties nearby?
Also, the aerial picture of my “house” is two or three years old, as evidenced by the fact that my house wasn’t even built at the time it was taken, nor were the many other nearby luxury homes that have since improved the neighborhood. Could this have anything to do with the value descrepency?
Please help me understand.
Drew Meyers on November 1, 2007 10:41 am
Dan-
Please e-mail me both your address & the other addresses you are comparing it to so that I can look into it (drewm at z dot com).
Please realize zestimates are a starting point, not the final word, when figuring out your home’s value. One general thing to note is that we use different “models” to calculate Zestimates depending on what data we have on a particular home. For instance - if there is no prior sales history on your home, but the other homes do have that info — we are probably using a different formula to calculate your zestimate. A different formula could explain why your home has decreased in value more than others in your neighborhood.
I can definitely tell you that the out of date imagery of your home has nothing to do with it’s Zestimate.