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joshsemerjian

Seattle, WA

Contributions: 16
2 things:

1) I thought Zestimates were based on county tax records. Zillow says my house is 1010 square feet, but King County says my house is 3140 square feet. I'm confused.

2) Zestimates are way off largely because, as I see it, they tend to shoot way up when a house sells that was listed on the market. For example, in the past 30 days 4249 S Kenny St, 98118 had a $125,000 increase because it just sold for $430,000. That house is about 1900 square feet. And, my house at 3140 square feet that is closer to downtown is Zestimated lower because I paid less for it. I understand Zillow is doing their best, but on the market sales transactions are only one factor to consider.

Home buyers, be cautious about using Zillow as your only resource. Contact a Realtor for precise valuation.
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July 14 2007 - US

Replies (8)

Profile picture for DavidG
Hi Josh,

We've had an error in the data we receive that's cause some homes square footage to be incorrect. That problem should be resolved by tonight.

Agreed that recent sales are only one factor. Our algorithm considers the other information we have about the home though very recent sales often trump that.
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July 20 2007
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joshsemerjian

Seattle, WA

Contributions: 16
David,

I see Zillow attempted to correct the square footage on my house, but it missed by about 1420 square feet. If you log onto King County and pull up 4263 S Mead St on the Assessor's iMap, you'll see my house is 3140 square feet, not 1720 square feet.

What's wrong with your program that it can't read assessor data?

Regards,

Josh
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July 20 2007
Josh,

I think what's happening is that your house has the data in slightly different format than other homes in King County, because there are more categories. You have basement, main area and area above third floor, and Zillow is having an issue with that for some reason.

As to the Zillow valuations, in general, is the longer the period since a sale, the less likely it is to be accurate. Prior to your recent transaction, the property had not sold for many years (sometime prior to 1993).
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July 21 2007
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joshsemerjian

Seattle, WA

Contributions: 16
True - although, my house is a typical colonial with 1 and a half stories plus a finished basement. 1420 on the main, 710 up, and 1010 in the basement for a total of 3140 square feet. It seems that data should be easy to pull from King County records.

I suppose what's most interesting to us is how Zillow augments and/or diminishes markets, or market perception. Thanks for your insight Kary!
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July 21 2007
Yes, given the inaccuracies in the Zesitmates, it's a bit tough when they're off. But in such cases we have our clients detail the changes to the property.

BTW, sometimes they are off the other way. For example I saw a property where the basement was listed as partially finished by the county, but it's not.
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July 22 2007
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In most areas a finished basement does not count in square footage.
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July 23 2007
Around here the basement might be the nicest part of the house!
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July 23 2007
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joshsemerjian

Seattle, WA

Contributions: 16
I always count the basement in square footage. The NWMLS standard practice is to count the basement. And, Kary has a point, since the basement is often the last thing to get finished, and often times the main levels look very 70s.
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July 24 2007
 

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