First Impression
I got this app last Tuesday evening while sitting on my back porch. My daughter had told me about this Zillow thing she uses to look at fancy houses, and I figured I’d give it a try on my Google Pixel 7. The first thing that hit me was the big map with all these little dots. I tapped one and a house picture popped up, which was nice. But then I tried to go back to the list and I couldn’t figure out how. The screen kept changing on me. I felt like I was in a pinball machine. It was supposed to be a fun way to waste an hour, but I spent most of that hour just trying to get back to where I started. The colors are fine, and the pictures load okay, but for a retiree like me who just wants to scroll through some homes, it was a bit of a headache right from the get-go.
What It Does Well
Once you get past the confusing layout, the app does show you lots of houses. I typed in my zip code for the Springfield area, and it pulled up a ton of places I hadn’t seen before. I liked that I could filter by price pretty easily, so I just stuck to houses under $300,000 to dream a little. The pictures are clear and there’s usually a bunch of them, so you get a good feel for the inside without having to drive around. I also liked that I could tap a button to save a house to a favorites list. My wife and I looked at my saved list later on her tablet, and that part worked well. The Zestimate number thing was interesting too, even though I don’t fully trust it. It gave me a starting point for arguing with my neighbor about what his house is worth.
Where It Falls Short
Honestly? The whole thing feels like it was designed by someone half my age for people half my age. The menus are buried. I wanted to see just rental properties the other day, and I spent five minutes hunting for the right button. I kept tapping on things that looked like buttons but weren’t, and then I’d accidentally zoom the map in so far I could only see one street. Also, half the houses I got excited about said “Pending” or “Under Contract” already. That’s a real letdown when you think you’ve found your dream home. I also noticed the filters don’t always stick. I’d set it to show only houses with three bedrooms, but after I looked at one listing and hit the back arrow, my filter was gone and I was back to seeing everything. That drove me bonkers.
Is It Worth the Price?
It’s free, so I can’t complain too much about the cost. But free doesn’t mean it’s good for me. I’d rather pay a couple of bucks for an app that works simple and doesn’t try to show me ten different things at once. Zillow is worth it if you’re patient and you grew up with computers. For someone like me who just wants to look at pretty houses without wrestling with the buttons, it’s a hair-pulling experience. If they made a “simple mode” version, I’d give it five stars. But as it stands, I get more enjoyment out of flipping through the Sunday real estate section in the newspaper.
Developer & Support
I had a problem on Wednesday. I was trying to report a house that had already sold but still showed up on the app. The listing was three months old. I found the “Contact Support” button way down in the settings, and I wrote a short message. It took them almost two full days to reply. And when they did, it was this vague email that said something about “technical updates to the database” and that the listing would “be reviewed.” No apology, no timeline. I wrote back asking for a clearer answer, and I haven’t heard anything since. That left a bad taste in my mouth. If you can’t help me with a simple outdated listing, what are you there for?
Privacy & Safety
I’m not too worried about safety, but I don’t like how pushy the app is about linking your phone number and email. It kept asking me to turn on notifications for every click. I don’t need the phone buzzing every time a house goes on the market in Timbuktu. Also, when you look at a house, you can tap to “Message the Agent,” and I tried it once just to ask a question. The next day, I got a call from a realtor I never talked to, saying he saw my inquiry. That felt a little too much like my information was being passed around. For an app that has access to my saved homes and my location, I wish they’d make the privacy settings easier to find and understand instead of burying them.
How does the Zestimate feature work, and is it accurate for determining a home's value?
Zestimate is Zillow's automated home valuation tool that uses public data and user-submitted information to estimate a property's market value. However, as noted in the review, it can be off by thousands of dollars—like $15,000 in one case—so use it as a rough starting point rather than a precise appraisal.
Can I set up notifications for price drops on saved listings in Zillow?
Yes, you can save favorite properties and enable notifications for price drops. The review mentions saving a two-bedroom apartment and receiving a ping the next day that the rent dropped by $50, making this a useful feature for tracking deals on homes or rentals you're interested in.
Why do some listings on Zillow seem outdated or stale, even when marked as 'just listed'?
Zillow aggregates listings from multiple sources, which can lead to delays or duplicates—some 'just listed' properties may have been on other sites for months. To avoid wasting time, cross-check recent listings with the listing agent or other real estate apps for the most current availability.
How can I filter out unwanted property types, like mobile homes, when searching for apartments?
Zillow's search filters allow you to set criteria like price and bedrooms, but the review notes that excluding specific property types (e.g., mobile homes) isn't straightforward. To work around this, use the 'Home Type' filter and select 'Apartment' or 'Condo' only, though results may still include some mismatches.
How does Zillow compare to other real estate apps like Redfin or Realtor.com for finding rentals?
Zillow offers a larger database of listings and unique features like Zestimates and school ratings, but its data can be less reliable, with stale or duplicate listings. Competitors like Redfin often have more accurate, real-time MLS data, making them better for serious rental hunting, while Zillow is more suited for casual browsing.
