Your Home Isn't Worth What Zillow Says — And That's a Problem By Alex Baron

You pulled up your address on Zillow. You saw the number. And for a moment, it felt like free money.

Maybe it was higher than you expected — and you started mentally spending the difference. Maybe it was lower — and you felt a quiet panic set in. Either way, you took that number seriously. Most homeowners do.

Here's what I need you to understand after 35 years of selling homes across Queens, Long Island, and Palm Beach: that number is a guess. A computerized, algorithmically generated guess — made without anyone ever stepping foot inside your home. And depending on which direction it's wrong, it can cost you enormously.

Let me explain exactly why, and what you should do instead.

What the Zestimate Actually Is

Zillow's valuation tool — the "Zestimate" — is a machine learning model that estimates your home's value based on publicly available data. It looks at things like tax records, recent nearby sales, square footage, and lot size.

What it cannot see is everything that actually makes your home worth what it's worth.

It doesn't know that you renovated your kitchen two years ago with custom cabinetry and quartz countertops. It doesn't know your master bath was just gutted and redone. It doesn't know your basement is fully finished, your backyard is exceptional, or that you've maintained this home meticulously for twenty years while the comparable down the street has been neglected.

It also doesn't know the opposite — that your roof is aging, your HVAC is original from 1987, or that the layout is awkward in ways that always give buyers pause.

Zillow is working with a fraction of the information that actually determines value. And it admits this. Zillow's own data has shown its national median error rate can be several percentage points — which on a $700,000 home in Queens or Long Island means being off by $35,000 to $70,000 or more. That's not a rounding error. That's life-changing money.

When It's Too High: The Overpricing Trap

This is where I see sellers get hurt the most.

A homeowner sees a Zestimate that's $75,000 above what the market will actually bear. They're excited. They list at that number — or sometimes even higher — convinced the algorithm validated their expectations.

And then the silence begins.

Showings are sparse. Offers don't come. Days on market pile up. The listing starts to feel stale. Buyers who were initially curious move on to homes that are priced to reflect reality. By the time the seller reduces the price, the damage is done — serious buyers have already purchased elsewhere, and the remaining pool smells blood in the water.

Homes that sit and then reduce almost always sell for less than they would have if they'd been priced correctly from the start. The overpriced Zestimate didn't just mislead the seller. It actively cost them money.

When It's Too Low: Leaving Equity on the Table

The other direction is just as dangerous, and it catches sellers off guard in a different way.

Some homeowners see a Zestimate that undervalues their property and accept it as fact. They price conservatively, attract a quick offer, and walk away thinking they did well — never knowing they left $40,000 or $50,000 behind.

This happens frequently in neighborhoods where recent renovations, unique lot characteristics, or micro-market dynamics aren't captured in the public data Zillow relies on. A beautifully updated colonial on a premium block in a sought-after Queens or Long Island neighborhood is not the same as a dated split-level two streets over — but Zillow's model may price them within a few thousand dollars of each other.

When you sell below true market value, that money doesn't disappear. It transfers directly to the buyer's pocket at your expense.

The Neighborhoods Where Zillow Struggles Most

Automated valuations work best in cookie-cutter subdivisions where homes are nearly identical and sales happen frequently. The algorithm has plenty of clean data to work with.

But that's not most of Queens or Long Island.

Our markets are layered and complex. You have block-by-block value differences. Homes with the same square footage can be worlds apart in condition, finishes, and desirability. Co-ops have maintenance fees and board requirements that dramatically affect value in ways no algorithm accounts for. Waterfront properties, corner lots, homes with legal accessory apartments, new construction in established neighborhoods — all of these require human expertise and local market knowledge to price accurately.

Palm Beach is even more extreme. Luxury real estate is almost entirely a comparables-and-relationship market, where the difference between a great price and a great price can hinge on negotiation, timing, and access to the right buyer network — none of which Zillow has.

What an Accurate Valuation Actually Looks Like

A real Comparative Market Analysis — done by an experienced local agent — is a completely different exercise.

It starts with walking through your home. Seeing the condition firsthand. Understanding the updates, the layout, the light, the lot, the street. Then it looks at recent sales of genuinely comparable properties — not just nearby addresses — and makes adjustments for the real differences between them.

It also accounts for current market conditions: how many competing listings exist right now, how long homes are taking to sell, whether we're seeing multiple offers or price reductions, and where buyer demand is trending in your specific neighborhood.

That analysis produces a pricing strategy — not just a number. It accounts for how to position your home to attract the most qualified buyers, generate the strongest possible offers, and protect your equity from the first day it hits the market to the moment you sign at the closing table.

That's what you deserve. And it's what a Zestimate will never give you.

Don't Let an Algorithm Decide the Biggest Financial Transaction of Your Life

Zillow is a useful tool for casual browsing. It's a reasonable starting point for curiosity. But it is not a substitute for professional judgment, local expertise, and a strategy built around your specific home in your specific market.

I've seen sellers lose tens of thousands of dollars trusting a number a computer generated without ever seeing their home. I've also seen sellers walk away from the table with significantly more than they expected once a proper valuation and marketing strategy were put in place.

The difference is real. And it's yours to keep — or to give away.

Find out what your home is actually worth.

Visit wesellhomes.pro or call The Baron Team directly at 718-490-4523 for a confidential, no-obligation home valuation. We'll give you an honest number, show you exactly how we got there, and build a selling plan designed to maximize every dollar of your equity.

Because you've worked too hard for your home to let an algorithm shortchange you.

Alex Baron has been a top Queens and Long Island Realtor since 1988, consistently ranking among the top 2% of Realtors nationwide. The Baron Team specializes in luxury homes, single-family, multifamily, co-ops, condos, new construction, and relocations across Queens, Long Island, and Palm Beach, Florida.