Answers to Your Clients' Most Common Zestimate Questions

As an agent you’ve no doubt had to answer client questions about the Zestimate®. The Zestimate is often the starting point to a discussion about the value of the home your client owns or wants to own. It can also give you an opportunity to showcase local expertise while you discuss a home’s nuances and set it side by side with comps. Let’s look at how to field three of the most common Zestimate questions.

“How is my Zestimate calculated?”

At its most basic level, the Zestimate valuation is Zillow’s estimate of a property's market value, generated by an algorithm. It’s a starting point based on analysis of data from public property records, tax records, recent local home sales, and user-contributed details.

Key factors considered in the calculation include:

• Home specifics like square footage, location, and the number of bedrooms and bathrooms
• Market data, including listing price, property description, comparable homes nearby, and how long the property has been on the market
• Off-market data, like tax assessments, previous sales, and other publicly accessible records
• Current market trends, including seasonal fluctuations in demand

For a comprehensive look at Zestimate calculations and accuracy metrics, along with an FAQ for buyers and sellers, have a look here. 

“What if it's too high or low?”

As you know, a Zestimate is not an official appraisal, and may not be used as one. But clients often won’t know this. The accuracy of your client’s Zestimate is heavily influenced by the amount of data available in that area, including local demand for homes.

If your clients haven’t reported renovations, additions, or updates, they won’t be accounted for. Helping them update their home facts can impact their Zestimate. The algorithm will use the updated facts to calculate a new value for the given property, which can take up to 48 hours to reflect.

For the most precise Zestimate, you can advise clients to report any updates to their home to their local tax assessor, though this may have implications for the home’s taxes as well. This process will not immediately impact the valuation and may take as long as several months to reflect.

Additionally, ensure that your client’s tax history and price history are correctly listed on Zillow. If you find any discrepancies or missing data, you can help them inform us. Keep in mind that the Zestimate model incorporates changing market trends, which can include seasonality that your client may not be aware of. This may explain why they see occasional changes.

“Can you make changes to my Zestimate?”

Depending on the status of the home or when it most recently sold, you may be able to make changes through the MLS.  

When you list a home for sale, the algorithm factors in the new listing price as it calculates the Zestimate. Since listing a property provides Zillow with updated information about a home's features, condition, and improvements, it often causes the Zestimate to adjust closer to the listing price. 

Once a property sells, the final sale price reports to the MLS and eventually incorporates into Zillow's database. The Zestimate then adjusts to match or come very close to the actual sale price. Ultimately, the Zestimate topic offers a natural pivot to value props about your comparative market analysis or listing presentation. Having those pivots prepared — because you know there’s a good chance the topic will come up — is a great way to showcase your value.