Really, Zillow? AGAIN?

Millions of people go to this website every month. They’re looking at listings, checking values and enjoying pictures.

Let me warn you, again, DO NOT make any important decisions based on the information you find there!

This company exists solely to attract viewers and collect information to sell to real estate agents. The data doesn’t have to be good, it just has to be attractive.

Notice how many places on the screen grab offer me the opportunity to spend money with them: Advertise; Advertising; Promote Yourself on Zillow. Clickable links all over that page for one purpose only.

This week I noticed my Zillow profile says I have had no sales in the last 12 months. The last sale they show was 17 months ago. I periodically look at my profile to see if it is up to date, and rarely is it.

Strange, because Zillow has no problem pulling my photos (either that I personally took or paid a photographer for), my marketing remarks and the data I enter into the Multiple Listing System (MLS). They even show me as the listing agent on my listings during the listing period (that is the main thing I check when a property is listed).

So why do they have such a problem crediting me when the property sells? They have access to the information. Why is it a constant battle with them to get correct information? My theory is that I am not a willing victim to their money squeeze, so they punish me (and tens of thousands of other agents).

Speaking of ten$ of thousand$ (of dollar$) my blog post Your Home Valuation is Wrong from July 30, 2018 shows how you can find out the margin of error that Zillow admits to for your market area. https://jimsweat.wordpress.com/2018/07/30/your-home-valuation-is-wrong/

You could lose tens of thousands of dollars if you just take their information as fact.

Their information is faulty, incorrect, inaccurate and/or misleading. Beware.

My blog post Boom! Yes That Was My Head Exploding! from August 6, 2015 tells when I found out Trulia and Zillow wiped my slate, again. After over 20 years as a full-time licensed real estate professional, part of which I was broker/owner of a real estate company, Trulia credited me with 1 (one) total career sale and Zillow showed me having 2 (two) sales in my entire career!

https://jimsweat.wordpress.com/2015/08/06/boom-yes-that-was-my-head-exploding/

Blog post January 16, 2015 titled Real Estate Misinformation and Extortion details some back ground on these companies that don’t really care about accurate data, all they really want are eyeballs looking at their site.

https://jimsweat.wordpress.com/2015/01/16/real-estate-misinformation-and-extortion/

I sell two or three times as much real estate as the average agent, but you can’t tell that from looking at Zillow!

http://www.SweatSellsFlorida.com

All the Best!

Jim Sweat, ABR, CLHMS, CRS, CDPE, GRI, e-PRO, ILHM

Featured in Scene Magazine’s Men on the Scene 2016 issue

Author of REAL ESTATE CSI: CONTROVERSY, SECRETS, INSIGHT (coming soon)

Jim Sweat – Helping Buyers & Sellers Choose Wisely Since 1995 ™

Re/Max  Alliance Group

Mobile: 941-306-7384

http://myfloridahomesmls.com/JimSweat (Home Search)

https://jimsweat.wordpress.com/ (Blog)

www.linkedin.com/in/jimsweat (LinkedIn)

A Proven Professional Working for You!

23 Years Experience

Your Home Valuation Is Wrong

Do not make any major decisions based on an online, automated home valuation. You could lose a lot of money. A lot.

How does a $60,000 loss on a $300,000 home sound to you? Ridiculous? Read on.

Of course you are going to look up the value before you make an offer on a home, or prior to selling your current place. Just remember, that number is almost guaranteed to be wrong.

If you make life-changing decisions based on bad information, then you’re jeopardizing your future.

How can I be so sure the information you get online isn’t correct? Because it is statistically unlikely, and most of the sites will even tell you so, in the fine print.

Does it matter which site you use? Not really. Some are better at guessing than others, but they all vary dramatically.

When determining value on a property I typically check ten different online valuation sites. Not because I think they “know” what the home is worth, but because the seller and potential buyers are checking these sites, and it’s better to know in advance what disinformation they are consuming.

Those values are all over the map!

For example, a home with a true market value of $300,000 might have automated valuations ranging from 225,000 to 375,000. That is a large margin of error!

What about the infamous Zillow Zestimate? This is the margin of error stated on their website as of July 26, 2018:

• Nationwide, Zestimates are currently within 5% of the final sale price 52.9% of the time.
• In the U.S. as a whole, Zestimates are currently within 10% of the final sale price 73.3% of the time.
• Nationally, Zestimates are currently within 20% of the final sale price 85.8% of the time.

Let’s put this into real world numbers using the $300k actual value example.

Just over half of the time (52.9%) the Zestimate is within $15,000 (5%) of actual final sales price. That could be high or low, so a $30,000 swing from 285,000 to 315,000.

The Zestimate is within 10% on another 20.4% of homes. That means a $60,000 swing from 270,000 to 330,000. If the buyer believes the real value is 270,000 and the seller thinks it is 330,000… well it’s easy to see we now have a significant problem.

Another 12.5% of homes are within 20%. That produces a $120,000 range of value from 240,000 to 360,000! That is 40% of the actual value! You don’t want to make any decisions based on this information!

Zillow admits they are not even within 20% (high or low) on 14.2% of homes nationally.

Do you want to guess which group your Zestimate falls within? It’s a roll of the dice!

If you’re in the 52.9% group you could lose $15,000.

If you’re in the 20.4% group you could lose $30,000.

If you’re in the 12.5% group you could lose $60,000.

If you’re in the 14.2% group you could lose even more than that!

The last two groups comprise 26.7% of properties. That means you have a greater than 1 in 4 chance of losing $60,000 or more if you base your buying or selling decision on the information you obtained from the big gorilla of real estate data online.

This is a multi-billion dollar company that draws millions of people to the website each and every month. And I have the nerve to warn you against believing what you see in black and white on that website? Yes. That website and dozens of others. Pay attention.

The actual Zestimate, not the range of possibility, the actual published number on my personal residence has gone up and down over the last year $59,000. That is absurd. Home values don’t rise and fall with the wind, like the stock market.

Side note: Facebook stock is down 20% today. Your home doesn’t go on a roller coaster ride every month.

These robot valuations use raw sales data available from public records but they have a huge disadvantage: They have never been inside your home.

They don’t know if the flooring, kitchen cabinets and roof all need replaced, or if they were just completely updated. They can’t see the view; they don’t know if the comparative sales were well cared for or not; they can’t tell if the home next door is an eyesore or worse; they can’t hear the traffic from the highway that decreased the selling price on three of the comparable sales they are using.

The bottom line is you need a trustworthy professional to give you good information.

Contact a full-time, experienced and knowledgeable professional whom you trust to give you good advice so you can make the best decision for your family.

http://www.SweatSellsFlorida.com

All the Best!

Jim Sweat, ABR, CLHMS, CRS, CDPE, GRI, e-PRO, ILHM

Featured in Scene Magazine’s Men on the Scene 2016 issue

Author of REAL ESTATE CSI: CONTROVERSY, SECRETS, INSIGHT (coming soon)

Jim Sweat – Helping Buyers & Sellers Choose Wisely Since 1995 ™

Re/Max  Alliance Group

Mobile: 941-306-7384

http://myfloridahomesmls.com/JimSweat (Home Search)

https://jimsweat.wordpress.com/ (Blog)

www.linkedin.com/in/jimsweat (LinkedIn)

A Proven Professional Working for You!

23 Years Experience

When is the Best “Selling Season” in Florida?

Sell in Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall? Pros and Cons to One and All!

Skeptical Seller: Fall is the quietest season. Families aren’t travelling because the kids are in school. Snowbirds are still home; no good reason to be on the market in the fall, right?

Jim Sweat: You are correct that fall is the quietest tourist season. That means there are not as many showings for people who are just in town and bored. It is a great time to be available for serious buyers who want to have time to find, negotiate and close on their new home soon enough to be ready to occupy it during the snowbird tourist season. I currently have several buyers who are planning on finding their new home this fall.

Skeptical Seller: That’s nice, but I know that winter is our peak tourist season. It only makes sense for me to be on the market during the winter and then take it off if it doesn’t sell. 90 days or nothing.

Jim Sweat: Yes, winter is peak Season. You will have the most showings during the winter months because of it. Sometimes showings will be scheduled just because it isn’t a perfect beach day and tourists are curious about the town. A Realtor can be a great tour guide. You also have the most competition during peak Season. There may be more potential buyers, but there are definitely more homes for them to choose from. How are you going to make yours stand out in the most crowded field of the year?

Skeptical Seller: The snowbirds go back north in the spring, and spring breakers aren’t buying houses, so what’s the point of being on the market in the spring?

Jim Sweat: There are a number of sophisticated buyers who purposely wait until Season is over before they make offers on homes. They look while they are here during vacation, then go home and wait until sellers feel desperate. The sellers who think “90 or nothing” may be more flexible when the peak 90 days have passed. You also have some sellers taking homes off the market “after Season” so those buyers have fewer homes to choose from. It may be wise to have yours available.

Skeptical Seller: Okay, I can understand that. However, there can’t be any good reason to be on the market during the dog days of summer when it is hot out and rains almost every afternoon. Who is looking at homes during the worst months of the year?

Jim Sweat: Only the serious buyers look during the off season. It’s not the most pleasant time. They aren’t just here on vacation with nothing else to do. Many of the buyers who are looking during the summer have scheduled trips specifically to find a home. This gives them time to find, buy, and renovate before peak vacation season hits. You also have the least competition. Many sellers take their home off the market during the off season because they feel it is a lost cause. If the serious buyers are looking then, don’t you want them to find yours?

We had similar situations – but reversed seasons – when I was in Michigan. Some sellers didn’t want their home on the market during the winter months. “Just wait until summer when all of the tourists are in town.” My response: Only serious buyers are trudging through three feet of snow to look at houses. Do you want to clean your house for someone who is that serious, or for a never-ending parade of bored looky-loos who are on vacation and may or may not be that serious about actually buying a home?

Remember this: the majority of homes do not sell during their first listing period. The season you list may not be the season you sell. My personal track record is strong, but it defies the averages.

There are more important factors than the time of year. “35 Home Selling Mistakes to Avoid” is an excerpt from the book I am currently writing. Wrong time of year is not one of the 35 reasons.

Bottom line: there are pros and cons to every time of year. You should work with an experienced, full-time, licensed real estate professional that can help you make the most of whatever season fits the timing in your life.

http://www.SweatSellsFlorida.com

All the Best!

Jim Sweat, ABR, CLHMS, CRS, CDPE, GRI, e-PRO, ILHM

Featured in Scene Magazine’s Men on the Scene 2016 issue

Author of REAL ESTATE CSI: CONTROVERSY, SECRETS, INSIGHT (coming soon)

Jim Sweat – Helping Buyers & Sellers Choose Wisely Since 1995 ™

Re/Max  Alliance Group

Mobile: 941-306-7384

http://myfloridahomesmls.com/JimSweat (Home Search)

https://jimsweat.wordpress.com/ (Blog)

www.linkedin.com/in/jimsweat (LinkedIn)

A Proven Professional Working for You!

22 Years Experience

35 Home-Selling Mistakes To Avoid

Did you know there are 35 Reasons Why a Property Doesn’t Sell?

It’s pretty annoying when your listing expires. All of these agents are calling to tell you how great they are, yet they really just want to get your listing and reduce the price.

They don’t even care what the real problem is. The only solution they have is the one that costs you the most money.

But – price is only one of the 35 reasons!

It’s easy for the agents because no matter what the real reason is, if you price it low enough, it will sell.

But that costs you money! Wouldn’t it be better to find out what the real reason is and address that? Sellers want to blame the agent, or the advertising. Agents want to blame the price or the market.

Don’t throw your money away! Find out what the Real Problem is, and then you can make decisions based on reality, and keep more money in your pocket!

 Process of Elimination:

Buyers don’t look for a home to buy; they look for reasons NOT to buy this home! Before they even look at homes in person, they are looking online for reasons not to go see your home at all. Every step along the journey offers opportunities to capture and hold the buyer’s attention, or lose them forever.

Review this list to maximize your prospects and reduce the pitfalls.

35 Reasons why properties don’t sell:

1. 1. Not enough photographs: Buyers assume that if you don’t show pictures of the home, it must be ugly and there is no reason to come see it (unless they want a fixer-upper!). Photos also boost online ranking.
   2. Poorly shot photos: Photos taken “into the light” or very dark; Listings that lack a full complement of photos, compelling narrative, robust descriptions and no calls to action are “web white noise”. No one sees or cares about them. Both the photos and the description are vital to sell your home. It’s the image your visitors will see once they begin their search online. The first impression matters!
   3. Missed Target Market. The most likely buyer must be identified and the property should be positioned to attract them. This is a huge issue!
   4. Incorrect data or information: Subdivision names misspelled; Tax IDs that are incorrect; Data entry errors in the databases reduce buyers and agents finding the home in their searches. Beds, baths, price, location, square footage etc… online search is data-driven.
   5. Lost in the shuffle: Some agents carry huge listing inventories of unsold homes. You want a Realtor with the experience to get the job done, and the time to give your sale the attention you deserve.
   6. Secret listings: Pocket listings, in-house, off-market and “coming soon” listings cost sellers money and sales! Restrictions of advertising to other REALTORS or the public reduce the number of potential buyers for your home. Only full market exposure brings full market value! I offer a Full Market Exposure Guarantee.
   7. Extravagant decorating or unusual floor plan. The costs to remedy must be reflected in the pricing strategy.
   8. Poorly written marketing/advertising materials: Words and pictures combine to attract the right buyers for your house. Marketing Matters!
   9. Agent skill set lacking. Ineffective or undeveloped communication, negotiation or networking skills; 70-75% of agents in Florida are part-time, doing real estate on the side or as a hobby to supplement their retirement.
   10. Key features not highlighted effectively. I utilize a simple strategy to capitalize on every showing, regardless of experience and skill of the agent.
   11. Listing isn’t found where 90% of the buyers are. We utilize syndication agreements, IDX internet data exchanges, and VOW virtual office websites to obtain worldwide internet exposure on thousands of websites!
   12. Agent is not technologically savvy. Technology is a blessing and a curse! We are combining the best of today’s technology with enhanced listings on the most popular websites, and good old fashioned customer service.
   13. Incentives are not properly structured to enhance the success of the listing.
   14. Ineffective timeframe of listing agreement: Not researched well enough to allow the proper time to market the property.
   15. Agent didn’t discuss absorption rate with the Seller. The majority of homes do not sell during the first listing period. Do you want to list your home, or sell it? Don’t be another statistic.
   16. Agent isn’t skilled in the type of property that they listed. Qualifications matter.
   17. Poor planning, poor systems, poor execution, poor Sellers!
   18. Hope as a strategy. When a REALTOR rests on their laurels, the result is a seller with a languishing listing. It’s just lying around, too. Get Action.
   19. The house wasn’t presented in the best light. Property is not staged for a quick sale. Personal items should be packed up and the property must be depersonalized. Make it as easy as possible for your visitor to visualize himself/herself living there.
   20. The home has incurable defects. “There’s a buyer for every home, but at the buyer’s price” is an old but very true real estate motto. Some residences have incurable defects that cannot be corrected, and these defects must be considered when setting the asking price.
   21. Ineffective use of Virtual Tours. Some tours discourage showings.
   22. No feedback from agents and buyers, or a failure to act on market perceptions and realities.
   23. The curb appeal needs help. If buyers don’t like the state of your house from the outside, they’re not as likely to come inside to see the rest of it. Many times a buyer has decided against a home before they get in the door. It can even be difficult to complete a scheduled showing if they are turned off when the agent pulls into the driveway.
   24. You’re trying to go it alone. Real estate agents’ fees can take a decent amount out of your total sale proceeds, it’s true. But if you go the DIY home-selling route, you run the risk of getting zero proceeds when it doesn’t sell at all. If you’re having trouble selling your home on your own, it may be time to call in a qualified pro.
   25. You’re smothering buyers. As much as you may want to see “how things are going” or be around to answer questions or offer insights, you need to let your real estate agent handle things. Go out for coffee, go see a movie, go do anything that gets you out of the house (and out of buyers’ hair!) when your home is being shown. Not only will this put less pressure on buyers; it will enable them to feel free to voice their real opinions – which can help your agent identify sticking points you need to work on to make your home more appealing.
   26. Mapping problems: Property doesn’t appear in the proper location online.
   27. Low commission splits to agents? They are only humans trying to make a living.
   28. Is the home Clean, Uncluttered, Tidy, and Smelling nice? – C.U.T.S. There is no quicker way to repel a buyer than to present an untidy, cluttered, unloved home. If you don’t show that you love it, the buyer won’t either. If it doesn’t CUTS it, you are definitely handicapping the chance of a quick, well-priced sale. Inside and out, it needs to look its absolute best! The seller controls the condition.
   29. Owner doesn’t actually want to sell. Is the owner clear on the benefits of selling now, or just fishing? Unrealistic expectations hinder sales.
   30. The listing agent is the obstacle.  As in any profession, there are top-quality people and “others”. To be polite, some agents are “out of touch” and are more of a hurdle to home sales than a help. If an agent is hard to get along with, arrogant, or has otherwise made herself unpopular, well… It’s just human nature to tend to skip over someone you don’t like when scheduling showings. You want a knowledgeable, likeable, full-time professional representing you and managing your sale.
   31. Agent doesn’t want the home to sell; it is “Buyer Bait”. Overpriced listings and discounted commissions may indicate the agent is more interested in generating buyers to sell other homes to.
   32. It is difficult to show your house to your audience: “If the house isn’t getting shown, it isn’t going to get sold.” Make every effort to accommodate showing requests.
   33. Seller interference in the selling process. Hire someone you trust and then let your agent do his/her job.
   34. Market conditions and external forces. Sometimes this is just an excuse. If legitimate, then marketing and positioning strategies must be utilized.
   35. The last possible reason why: The house wasn’t priced correctly. Price point must be clearly determined and communicated to the right buyer pool.

     Consequences of overpricing:

• Limits the number of qualified buyers
• Results in fewer prospects & showings
• Reduces the number of offers
• Creates lack of interest in the home
• Limits financing options
• Causes appraisal issues
• Increases the sales time
• Less net revenue for the seller

All the Best!

Jim Sweat, ABR, CLHMS, CRS, CDPE, GRI, e-PRO

Realtor

• Featured in Scene Magazine’s Men on the Scene 2016 issue
• Author of REAL ESTATE CSI: CONTROVERSY, SECRETS, INSIGHT (coming 2017)
• Jim Sweat – Helping Buyers & Sellers Choose Wisely Since 1995 ™
• 22 Years Experience ~ A Proven Professional Working for You!http://myfloridahomesmls.com/JimSweat (Home Search)https://jimsweat.wordpress.com/ (Blog)
• www.linkedin.com/in/jimsweat (LinkedIn)

Re/Max Alliance Group

Mobile: 941-306-7384