Online real estate valuation more art than science
LOS ANGELES—Consider it among the unintended consequences of the national housing bust:
Homeowners radiating anxiety after visiting online real estate sites that conjure up instant home value estimates.
These Web sites, such as Zillow.com, Cyberhomes.com and others, offer a trove of information, often through dramatic interactive maps.
And they can help prospective buyers dial into a neighborhood real estate trends, such as which nearby homes have recently sold—and for how much.
But for many homeowners, the home-value estimates keep them coming back, even though the sites often offer disclaimers.
The sites are packed with so much information that some homeowners end up taking the estimates a bit too seriously.
Experts say that’s a mistake.
“The percentage of error on these estimates is still very large,” says Delores Conway, director of the Casden Forecast at the University of Southern California Lusk Center for Real Estate.
Online valuation more art than science
by Alex Veiga | Associated Press