Ian, what I'm saying is that the information that you see on trulia would be pulled directly from the RMLS I have listings that are on trulia, which I did not input on the trulia website. Trulia uses the local MLS information to formulate the heat maps, and other features on trulia. The RMLS is certainly not always accurate, but it's the best source for Trulia.com to use simply because it has the most accumulated information. I'm curious, are you trying to put together a market analysis, and figure pricing and time on market? or are you just curious about the info.

You can answer directly to my e-mail jgomes@prunw.com
if you're interested in finding out what your home is worth I do have the Property investment profile (PIP) it's free, and it shows you active pending and sold listings in your area, time on market, list price to sold price, and market appreciation. The report is generated off of my server and is relevant to your house, and your neighborhood specifically.
Also I could provide you with a complimentary market analysis via e-mail. Let me know if there is anything I can do to help you.

Wed May 7 2008, 08:34

I guess I wasn't clear enough, I'm looking for the source of the data for the Trulia Heatmaps. I'm not trying to debate which is better, RMLS or Assessor.

Anybody from Trulia care to comment?

http://portlandrealestateoutsider.blogspot.com/

Tue May 6 2008, 12:41

The information for sq footage would be coming from the MLS for the area. Often the square footage comes from the Tax records, tax records are often wrong, MLS info can often be incorrect due to human error or negligence of realtors.

my website has real time information on active and sold homes, you get free RMLS access, and map searches. It's very useful, I use it in fact.

Tue May 6 2008, 11:28

You have a point -some realtors include garage and unfinished spaces in square feet in sf reporting, thus giving an illusion of larger living sf., however you are mistaken to think the assessor office is a reliable source. We, as realtors, most often use the assessor's records as a point of reference only, but that has often been an inaccurate record due to unrecorded changes in many dwellings. It is up to the agent to instruct buyer to have the space measured themself for their personal satisfaction and as part of their due diligence as a buyer. Buyers due diligence is the only guarantee to their satisfaction.

Wed Apr 30 2008, 20:14

Hi Ian,

This has been issue for home buyers for a long time. In real estate it is so hard to compare homes because no two houses are alike (location, upgrades, lot size, maintenance of the property and so on). Most realtors use a disclaimer to protect them self against giving out the wrong information, but we (Realtors) are bond to disclose the most accurate information that we can. And if there is a discrepancy we usually state it.

My recommendation is to do your own do diligence when buying a home. That is, perform inspections and even get a profession to check the square footage if that is a concerned the information is wrong. The variance of sq ft. can differ from county records to city plans to appraisers. I would recommend calling your local building department, county records and compare it with what is listed on the MLS and base your price accordingly when writing the offer. If the numbers differ hire a 3rd party to calculate the sq ft of the property.

In most contracts you have a specified period of time to perform your do diligence of the property Checking the square footage could be one of many inspections you can done during this period.

I hope this helps.

Good Luck,

Greg Poulsen
Truckee / Tahoe Real Estate
www.TahoeHomeHunter.com

Wed Apr 30 2008, 19:49

Total Square Footage is as reported by the Listing Broker. For source of information and description of square footage, contact the Listing Broker. Square footage includes finished and unfinished areas (excluding attached garage) and is not intended to represent "legal" or "livable" square footage. The square footage is not inflated, simply stated to the best of the sellers and listing agents knowledge.

As for the assessors’ records excluding sq ft, this is incorrect. REALTORS pull the info from a few main sources, most of which are tied directly to the assessment for the home. In fact, REALTORS could be in jeopardy of losing their license if they did measure the property.

As for the assesors records exluding these, this is incorrect. REALTORS pull the info from a few main sources, most of which are tied diretly to the assesment for the home. In fact, REALTORS could be in jeoperdy of losing thier license if they did measure the property.

Wed Apr 30 2008, 16:14

I believe it's NAR policy (according to another agent) to include all listed areas in the sq footage calculations. Take this house:

http://www.cbseal.com/PropertyDetail.aspx?GroupID=37918523&S…

It's listed as 2422 sq ft. But if you look at the assesor records,

http://www.portlandmaps.com/detail.cfm?action=Assessor&prope…

they show that 1000 sq ft of that is the unfinished basement.

I'm not saying the assesor records are perfect, but at least they call a spade a spade. Damp basements and attics with 4 ft celings are not what I would call "living space".

I also regularly see listings misrepresent neighborhoods, so the "Code of Ethics" doesn't seem to strict these days. If you know where I can report these rogue agents let me know, I'd be glad to.

Wed Apr 30 2008, 15:49

That is why price per square foot is not a good measure of a homes value. Most MLS listings pull the square footage automatically from the tax assessors records (we don't add it ourselves) which do include basements and sometimes attics. The assessors number is not always accurate, especially with older multi story homes. Square footage will sometimes show up as a single total, and other times it will be broken down into square footage per level. Sites like this one use the square footage in the assessors data base and make no adjustments for unfinished vs. finished basements or attics because they have no record of whats finished and whats not (they also have no record of any remodeling which can add 10s of 1000s to the value). That is why these sites are valuable for an estimate but can often be way off the actual market value. They are far more accurate when it comes to large newer neighborhoods such as the Centex or Arbor developments. But once again, the owner may have paid for $30K in upgrades that Trulia would have no way of knowing about.

As a Buyers Agent I rarely look at price per square foot. The best valuation comes from looking at similar homes that have sold in the same area and in the last 3 months and adjusting for differences.

Wed Apr 30 2008, 15:42

"Realtors like to inflate the square footage...?" Hmmmm... we do? Actually, depending upon which city and county the property is located in, you will usually find that 10-30% of the properties have inaccurate measurements in the tax assessors records.

Realtors(R) are bound by state licensing laws and subscribe to a Code of Ethics which very clearly specify the importance of providing accurate information to the client, the consumer and all parties involved. To inflate the square footage strikes me as misrepresentation and/or fraud...

Wed Apr 30 2008, 15:22