Image via Flickr from Nguyen Hung Vu
If you’ve ever gone to Zillow to check out the Zestimate on your own home or you’ve searched for a property on Trulia, you may have heard that the two media companies announced their upcoming $3.5 billion merger on July 28, 2014. While the real estate industry decides what this means for agents and brokers, one question remains. What does this pending merger mean for you as a consumer?
According to Time Magazine and Zillow’s own press release announcement, not a lot.
The two companies will continue to run under their own brands with Trulia’s CEO reporting to the CEO of Zillow. Both, as of right now, will continue to operate as property search and information websites as they have always done.
Most of the benefits that Zillow and Trulia list as a result of this merger focus on advertisers and corporate cost-savings.
The downside for buyers and sellers is none of their plans include improving the accuracy of the information found on either website. Zestimates may still be wildly inaccurate giving buyers and sellers a false impression of the value of a property. Old listings that are no longer on the market may still show up in search results.
The companies will share their data with one another, so information that was previously available on only one of the sites will eventually become available on both.
Zillow and Trulia aren’t in the business of assisting buyers and sellers with a real estate transaction. Both are media companies who generate revenue by selling advertisements to real estate agents and brokers.
At the end of the day, whether you search for property information on Zillow, Trulia, or a real estate company website like this one, you’ll want to work with a real estate professional who can help you determine a home’s value, find an active listing, and navigate the real estate transaction from start to finish.
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