Real Estate Investor · Prince Edward Island · Member since 2011 · 13 posts · 1 vote
Wondering what the best websites are for doing home comps. I know most agents use MLS. Sites like Zilliow can be so far off at times. I am told that each City has a preferred listing / comp. site. The cities that I am focused on are Austin, TX, Atlanta, GA, Raleigh, NC, and Charlotte, NC.
Look forward to any response or info!
Commercial Real Estate Broker · St. Petersburg, FL · Member since 2009 · 47 posts · 23 votes
15y
I just ran a little experiment,
I went to Homes.com and pulled up a neighborhood. Using the figures on the map I totalled up the home values in excel of all the homes in that neighborhood. I threw out the lowest number and the highest number. and came up with an average of $223,821
I then went into MLS and pulled up the neighborhood in and ran a CMA on the entire neighborhood. The average home SOLD in the last year for $220,00 (1.71% less than the number I came up with using Homes.com) And the average current listing price was $216,500 (3.27% Lower than the number I came up with on Homes.com)
Not Bad, Take it for what its worth.
Rental Property Investor · Mercer Island, WA · Member since 2008 · 22k+ posts · 14k+ votes
15y
Ultimately there is only one source - MLS. "The MLS" is a misnomer. Its not one thing, but a bunch of different systems that cover different areas.
In some areas, public records have some data. Trouble is, you may get the recorded sales price, but nothing about concessions, days on markets, listing price, or price changes that occurred while it was listed.
Zillow isn't far off on comps. Those are fine, though they're just public records and have the same limitations. Zillow's estimates can be really far off.
Some title companies may have some data available publicly, too.
Portsmouth, OH · Member since 2009 · 198 posts · 54 votes
15y
Originally posted by Jon Holdman:
Ultimately there is only one source - MLS. "The MLS" is a misnomer. Its not one thing, but a bunch of different systems that cover different areas.
In some areas, public records have some data. Trouble is, you may get the recorded sales price, but nothing about concessions, days on markets, listing price, or price changes that occurred while it was listed.
Zillow isn't far off on comps. Those are fine, though they're just public records and have the same limitations. Zillow's estimates can be really far off.
Some title companies may have some data available publicly, too.
I was always told to stay away from Zillow.
Jon are you saying the sold comps they have are reliable but not your target property value?
Real Estate Investor · Audubon, PA · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 8k+ votes
15y
Originally posted by Alex H.:
...
I was always told to stay away from Zillow.
Jon are you saying the sold comps they have are reliable but not your target property value?
I think that the sold prices are accurate for the properties they show as comparable. Whether those are truly comparable will vary. I have seen Zillow give property as comparable that I would not (due to being in a different school district, or being within distance as the crow flies but not by driving or walking since on the other side of a river and the nearest bridge is a bit aways).
I have seen another online valuation site use a tax sale property (sold for back taxes) and considered that a non-distressed arm's length transaction - incorrectly, of course.
Real Estate Investor · Prince Edward Island · Member since 2011 · 13 posts · 1 vote
15y
I do agree as well, in the end, you decide whats best. John its good to know that the comps are closer while the estimates are off in zillow, Ill keep an eye on that. Has anyone use listing sites such as Keller-williams, remax, etc, for comps?
Commercial Real Estate Broker · St. Petersburg, FL · Member since 2009 · 47 posts · 23 votes
15y
I just ran a little experiment,
I went to Homes.com and pulled up a neighborhood. Using the figures on the map I totalled up the home values in excel of all the homes in that neighborhood. I threw out the lowest number and the highest number. and came up with an average of $223,821
I then went into MLS and pulled up the neighborhood in and ran a CMA on the entire neighborhood. The average home SOLD in the last year for $220,00 (1.71% less than the number I came up with using Homes.com) And the average current listing price was $216,500 (3.27% Lower than the number I came up with on Homes.com)
Not Bad, Take it for what its worth.
Portsmouth, OH · Member since 2009 · 198 posts · 54 votes
15y
Originally posted by Robert Littke:
I just ran a little experiment,
I went to Homes.com and pulled up a neighborhood. Using the figures on the map I totalled up the home values in excel of all the homes in that neighborhood. I threw out the lowest number and the highest number. and came up with an average of $223,821
I then went into MLS and pulled up the neighborhood in and ran a CMA on the entire neighborhood. The average home SOLD in the last year for $220,00 (1.71% less than the number I came up with using Homes.com) And the average current listing price was $216,500 (3.27% Lower than the number I came up with on Homes.com)
Not Bad, Take it for what its worth.
Thanks for the tip Robert!
I'll have to conduct the same experiment for my area.
Rental Property Investor · Mercer Island, WA · Member since 2008 · 22k+ posts · 14k+ votes
15y
Comps are just data. Zillow just collects public records data and makes it available to you. You have to understand the data and use it to determine a value.
Like I mentioned, the MLS has additional data, which does affect value.
That said, not all deals go through the MLS, where all (ok, nearly all) deals do go through public records.
Best way to learn values? Pick a farm area, drive up and down every street. Look inside every current listing. Watch public records and MLS data for a year. Watch what sells for what price. Learn what the houses are like, which are ranches and which are two stories. Which have basements and which don't. Look at every house from the outside and 100 from the inside and you'll understand the area.
The trouble with zillow's automated estimates is the lack of data. Same for any automated service. Are the homes truly comparable? Are they in similar condition? Are they really in the same neighborhood? Is the data accurate for size, beds, baths? Without feet on the street, you just don't know. I do think these algorithms will get better over time, and that appraisers and agents can choose good or bad comps and skew an appraisal or BPO. But at least they have some idea what's really going on in the neighborhood.
Lender · Roseville, CA · Member since 2011 · 205 posts · 86 votes
15y
In my experience, Zillow is ok in a fairly stable market, however, the Zestimates definitely lag the market by at least 3 months maybe even 6. For areas in California, during the height of decline, I saw Zestimates that were up to 10% higher than actual market value. Same goes for when values were rapidly increasing only the Zestimates were lower.
The main reasons for this are because there is a delay in entering data from public records, also, it does not take into consideration listings and pending sales. And if there are limited sales, the calculation may include sales that are a year or so old.
I'm not saying Zillow is not a useful site and if you are in an area where values aren't changing much it may not make much difference but in my area this has not been the case.
Working with a Realtor who has access to the local MLS system could save you thousands by providing you with ALL the information available.
Orlando, FL · Member since 2009 · 2k+ posts · 282 votes
15y
I've been using Sitex-Data for the last year. It's not cheap, but it's cheaper than RealQuest because you can buy a block of comps that lasts for one year, instead of paying the monthly charge. I don't make enough offers to justify paying the expensive monthly charge.
It uses an automated model and gives you a confidence score on the comp. It's definitely better than Zillow or the free version of RealQuest.
Like everyone said, you can't turn off your brain. If you see some negative characteristic when visiting the house, that the comp isn't going to pick up, take that into account.
Commercial Real Estate Broker · St. Petersburg, FL · Member since 2009 · 47 posts · 23 votes
15y
I don't like Zillow, they are an "after the fact provider of public info/documents", that's all I'm going to say.
I used homes.com because that's who Realtor.com says is there biggest competitor and Realtor.com is fed through regional MLS systems, and that information is gathered by agents who are in the homes, taking measurements and running comps to try and sell homes and provide the most accurate info. To be a member of MLS, you have to abide by certain time lines and standards so IMO their info is the most accurate and current.
Real Estate Investor · Audubon, PA · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 8k+ votes
15y
Originally posted by Darcy Murnaghan:
... Has anyone use listing sites such as Keller-williams, remax, etc, for comps?
Well, for one thing, it's not recommended to use active listing prices as a substitute for sold prices. Properties can be listed very high above what the market is willing to pay, and sit as a listing for a long time; if you use such a property as your "comparable" then you should expect the same sort of sales performance (in other words, you'll sit on market for a long time).
In the end, if the buyer will be purchasing with financing, then an appraisal will be used, and appraisers have specific guidelines they follow in selecting the comps. So you want to try and match that as best as you can.
Real Estate Investor · Prince Edward Island · Member since 2011 · 13 posts · 1 vote
15y
Yes you are right Steve about active listing prices vs. sold prices. My goal is to figure out quickly when I receive a lead, what is a good deal that meets our criteria and what is junk. Is nice to throw in an address and see some values come up. But you have to have some knowledge on the background of where these values are coming from I suppose.
San Diego, CA · Member since 2011 · 14 posts · 5 votes
15y
I like to use zillow, however nothing beats getting out there and looking at houses to start developing that gut level instinct that has always lead me in the right direction.
Real Estate Investor · Prince Edward Island · Member since 2011 · 13 posts · 1 vote
15y
After the chat that zillow is not the most accurate, why does it seem so many people continue using it. I myself find it quite easy to punch in an address and pull up a map with the surrounding homes (they may not be correct though). But it gives a good ball park to either look into a potential investment further or to drop it.... I am told that ZIP realty is big from comps in Atlanta!
All good posts. MLS has an advantage in that it shows information you simply can't get from the public records, but, the sale price can be wrong in spite of the MLS rules/fines/regulations. As a hard money lender, on more than one occasion, I've had a borrower show me comps from the MLS that when I look them up in the public records see that the MLS sale price is higher than the recorded sale price in the public records. I vote for MLS plus public records as being the best.
Rental Property Investor · Charlotte NC Fort Mill SC Lake Wylie SC, SC · Member since 2009 · 174 posts · 103 votes
15y
I'm a little late to this game, but here are the tools I use. And the key here is "tools"--not "tool". I do not have the benefit of acess to the MLS.
I do not use Zillow, as I have found them to be far off from my personal, intimate knowledge of the Charlotte NC market (I live here and invest here).
I do use Homes.com, trulia.com and realtor.com. I also always run comps from the county website where the property is located. Mecklenburg's is pretty good--it's called polaris. It's part of their GIS system. I combine the data from those sources and make my own determination.
I'm usually dead-on with my figures if I stick with this sytem.
Interior Designer/Home Stager · Dallas, GA · Member since 2013 · 202 posts · 9 votes
13y
I know this is old Terri Pour-Rastegar! But if you have time, can you please elaborate on how you use those tools to come up with something so close? :)
Investor · Lockport, IL · Member since 2015 · 25 posts · 35 votes
9y
I know this thread is long-dead but...
I found most if not all of these replies extremely insightful so I thought maybe I should try to add some value.
I'm going to spend some time trying to use realtor.com, trulia, and homes as @Terri Pour-Rastegar suggested and use excel to organize the info...
But I couldn't help but be surprised that the first property's comps I looked at happened to be immediately adjacent to a large field and some woods. A nice, secluded view you say?
By coincidence, that morning in the Daily Southtown an article was published concerning the sale of that exact field to a large industrial park business, Prologis, who would be installing 5 large warehouses on the property starting next year.
Comps are great...but you need to now what's really going in the the streets. The town news...the town history...what the residents are talking about.
Specialist · Huntsville, UT · Member since 2015 · 458 posts · 249 votes
8y
Nothing beats real estate comps for accurate house values. Estimation sites like Zillow are so far off.
Finally, there's a new website where you can actually get REAL sold comps from REAL agents all online usually within one business day. They have a national network of local agents in every market ready to pull comps of recently sold homes. I've used it and it works beautifully: https://realestatecompstoday.com