The big thing Zillow is missing is buyer information. I will personally value a home differently than you will because we have varying desires.
For example, I put a low value on bedrooms past the second and multiple stories, but a high value on a large garage and big kitchen. You might value things completely differently.
What Zillow should do (or maybe I should) is gather information about the buyers and calculate a personalized Zestimate that reflects what the seller thinks the actual value of the home is. As a side-effect, this approach would probably be shielded from lawsuits because it's not an appraisal, but a personalized estimate of premium over market value.
The big thing Zillow is missing is buyer information. I will personally value a home differently than you will because we have varying desires.
For example, I put a low value on bedrooms past the second and multiple stories, but a high value on a large garage and big kitchen. You might value things completely differently.
What Zillow should do (or maybe I should) is gather information about the buyers and calculate a personalized Zestimate that reflects what the seller thinks the actual value of the home is. As a side-effect, this approach would probably be shielded from lawsuits because it's not an appraisal, but a personalized estimate of premium over market value.