zillow: The Housing Market Groundhog Saw Its Shadow On A Cell Phone - 08/14/12 12:22 PM
 
Although we’re have a year away from Groundhog day, maybe The Housing Market saw its shadow and someone snapped a photo with their cellphone to tell the rest of the Americans who missed out. 
 
Apparently in a recent article, Spencer Rascoff, CEO of Zillow, stepped out to say The Housing Market indeed saw its shadow and has finally “bottomed out.”
 
Although many agencies have posted reports indicating signs of recovery in various regions of the country, the overall housing industry is still only a faint version of its former self. However, with prices as low as … (0 comments)

zillow: Turning A Corner - 08/11/12 02:34 AM
 
In an earlier article by Zillow.com (http://www.zillow.com/blog/2012-07-16/rents-rise-as-more-americans-flock-back-into-cities/), the City of Chicago found both rent price and rent demand shoot up at an unprecedented rate as young adults flocked downtown and away from suburbs. One of the reasons, Stan Humphries of Zillow.com stipulates, why young adults avoided suburbs and home purchases were the credit restrictions many young adults couldn't navigate around.
 
But according to a recent article on dsnews.com, Mark Lieberman reported that The Federal Reserve and commercial banks lowered standards for mortgage loans in order to meet the growing demand.
What is most heartening is not the … (0 comments)

zillow: Big City Allure For Renters? - 07/21/12 03:53 AM
 
Big cities like Chicago, New York, San Francisco, used to represent the American Dream: leave the family farm and be chased by mobsters with Tommy-guns instead of freshly branded cows. Today the situations and lifestyles are a little different but the allure of the big city still seems to shine. The US Census Bureau reported that from April, 2010 to July, 2011 cities with populations over 100,000 have grown at a rate of 1.3 percent, exceeding the national rate of 0.91 percent.
 
 
But why are young Americans returning back to big cities like Chicago? And why are … (2 comments)

zillow: How Accurate Is Zestimate by Zillow? - 06/13/12 09:49 PM
 
So, when was the last time you walked into a listing appointment and after you had presented your educated insight on the client’s property based on years of experience in the local market then heard the client say, “but Zillow says it is worth this”?
  Zestimates: How Accurate Are They? 
  Whether Realtor or Appraiser, this question will continue to come up as more companies are moving to harness vast amounts of data to predict home values.
  So, the next time you need to explain the difference in your Market Analysis of a client’s property and the … (6 comments)

zillow: Zillow Home Price Predictions Unbalanced Across Nation - 05/01/12 12:18 PM
 
According to the Zillow, they expect national home values to drop 0.4% over the coming year.
 
On a national basis, Zillow indicates that Boston, Dallas, Denver, Miami, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Tampa appear to have reached a bottom.
 
Zillow expects Baltimore, Los Angeles, and San Jose to reach a bottom this year.
 
Additionally, the trend in Las Vegas, New York, Portland, Riverside, and San Diego is still not clear enough to make near-term predictions on hitting bottom.

 
Source: Zillow Home Value Forecast
And there is Atlanta, Chicago and Detroit … (2 comments)

zillow: Zillow Reports 3.1% Decline In Annual Home Price - 04/26/12 12:22 PM
 
Zillow's first quarter Real Estate Market Reports show home values decreased 0.5% from the fourth quarter of 2011 to the first quarter of 2012 to $146,200.
Annually, values dropped 3.1% from March 2011.
Despite showing quarterly and annual depreciation, the quarter ended positively with home values rising in March 

So, maybe, just maybe, this market may shake off its sluggishness and turnout a good year for the first time in nearly half a decade.
Michael Hobbs, PahRoo Appraisal & Consultancy
 
(1 comments)

zillow: Zillow Forecast Points Downward - 03/27/12 10:29 AM
Last week, Zillow said the 100 economists it polls for its quarterly survey on the real estate market had revised downward their expectations for home prices this year.
Nationally, home prices are forecasted to drop 0.7% in 2012 which is more than the 0.2% predicted at the end of 2011.  
For 2013, home prices nationally are forecasted to increase 1.4%, which was a revision downward from the 1.8% forecasted by economists when they were surveyed at the end of 2011 regarding future outlook.
Only time will tell...
Michael Hobbs, PahRoo Appraisal & Consultancy
(6 comments)

zillow: What the UAD Is Going On In There?! - 08/17/11 04:11 PM
What the UAD?!!!
 
This weeks starts the onslaught of one consumer experience which the government will be hard pressed to adequately explain but will surely find a way to dumb-it-down and spoon-feed it to the American public so that Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert can parody their actions. 
As a follow up the prior post, What the UAD?  The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is saving the consumer, protecting them from the naughty real estate brokers and salespeople out there who are confusing the buyers and possibly even the appraisers.  Geez, I for one am glad I'm not in Kansas … (1 comments)