Fluff My Zillow
So much for the social media bubble having burst. Zillow’s IPO went absolutely bat shit yesterday tripling in share price before settling down; up a mere 94% on the opening day of trading.
For those of you guys who grew up in the 90’s this is nothing new. Somebody has a hot idea, IPO day comes, stock cleans up, no big deal. My brontosaurus bones, however, still cannot get used to the idea of a company that is still in the red making so many people a boatload of cash on its opening day of trading.
Opening day spikes are nothing new and are to be expected in these IPO starved times. Still, I have a hard time believing in the worth and value of and web based real estate company in the midst of the worst real estate market in eons.
Please tell me what I am missing here? Were any of you guys in on Zillow? Has anybody had a chance to peek at their numbers? I have a hard time believing that we have another Tech Bubble on our hands, but other than references to Facebook and Zynga I have a hard time seeing how this isn’t just another dog with fleas, as old Gordo would say.
would also like to hear ppls opinions on this
I agree, complete shit.
How a web-based real estate co. has succeeded in this market is beyond me.
I too, would love to get my hands on those financials....
You should try to use the site first. It's a huge upgrade for many real estate websites out there due to a number of factors, but the main differentiator is its analytics. Zillow gives you accurate price/rent estimates, cleverly recommends other listings, and has a lot of information that other similar websites lack.
To explain Zillow's popularity in tech terms in one word, I'd use disruption. I think a lot of people are attracted to its network building potential, and the fact that there isn't one major competitor out there means there's mass scale potential. The more information it has, the more useful its analytics are, and the more users it can attract.
Zillow will be the next key identifier for home/rental searching.
I've used the site man, sorry you work for Zillow.
I could not disagree with you more in your analysis of this being "disruptive"
Zillow has been around for at least 5 years now... its not disrupting anything. Its wildly inaccurate. A 2BR condo was "valued" at 1/2 the price I put in an offer for, which is already 40% off its peak price- and there have been 1 BR's with half the square footage sold in the past year for way higher than that amount. It lists an investment property I own at a level at least 20% higher than what I could sell it for, and might I add on a monthly basis that valuation swings up and down 10-30%.
This is not some groupon or twitter like site that is still in the middle of blowing up, this is a site that has been out there for years and not making money.
If you want to talk about a disruptive site, Trulia might be it. Zillow?... not so much.
Ever hear of an S-1?
I think Zillow is kinda cool, but I don't understand how they ca make real money. And the prices for houses are not really right either. My father owns a few houses and has a few for sale (he is a contractors) and the price of the houses are off buy $40k-$200k in some cases. It is cool to think and see if your home value is increasing or decreasing. But it doesn't sem to take into account near as many things as a realtor. Direction is the only thing on there that help, the price....not so much
As a real estate professional, I can tell you that Zillow uses available public records to make determinations for Zestimates. Unfortunately, unless your property has not been modified, and was built in the last few years, all of that information is completely outdated. If Zillow had accurate information on square footages and properties of homes, it would be an incredibly powerful tool. In Zillow's current state, a Zestimate is about as accurate as a Sino-Forest forestry audit.
Some of the other tools on Zillow are useful, but they're no different than any other MLS website, and you don't see those going public.
It is very harmful for our society to dole out wealth to individuals that have yet to prove they have earned it. More than one person has become a millionaire, or even billionaire, building a company that was in the red every year, and ended up becoming bankrupt.
Well lottery tickets can be a worthwhile savings tool. Look up prize-linked savings accounts. They don't have them in the USA, because we're not a free country anymore.
It's not the free markets that are to blame, it's the individuals within the free markets making poor capital allocation decisions. It's not the system, it's the people. Trying to tinker with the system instead of trying to educate people to make better decisions will only lead to more negative consequences. (dunno if you were suggesting more regulation, just sayin')
Btw, off topic, but if I had a lot of money, I would buy up a small bank chain in a non-lottery state like Alabama and do some prize-linked savings accounts...I would get so many more deposits, it'd be crazy...
I have so many ridiculously good ideas, just lack the capital base to make them happen...sad...
Humility is for the weak.
Stock will get killed over the short run. People have been so IPO starved they are biting on anything, especially after the LNKD happenings. Expect it to correct.
Theres nothing wrong with speculating, the bubble will eventually blow on these people and we will be forced to see real valuations.
Ok, so consensus here is the information on the website is not up to date. But, many years off would you say it is though and do you think they can make it real time-ish?
Although Zillow does seem to give an idea of the price of a house it obviously cannot determine the actual selling price. That deals too much with the intricacies of private sales with individuals. That being said it is a good reference point for those who want a second opinion or a place to start, but did not deserve its ridiculous IPO. Nobody is naming the beast, but it is there. People wanting something but create nothing. Reminicent of Atlas Shrugged, right Midas?
"Money is a tool of exchange, which can't exit unless there are goods produced and men able to produce them. Money is the material shape of the principle that men who wish to deal with one another must deal by trade and give value for value."
Just based on historical big IPO pop trends, shorting this should be a no-brainer when it becomes possible.
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