Someone landed on Geek Estate the other day, with the following search query:

the truth about real estate automated valuation websites

I’m not sure exactly what they are looking for, but they should know AVM’s (automated valuation model) have been around for years & used heavily in the lending, insurance, and investment industries. However, professionals had to pay for access to that data.

Consumer Websites

zillowZillow launched in February of 2006, and was the first site to give consumers free access to the same data professionals had been using for years.

Yahoo Real Estate’s home value estimator was powered by Zillow (I don’t see a way to search a home value now).

RealestateABC releases their own home values, but eventually switched to Zillow’s API.

Cyberhomes came. And went.

Nextag provided home valuations for awhile, then abandoned them.

Eppraisal is still out there. Frankly, I’m surprised Zillow hasn’t bought them.

Several companies sell white label AVMs. Among them are CoreLogic and DataQuick.

Accuracy

No, AVMs are not 100% accurate. And they never will be. You can see Zillow’s accuracy here: http://www.zillow.com/zestimate/#acc

Not sure if I answered “the truth about real estate automated valuation websites”, but feel free to leave a comment if not.

PS: I’m beyond surprised there is no mention of Zillow on the “automated valuation model” Wikipedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automated_valuation_model.