If you ask any home buyer in Bend if they are familiar with Real Estate websites like realtor.com, Zillow or Trulia the answer will be yes because, thanks to the increased use of smartphones, and broadband internet access in homes and mobile, close to 90% or more of home buyers in Bend and across the United States are searching for homes online but the most important question that should be asked is just how accurate is the home data that’s listed on these websites?

For example: one frustrating thing about some Real Estate websites is that they frequently list homes that are no longer for sale; when a Bend Oregon home buyer finds these homes they will typically email their Realtor about them and the Realtor will search the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) to no avail because, the homes are no longer listed.

Why Not Always Have Accurate Data?

Over the last few years Zillow has become one of the top Real Estate websites on the internet and they claim to have a database of over 100 million homes across the United States but, their database also includes homes that are not currently for sale or rent.

Listing homes that are not for sale is a SEO tactic that helps to keep Zillow on the top of a home buyers mind but this tactic does a disservice to the Real Estate industry as a whole because, an average home buyer is typically excited when they find a great home for sale and they don’t always look at the specifics of a listing on Zillow to make sure that the home they are excited about really is for sale.

Inaccurate Home Values

 Besides Zillow, there are other online resources that don’t always provide consumers with the most accurate Real Estate data; one website in particular that is disliked by some Realtors locally is Zestimate; this website is designed to calculate home values but sadly, home values are typically based on data that’s submitted by users, not by Realtors so, as with Zillow it’s not always possible to get the most accurate home value data for a home in Bend or elsewhere in the United States.

The easiest way to get the most accurate information for preliminary title reports or to view the latest Bend Oregon homes for sale, contact me today by calling (541) 383-1426.