9 Alternatives to Zillow When Buying or Selling a Home

Previously, Zillow offered an instant buyer, or iBuyer, a service called Zillow Offers that bought homes based on the Zestimate. This service allowed the company to make a cash offer to sellers, fix up the property, and then sell it. But Zillow eventually lost $881 million from the venture and shut down Zillow Offers in late 2021.

What is Zillow’s claim to fame?

While Zillow offers many real estate services, the company is perhaps most known for its popular Zestimate home value estimating tool. In a 2016 interview with GeekWire, co-founders Rich Barton and Lloyd Frink said that when they were searching for homes, they had to compile their own public data and do the math to figure out what a property should cost. They decided to create an algorithm that would do the work for them.

The Zestimate is just one example of an automated valuation model (AVM) — an algorithm that pulls together a variety of publicly available data along with user-submitted data to calculate an immediate home value estimate. This technology is now widely available, with other real estate tech companies offering home value estimators.

HomeLight’s free Home Value Estimator gives you a real-world ballpark estimate in less than two minutes, so you can find out what your home might be worth.

How does Zillow make money?

It’s free to search for homes on Zillow as well as list homes for sale, so you may be wondering, “How does Zillow make money?” The company makes money through high-volume ad sales on their platform, with property managers, Premier Agents, mortgage lenders, and other businesses paying to advertise properties and services. Additionally, they profit from their home loan program. Rental managers also pay weekly to list their properties through Zillow, with the cost varying depending on the state.

Does Zillow own Trulia?

Zillow purchased Trulia, a former competitor, in 2015 for $2.5 billion. The Zillow Group maintains both sites separately. Where Zillow is known for its detailed house information and Zestimates, Trulia offers in-depth information about the area and neighborhoods. Listings feature a map that filters for places to shop and eat and the “What Locals Say about … ” section features real Trulia user comments about the area, including filters for Community, Dog Owners, Parents, and Commute.

Do Zillow and Trulia cost money?

For the majority of people who use Zillow and Trulia, it doesn’t cost any money. For Premier Agents who pay for advertising and landlords listing a property, there is a cost associated with the platform.

9 of the top alternatives to Zillow and Trulia

Since Zillow’s inception, many other companies have built on and improved the model that they pioneered. Many real estate websites use algorithms and data from public and private records to make home-buying and home-selling much easier.

We’ve compiled a list of nine top alternatives to Zillow and Trulia that allow you to tailor your home search to your specific situation.

HomeLight

HomeLight is a technology platform that gives hundreds of thousands of homebuyers and sellers the opportunity to partner with top real estate agents. HomeLight’s Agent Match platform is free to use and generates the names of top-performing agents in your area that will help you sell your home faster and for more money.

Rather than listing all of the agents, HomeLight analyzes more than 27 million transactions and thousands of reviews to make sure we’re recommending the most experienced and qualified agents based on your needs. Agents don’t pay to be listed, so you can be sure that you’re getting the best match for your individual situation.

For sellers, HomeLight offers Simple Sale, a fast and simple way to receive a no-obligation, all-cash offer on your home in as few as 24 hours.

You can also receive a real-world home value estimate in less than two minutes with HomeLight’s free Home Value Estimator. After answering seven simple questions, our algorithm goes to work and uses housing market data to give you a ballpark idea of your home’s value.

HomeLight also offers a wealth of resources in our Buyer’s Resource Center and Seller’s Resource Center. If you have a question, chances are we’ve found an answer through extensive research and in-depth agent interviews.

Redfin

While Zillow is known as a real estate marketplace, Redfin is considered a discount brokerage, offering sellers a 1% listing fee (with some fine print, of course). Founded in 2004, the Seattle-based company has a large database of home listings that it updates every five minutes.

Redfin’s website also offers a variety of resources like an affordability calculator, home buying and selling guides, and information on market trends. For high-end homes, Redfin Premier provides exclusive services that offer the convenience of a concierge.

Realtor.com

Realtor.com is the listing site trusted by Realtors®, real estate agents who are members of the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Operated by Move, Inc., realtor.com offers various home-buying resources, like a Mortgage Calculator, Refinance Calculator, and the opportunity to get preapproved for a mortgage.

While it doesn’t offer the detailed neighborhood information that Trulia does, it does offer a “Get Local Info” section where you can enter the name of a city and get information about home values, the local housing market, schools, and amenities.

Foreclosure.com

If you’re looking for a deal, foreclosure.com might be the place for you. Their nationwide database is updated at least two times each day (as opposed to other sites that update weekly or monthly).

This site does require a subscription and a monthly payment of $39.80 after the seven-day free trial. But members can see auction information, like the minimum bid and the auction date among other information. This site also lists whether a property is in bankruptcy, preforeclosure, or foreclosure.

RealtyTrac

RealtyTrac is another subscription service that offers access to pre-foreclosure, foreclosure, auction, and bank-owned properties — you can even filter by these options depending on your goals or investment strategy. With a subscription or free trial, you can unlock their Deal-O-Meter, which provides a rating of Poor, Good, or Great, depending on the property’s potential profit. You’ll also be able to see property debt info, equity and profit potential, and ownership information. After the free trial, RealtyTrac is $49.95 per month.

NeighborhoodScout

While Trulia prominently features neighborhood information, if you’re looking to get into the details, NeighborhoodScout is the place for you, offering detailed demographic data, appreciation and housing market trends, crime rates (including your chances of becoming a victim of a violent crime or property crime), and public school ratings.

You can also use their Match Any Neighborhood feature by clicking the puzzle piece icon to find similar neighborhoods throughout the country. When you find a neighborhood you love, you can do a home search that directs you to Homes.com to continue your search. If you’re not sure where you want to live, you can use their CREATE feature to select criteria and get matched with a neighborhood (more robust features are available with a paid subscription).

Homes.com

Homes.com boasts: “Never settling for less, always striving to be the best.” Its listings include all of the standard information but also include school ratings powered by GreatSchools as well as Points of Interest in the home’s city and neighborhood. Their menu offers how-to guides for buying, selling, financing, and more. Homes.com also offers a home value estimate to help you begin the process of buying, selling, or refinancing.

Additionally, Homes Pro — formerly Homesnap — is now a part of homes.com and lets you snap a picture of a home, whether it’s on the market or not, to reveal details about the home, including estimated home value, photos, and school and neighborhood information.

FSBO.com

This site gives people who are selling their house themselves the chance to list it on the multiple listing service (MLS) for a fee that varies depending on the package. For house hunters, this is a great place to find “for sale by owner” homes in your area.

It should be noted that Zillow allows homeowners to post FSBO listings on their website while many similar sites do not.

Eppraisal.com

Eppraisal.com offers comprehensive home valuations, detailed neighborhood insights, and in-depth real estate market analyses for consumers aiming to buy, sell, or refinance their properties. Their services extend to the real estate and mortgage industries, providing them with critical data, market trends, and an automated home valuation model.

While Eppraisal is ideal for users seeking accurate property valuations and market data, Zillow’s extensive listings and rich feature set provide a more versatile platform for a holistic real estate experience.

You have lots of great options when buying or selling a home

No matter what you’re looking for in a real estate search engine — whether it’s robust neighborhood data, the ability to search FSBO homes, or check home data with the snap of a picture — chances are you’ll find it. While Zillow is a great option for many, there are similar companies that have refined the home search or sale process, so there’s something for everyone.

But no matter how much research you do on your own, one of the best ways to successfully navigate the ever-changing real estate landscape is to partner with a top-rated agent in your area. HomeLight analyzes millions of home sales to match you with a high-performing real estate agent who can help you sell your home faster and for more money, or find your dream home.

Good luck with your home searching or selling!

Header Image Source: (Drew Dau / Unsplash)