Is the Zestimate era coming to an end? 

For nearly two decades, consumers have had the ability to answer one of life’s biggest financial questions almost instantly: “What is my home worth?”

Today, millions of homeowners monitor their home’s estimated value almost as closely as they monitor their investment portfolios.

Anyone who has spent a career in real estate has likely had countless conversations with homeowners who confidently say, “My Zestimate says my home is worth X”, only to discover it missed important details on the property and often gave an inaccurate valuation.

Now, something even bigger is beginning to happen. Consumers aren’t just asking online home valuation tools anymore. They’re asking artificial intelligence (AI).

They are going to AI titans such as ChatGPT and Claude and asking them “What is my home worth?” Not only to get an estimated range, but to seek advice, real advice. Advice whether to accept an offer. Advice about whether they are overpaying or not.

Recently, even luxury Real Estate mogul Ryan Serhant was on CNBC stating he nearly lost a $50 million deal because ChatGPT told the seller it was worth more, while simultaneously telling the buyer they were paying too much.

The question is no longer whether AI will influence real estate. It already has.

The real important question is whether today’s AI tools and automated valuation models have enough information to produce a valuation homeowners should trust. And if AI is to give that valuation, how do we make it unbiased, objective and transparent like a professional appraiser would?

The limitations of automated valuation models

For the last 20 years, automated valuation models (AVMs) have relied on historical sales data, public records, market trends and comparable properties.  These tools have transformed the real estate industry by making information more accessible than ever before.

But even the best algorithms share one important limitation: they don’t actually know the home.

Imagine two homes on the same street. They have the same number of bedrooms and bathrooms. They have identical square footage. Similar lot sizes. Maybe even built in the same year. On paper, they appear identical!

However, one homeowner invested hundreds of thousands into a new roof, new pool, renovated backyard, a new luxury kitchen; the list goes on. The neighboring property?  It hasn’t been updated at all.

To an algorithm relying on public records, these homes may appear very similar. To a buyer walking through the front door, they’re entirely different properties. That gap between public data and reality is where I believe the next generation of home valuation technology will evolve.

Combining artificial intelligence with homeowner knowledge

Ironically, the person with the most knowledge about the home has historically had the smallest role in determining its online value.

The homeowner knows the renovations. The deferred maintenance. The premium finishes. The condition of the roof. The quality of the landscaping. The panoramic views that may not appear in public records. They understand details that no algorithm can reliably infer from historical data alone.

The future isn’t about replacing algorithms with homeowner opinions. It’s about combining the strengths of both.

Artificial intelligence has the ability to analyze enormous amounts of market data, identify patterns and process information at a scale no human ever could. Homeowners provide context that algorithms often cannot see. Together, those two perspectives have the potential to create a more complete understanding of a property’s value.

As AI continues to reshape nearly every industry, residential real estate faces an important decision. Will we continue asking algorithms to estimate homes based solely on publicly available information? I believe the future of home valuations will not be defined by smarter algorithms alone. It will be defined by valuation technology that can finally see the whole property.

That means giving homeowners access to better tools that help them understand value before they make major financial decisions.

Because in real estate, the difference between a good decision and a costly one often comes down to understanding the details no public record can see.

Gene Whiddon III is the CEO of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Florida for South Florida and Founder and CEO of HomeZee.
This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of HousingWire’s editorial department and its owners. To contact the editor responsible for this piece: zeb@hwmedia.com.