Zillow recorded my call with a prospective tenant

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Zillow recorded my call with a prospective tenant

Thomas P.
Agent/Investor · Knoxville, TN · Member since 2015 · 59 posts · 29 votes

So guys, I have never seen this until today. I received a call from a prospective tenant and answered their questions about a property for rent. I then went into my Zillow landlord account to respond to another email request for information and discovered a new message.  It was a full recording of the call I had just answered. Complete abuse and invasion of privacy for both myself and that prospective tenant.  How is this even legal?  I can't find a way to turn this off anywhere on the site.  Has anyone else noticed this?

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Kim Meredith HamptonBusiness Member
Real Estate Broker · St Petersburg · Member since 2014 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
6y

@Thomas P. That is scary!!!! Never heard if such a thing, but I bet in some nano millimeter language we agreed to this 

I have a paid account with them too, I’m going to check this out. I see a lot of my fellow realtors and property managers who basically boycott Zillow because of their unscrupulous tactics 

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  • Kim Meredith HamptonBusiness Member
    Real Estate Broker · St Petersburg · Member since 2014 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    6y

    @Thomas P. That is scary!!!! Never heard if such a thing, but I bet in some nano millimeter language we agreed to this 

    I have a paid account with them too, I’m going to check this out. I see a lot of my fellow realtors and property managers who basically boycott Zillow because of their unscrupulous tactics 

    [email protected]407-448-6679Podcast Guest on Show The Key to Scoring Discounted Deals in One of America’s Hottest Markets
    Compass | St. Pete514 Reviews
    WebsiteView Page
    5Reply
  • Harish V.
    Investor · Fremont, CA · Member since 2015 · 209 posts · 124 votes
    6y

    Zillow is getting strange day by day.  Many complaints against them, but right now they own the most viable properties frequented by renters and buyers.

    1Reply
  • David M.
    Morris County, NJ · Member since 2020 · 5k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    6y

    @Thomas P.

    Yup...  That's part of signing up with them as a Premier Agent and advertising for them.  I guess I see it as a different thing since you can go back and relisten, albeit probably painful, to the conversation to take notes.  This is useful especially when calls come in while you are out and about.  I don't know about the legality of it...

    0Reply
  • Darius Ogloza
    Investor · Marin County California · Member since 2018 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    6y

    Different states have different requirements for recording calls.  For example, what you describe sounds illegal in California without the consent of both you and your prospective tenant.  See Cal. Penal Code section 632.  

    1Reply
  • Suzanne PlayerPro Member
    Attorney · New York City / Long Island, NY · Member since 2020 · 597 posts · 248 votes
    6y

    Very disturbing to hear about Zillow

    What else are they taking off people’s phones?  Everything?

    I doubt anyone ever actually consented to this - they are probably hanging their hat on some vague clause allowing access “necessary” to perform their function 


    516-503-7959
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  • David M.
    Morris County, NJ · Member since 2020 · 5k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    6y

    @Suzanne Player

    Maybe, but not necessarily that nefarious...  Remember, they are only recording the calls that go through their call center.  So, after that first call, there aren't recordings because I always provide the customers/clients with my number then we can call/text directly and not go through Zillow's call center.

    2Reply
  • Account Closed
    Investor · Columbus, OH · Member since 2017 · 861 posts · 1k+ votes
    6y

    There have been rumours that Zillow will post your ad but with a different phone number, forcing the calls through their systems before it gets to you. I would log out of Zillow or get on a different computer, then check your ad and see if the phone number on the listing is the same one you expect to see.  If they weren't switching the phone numbers there should be no way they would be able to intercept and record the call. 

    1Reply
  • Francois G.
    Real Estate Agent · New York, NY · Member since 2020 · 62 posts · 72 votes
    6y
    Originally posted by @Thomas P.:

    So guys, I have never seen this until today. I received a call from a prospective tenant and answered their questions about a property for rent. I then went into my Zillow landlord account to respond to another email request for information and discovered a new message.  It was a full recording of the call I had just answered. Complete abuse and invasion of privacy for both myself and that prospective tenant.  How is this even legal?  I can't find a way to turn this off anywhere on the site.  Has anyone else noticed this?

    I'm pretty sure Zillow has always done this. I can't speak for the landlord features because I've never used theirs but they have done this since I was using their Premiere Agent back in 2017. The legality of it all will vary from state to state.

    For all of Zillow's shortcomings lately, I actually didn't mind this feature. It was beneficial as an agent for those buyers who change their criteria a million times before a purchase.

    You have to remember that you're using THEIR service. It's easy to click an "Accept Terms and Conditions" button when you want to sign up but you have to remember there's a lot of things in those terms and conditions that many people don't bother reading. If a large company like that is doing something you might not agree with, chances are you already agreed to it (whether you're aware of it or not).

    1Reply
  • Mary M.
    Rental Property Investor · Portland OR · Member since 2018 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    6y

    Yes, and if you call a prospect or they call you via the zillow website links it is recorded. 

    I actually like this as it is good for training and also if there is any question about who said what. 

    0Reply
  • Thomas P.
    OP
    Agent/Investor · Knoxville, TN · Member since 2015 · 59 posts · 29 votes
    6y

    @David M. I did not sign up as a premier agent, though i did pay the $9.99 for the first time for a listing, so I'm assuming they've inserted some legal jargon you are agreeing to somewhere, but what about the caller is simply calling in to inquire?  Do they know that I now have a recording of the whole call, their voice, etc... @Account Closed  I did what you suggested and sure enough, they have replaced my contact number with another local number that is routed through HotPads.  This is a violation of our association advertising rules because we are required to have our firm name and phone number listed on all advertising.  I have called my broker to let her know.  They also edited my listing and took out my youtube link to the video walk-through in the description portion of the listing.  Curious, for those of you using Premiere Agent, is your contact information changed on all your listings on Zillow?   There is something wrong here...

    1Reply
  • Scott Mac
    Austin, TX · Member since 2019 · 5k+ posts · 5k+ votes
    6y

    They used to call that "Tapping the Phone lines".

    Now they call it Data Mining your phone calls.

    2Reply
  • David M.
    Morris County, NJ · Member since 2020 · 5k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    6y

    @Thomas P.

    No, I doubt the callers have a clue they are being recorded.

    1Reply
  • Eugene Ionel
    Member since 2018 · 1 post · 0 votes
    5y

    I am a Landlord, not a real estate agent. Why do Zillow record the conversation with prospective tenant? I do not have ability to go back and listen this conversation again. When prospective tenant calls me I hear the recording in the beginning that conversation will be recorded. It is very weird for me. What is the Zillow's objective?

    0Reply
  • Louie Gabriel
    Member since 2020 · 57 posts · 24 votes
    5y

    Thanks for posting this, I wasn't aware. There's a lot of shady stuff going on in real estate tech, and some of it I find scary, mostly because people have no idea how it works or that their info is being sold. Basically, anything used in real estate is aggregated and sold. Some of the transaction management software is a good example, and I don't think the agents even know that the info is being sold.

    0Reply
  • John Shepard
    Member since 2021 · 16 posts · 5 votes
    4y

    They also send the recordings to the DOJ and HUD in case there are any discrimination issues.

    0Reply
  • Julie MarquezPro Member
    Investor · Skagit County, WA · Member since 2016 · 1k+ posts · 807 votes
    4y

    @Thomas P. When I went to post a rental listing, Zillow said they might change my number, and I thought that was odd so I turned that feature off and hid my number (personal listing so I don't need to show my number for brokerage). All this Zillow stuff gets crazy and I've never liked how your listing is saved forever in their system. Makes me want to go back to simple Craigslist for adverting. Or the newspaper classifieds, haha.

    2Reply
  • Travis L.
    Member since 2021 · 20 posts · 10 votes
    4y

    Zillow does when you are contacted thru their number, google also does it for my business as well but only when they contact through the ad number.  I was completely aware when I signed up and love the feature, no more miss written info you can easily listen and learn from what you said or didn't say.  For my business its great to monitor when employees answer to see why we lost a lead how they handle customers ect.  Again I have no problem but was 100% aware this goes, I thought it very transparent but if they canceled it I would feel differently.

    0Reply
  • Suzanne PlayerPro Member
    Attorney · New York City / Long Island, NY · Member since 2020 · 597 posts · 248 votes
    4y

    From their website's privacy page on 5/17/22 at https://www.zillowgroup.com/zg...

    Activity information

    We collect information about how you use Zillow. This includes things like your home search history, homes you view, purchase activity, what you’ve clicked on and other uses of our features, and the amount of time you spend looking at different parts of our websites. When you call or text Zillow or a real estate professional using our platform, we collect data about your call or text, including the date and time of the call or text, your phone number, and the content of the call or text.

       I don't see any way to opt out of Zillow recording our calls!          And HOW do we know when they are recording a call?  What qualifies in their mind?

    Privacy Page is at: https://privacy.zillowgroup.co...

    You can request a copy of your data, it required a login & a code emailed to verify it's you, says it takes 45 days (in an age of instantaneous information sharing by a technology company!)

    516-503-7959
    0Reply
  • Suzanne PlayerPro Member
    Attorney · New York City / Long Island, NY · Member since 2020 · 597 posts · 248 votes
    4y

    Also should mention that the information above should apply to Trulia & Hotpads as well since the privacy page lists them with Zillow

    https://privacy.zillowgroup.co...

    516-503-7959
    0Reply
  • Henry T.
    Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    4y
    Quote from @Julie Marquez:

    @Thomas P. When I went to post a rental listing, Zillow said they might change my number, and I thought that was odd so I turned that feature off and hid my number (personal listing so I don't need to show my number for brokerage). All this Zillow stuff gets crazy and I've never liked how your listing is saved forever in their system. Makes me want to go back to simple Craigslist for adverting. Or the newspaper classifieds, haha.


      I've never liked how your listing is saved either,,,After I'm done with the listing I go back and "correct it" by eliminating most information, and changing the house pics to wilderness pictures. My reason being that I know assessors (in fact) use these pics to evaluate and raise your property taxes.

    0Reply
  • Henry T.
    Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    4y

    Screw Zillow, I've used it , but I always seem to get my applicant from craigslist. I prefer being in total control of my ad, and the privacy that goes with it.

    1Reply
  • Olivia Radziszewski
    Realtor · Chicago, IL · Member since 2019 · 274 posts · 191 votes
    4y

    Wow! I have heard many negative things about Zillow and generally just do not work with that site. I know other agents that it works fine for but it seems they have many questionably legal things going on. 

    0Reply
  • Suzanne PlayerPro Member
    Attorney · New York City / Long Island, NY · Member since 2020 · 597 posts · 248 votes
    4y

    I was curious about Redfin's privacy policies, it seems Redfin records your calls also.

    From their privacy page:

    Redfin  

    H. Call Recording

    We may record any telephone calls between you and our agents or other representatives for training and quality assurance purposes.

    https://www.redfin.com/about/p...

    It looks like Apartments.com also records your phone calls:

    By dialing one of these phone numbers, you consent to the Site or a service provider operating on the Site’s behalf recording the date, time and length of your call and the phone number from which the call originated, along with the call itself and other information that may be captured

    https://www.apartments.com/adv...

    516-503-7959
    1Reply
  • Julie MarquezPro Member
    Investor · Skagit County, WA · Member since 2016 · 1k+ posts · 807 votes
    4y

    @Suzanne Player Thanks for sharing that information on the different websites. It just seems like a long reach for these companies. I hear from agents who tell me that their clients viewed my listing in Zillow.

    @Henry T. I like the idea of deleting the information when you can. I love using craigslist too, but I need a good easy screening tool, and end up back to apartments or zillow for that.

    0Reply
  • Suzanne PlayerPro Member
    Attorney · New York City / Long Island, NY · Member since 2020 · 597 posts · 248 votes
    4y

    @Julie Marquez I have to wonder how long the reach actually is.  

    Wouldn't they claim they had to record ALL or cell phone calls in order to determine which to listen to (& record) that are related to the Zillow (or Apartments.com) related business?

    And once information is accessed & recorded, it could be retained forever to be used for any purpose such as re-selling.  So, why would a company volunatarily give it up by deleting it?

    516-503-7959
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