Fact check Zillow’s data just like you would your conspiracy-minded uncle’s Facebook posts…
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash.com
We’ve written before about Zillow’s dodgy Zestimates, but there’s another data error we’re running across these days that can also trip up buyers and sellers. Like a Zestimate, which is just an automated estimate of a home’s value based on an amalgam of public data sources, this is an error (it seems) with the way Zillow pulls data from public websites.
We’re talking about acreage. We’ve been contacted recently by several homebuyers who wanted to know if the acreage advertised on Zillow for a particular listing was accurate. Our answer, unfortunately, was no.
This listing, for instance, at 1691 Lemonwood in St. Johns, Florida, is presented as having a 5 acre lot on Zillow. Check the county property records, however, and you’ll find that the lot is actually only a 1/2 acre, expressed as 0.5 acres.
The same sort of error occurs here at 23 Summer Mesa in Nocatee Town Center. Zillow shows it being on a 1 acre lot. But go directly to the county record for the property, and you’ll see it’s just 0.17 acres. Big difference.
Mistakes happen, to be sure. All we’re saying is treat Zillow like you would that Facebook post from your weird uncle or your grandma before sharing it. Double check the data, go straight to the source, and make sure you have the most accurate, up to date information possible.
Got questions about a specific property? Get in touch with us.
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