What's that house's story? Zillow users can ask

By Eric Auchard

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - U.S. property comparison Web site Zillow.com is giving home owners, prospective buyers and real estate agents a new way to discuss property valuations via a question-and-answer format, the company said on Tuesday.

The site has struck a chord with U.S. home owners since it was introduced early last year by giving property valuations on 70 million residences, equipping home owners and realtors with new tools to respond to potential buyers.

"The release of Zillow Home Q&A enables anyone to ask any question about any house," Chief Executive Rich Barton said.

"We are trying to take all those conversations that take place offline in coffee shops or schools or cocktail parties, and shine some light on them," he said in an interview. "The same thing happening offline can happen online now."

Privately held Zillow was ranked as the seventh most visited U.S. real estate site at the end of March, according to online audience measurement firm Hitwise Inc. Realtor.com, run by Move Inc., was ranked as the most popular.

Thirty-one million different homes have been viewed by visitors to Zillow.com, according to company data.

Use of Zillow by property shoppers in certain cities is especially heavy, it said. In Seattle, 86 percent of homes have been viewed at least once. The rates are 79 percent in San Francisco, 76 percent in Los Angeles and 72 percent in Boston.

Zillow Home Q&A aims to attract the most knowledgeable commentators about particular homes -- the home's owners, local real estate agents and neighbors. "Critical to this conversation are realtors. They are often the best informed," Barton said.