David Barr's Sarasota and Venice Real Estate Blog

It's been a while since I've provided an update on Zillow's inaccuracy when it comes to real estate in Venice FL. Today I pulled screen shots of Zillow's map of Venice FL homes for sale.  According to the map, 1254 homes are for sale (including villas, condos, townhomes, and single family homes.).  However, on the same page under "Venice Real Estate Facts", it says 1184 homes are for sale. Zillow contradicts itself: Zillow map of 1254 homes for sale in Venice FL on January 20, 2020 Hey Zillow, are there 1254 for 1189 homes for sale in Venice FL on Jan 20, 2020?  In the screen shot above, Zillow says the median home value in Venice FL is $235,900.  According to our MLS for 2019 below, the median home value is actually $265,000.  According to our MLS, the Venice FL 2019 median home value is $265,000.   Folks, Zillow is not a credible real estate website.  They sell your information to real estate agents who can't figure ou...

I've posted here earlier about Zillow and how they present misinformation to home buyers and sellers. This morning I was reading a real estate news article about the market nationally, and they quote Zillow as an "expert source".  So I started wondering, where exactly do they get their data? According to Zillow:  "Our data on and appreciation for these reports is based on the Zillow Home Value Index - a valuation index calculated as the median value (Zestimate) of all homes in a particular geographic area. At the national level , this data is then weighted according to population in each area".  That's interesting, since real estate is decidedly a factor of local economics and geographic specifics such as beaches and climate.  Ponder why, if Zillow's methodology is correct, Port Charlotte and Sarasota don't have the same housing prices, since we are geographically similar. In fact, Zillow contradicts themselves as you dig further into the FAQ ...