There are lots of cool things you can do on Zillow.com. Of course if you’re in the market for a house, using Zillow as a research tool to help determine what you should pay is a no-brainer. Likewise, if you’re selling your house, you should use Zillow to help determine your asking price, and you should probably also use the My Zestimator tool to revise your Zestimate. Maybe even have printouts of the My Zestimator summary page at your open house.
But besides these very practical, utilitarian uses for Zillow, there are some fun and frivolous elements too. One of my favorite uses of Zillow’s “data porn” is to fantasy shop for houses in exotic locations. Cruise around waterfront property in Miami (photo, right) and virtually rub elbows with J-Lo and Shaq. Or, on a damp, dreary winter Seattle day check out houses in La Jolla (photo, left), just blocks from world-famous Torrey Pines golf course. A little closer to us, Medina is fun for a fantasy fly-over also.