Zillow finds Allies
The Arizona Republic newspaper reported on Sunday that Zillow.com, under attack from the Arizona Board of Appraisers for its "zestimates" has found allies among some local realtors who question why the Board is wasting time trying to prevent a new technology instead of investigating appraisal fraud in the recent real estate boom. Agents also fear that a bill wending its way through the state senate aimed at shutting down Zillow in Arizona would in fact go too far, outlawing anyone other than a licensed appraiser from giving an opinion of value. Meanwhile other online appraisal tools, such as realestateabc.com, have not been threatened by the state.
