Current Events > Is Zillow the best place to be looking for a house or condo?

(+) Yeah! (+)

nt
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zestimate's not even a word!
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yeah
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That or your area's MLS site.
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I like Redfin
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Depends on how you use it. To get an idea about amenities and how much those will cost you in the area that you're looking, sure. MLS is also good.

But finding a good real estate agent is still your best bet for finding and getting what you want.
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we tried zillow. lists available places but none of them are dog approved. next goal is to wait around tax time maybe get something better.

actually some are dog approved better luck with either a tiny dog or a cat.
few will take a giant ass dog.
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I used it a lot when I was searching for my townhouse and found it pretty effective

Been happy with my place so far after a year of living here
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I think RedFin is the best to be honest.

I used Trulia a lot, too, before I found RedFin. Something about these two services felt better than Zillow.

Also if you're looking around MD area I got a guy I can recommend >_>
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I like how redfin gives me a monthly estimate when I estimate the down payment
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Oh to own? Then you'll need to get a real estate agent. Not sure how hot your area is but in my area the houses are only staying on the market for 2-3 days. Things get posted to an agent portal before going in public sites like Zillow and Trulia. Most of the time people make an offer on them before they even get to the public sites.
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Looks like I could get 10% down after my tax returns with a 15 year mortgage on a couple of houses that I'd say are acceptable.

I know 20% is recommended but my mortgage and etc would still be cheaper than my current rent (which also doesn't cover any utilities)
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Definitely not for apartments.
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Unless you're getting a VA loan or are eligible for certain other benefits, paying less than 20% usually triggers Private Mortgage Insurance which can cost you extra money in the long term.
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It's best to use as many resources as possible. For instance, redfin estimates my home's value about 40k higher than zillow
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I mainly us realtor but they all do the same tbh

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Hexenherz posted...

Unless you're getting a VA loan or are eligible for certain other benefits, paying less than 20% usually triggers Private Mortgage Insurance which can cost you extra money in the long term.

:/
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idk you just gotta talk to the lender(s) about that.

Any "mortgage payment calculator" on any of the websites is only going to give you a very rough estimate on what you're actually going to be paying.

You absolutely have to speak to a few different lenders to actually know what you're approved for and what your payments would be.

In addition to the mortgage you'll probably have to pay property tax (lender can give you a rough estimate of that, too) and homeowner's insurance (that you'll get when you're going through the closing process on the house).
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