Zillow Group Stock Price, News & Analysis

Zillow Group (Nasdaq: Z, ZG) announced its participation in the upcoming Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference in New York. CEO Jeremy Wacksman will engage in a fireside chat scheduled for Thursday, May 29, at 10:30 a.m. PT / 1:30 p.m. ET. Investors and interested parties can access the live webcast through registration, and both live and recorded versions will be available in the Events & Presentations section of Zillow Group's Investor Relations website.

Zillow's latest analysis reveals a significant surge in rental affordability challenges across the US. The income required to comfortably afford rent nationwide has jumped to $80,000 from $60,000 five years ago. Eight major metro areas now require six-figure incomes to afford rent, double the number from 2020.

The most expensive markets are San Jose ($137K), New York ($136K), and Boston ($127K), while the most affordable are Buffalo ($55K), Oklahoma City ($56K), and Louisville ($57K). Typical US rent has increased by 28.7% for apartments and 42.9% for single-family homes since April 2020, outpacing the 22.5% growth in median household income.

In six of the eight most expensive markets, median households spend over 30% of income on rent, except for San Jose and San Francisco, where wages have better kept pace with rental costs.

A new Zillow analysis reveals that renters now need to earn over $80,000 annually to comfortably afford typical rental housing in the US, up from $60,000 five years ago. The number of markets requiring six-figure incomes for comfortable renting has doubled since 2020, now including eight major metros.

Since April 2020, typical US apartment rents increased by 28.7% to $1,858, while single-family home rents rose 42.9% to $2,256, outpacing median household income growth of 22.5%. The most expensive rental markets are New York ($145K income needed), San Jose ($137K), and Boston ($127K), while the most affordable are Buffalo ($55K), Oklahoma City ($56K), and Louisville ($57K).

Zillow Group (NASDAQ: Z) reported strong Q1 2025 financial results, with revenue increasing 13% year-over-year to $598 million, exceeding expectations by $15 million. The company achieved net income of $8 million with a 1% margin, compared to a loss in the previous year. Key performance highlights include:

- For Sale revenue grew 8% to $458 million - Rentals revenue surged 33% to $129 million, with multifamily revenue up 47% - Mortgages revenue increased 32% to $41 million - Adjusted EBITDA reached $153 million (26% of revenue) - Traffic reached 227 million average monthly unique users (+5% YoY) - Cash and investments stood at $1.6 billion, with $250 million used for share repurchases

West USA Realty, Arizona's largest regional real estate brand with over 3,000 agents across 16 offices, has partnered with Zillow to adopt new listing access standards promoting transparency in real estate listings. The standards, effective May 2025, implement the National Association of Realtors' Clear Cooperation policy, requiring publicly marketed listings to be entered into the MLS within one day and published on Zillow, Trulia, and other MLS-fed platforms.

The partnership aims to ensure equitable and timely access to real estate information, creating a more open and competitive housing market. West USA Realty joins industry leaders like NextHome and eXp Realty in this initiative, which mandates that listings not meeting these criteria won't be published on Zillow or Trulia for the duration of the listing.

Zillow's latest analysis reveals a significant surge in cities with million-dollar starter homes, increasing from 85 cities five years ago to 233 today. The typical starter home nationwide remains at an attainable $192,514, but in these 233 cities, even entry-level homes cost $1 million or more.

California dominates with 113 such cities, followed by New York (32) and New Jersey (20). The phenomenon has spread to 25 states, with Minnesota and Rhode Island being recent additions. The New York City metro area leads with 48 cities having million-dollar starter homes, followed by San Francisco (43) and Los Angeles (34).

This trend reflects the pandemic housing boom's impact on affordability, causing many young households to postpone homeownership, with the median renter age now at 42 years.

Zillow (ZG) and Epique Realty have announced a strategic partnership to provide Epique agents with access to Zillow Showcase, an AI-powered premium listing experience. The partnership aims to enhance agent recruiting and retention while helping agents differentiate their listings.

According to Zillow research, sellers prioritize reaching the largest buyer pool (52%) and achieving the highest sales price (45%). Agents using Zillow Showcase on over half their listings are winning 30% more listings than non-users. The platform features AI-powered visuals, dedicated email marketing, and advanced performance analytics tools.

Showcase listings offer media-forward design and exclusive access to new technological innovations. The partnership demonstrates Zillow's commitment to providing industry-leading technology that helps agents enhance their market presence and effectiveness.

Home values showed minimal growth in March 2025, rising just 0.2% during what is typically a high-growth period, according to Zillow's latest market report. The market saw a significant increase in inventory, with buyers having 19% more options compared to last year.

Despite mortgage rates reaching a 2025 low of 6.65% in March, buyer activity remained subdued. More than 375,000 homes entered the market, up 9% year-over-year, while only 265,000 listings went into pending sales. The inventory level reached 1.15 million homes, though still 24% below pre-pandemic levels.

Affordability remains a major challenge, with typical mortgage payments requiring 35.3% of median household income. Sellers responded by cutting prices at record rates, with 23.5% of Zillow listings receiving price cuts in March - the highest share since at least 2018. The typical U.S. home value stands at $359,741, showing a modest 1.2% year-over-year appreciation.

Zillow Group (Nasdaq: Z and ZG) has scheduled the release of its first-quarter 2025 financial results for Wednesday, May 7, 2025, after market close. The company will host a webcast and conference call to discuss the results at 2 p.m. PT / 5 p.m. ET on the same day.

Investors and interested parties can access information about the financial results and join the live webcast through Zillow's Investor Relations website. A recorded replay will also be made available after the event.