Once-Invisible Inventory Can Be Seen on Zillow

Instead of finding clever ways to chase shadow inventory, ""Zillow"":http://www.zillow.com/ has decided to make things easy for thrill-seeking homebuyers and investors who are trying to track down unlisted, invisible inventory.

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The real estate data provider announced Thursday it is now providing information on 1.2 million pre-foreclosure and foreclosed properties at no cost. The homes provided through Zillow are not yet listed and apparently, are yet to be found on any Multiple Listing Service (MLS).

Before, only certain investors were privy to such information.

""For the first time, home shoppers are able to see the entire scope of housing inventory in their area, both pre-market and for-sale, side by side,"" the company said in a release.

According to Zillow, 55 percent of homebuyers have considered purchasing a foreclosure, but the problem was where to find the information.

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""This is another tremendous step forward in consumer empowerment. Zillow is taking information that was really only available to a select group â€" in this case, savvy investors â€" and making it more easily available to interested home buyers,"" said Spencer Rascoff, Zillow's CEO. ""What's more, bringing this information to light, and taking this inventory out of the shadows, can help bring these homes to market faster than ever before.""""

The pre-market inventory includes nearly 1 million pre-foreclosure properties, or homes that have begun the foreclosure process or have been scheduled for auction.

In addition, Zillow's inventory has more than 260,000 unlisted foreclosed properties.

Zillow will also include its own estimate of the sale price of the home if sold as a foreclosure with the percentage and dollar discount based on fair market value. Foreclosure details will also be included, such as the timeline of the foreclosure process, unpaid balance, and the lender.

Another added feature will be 147,000 Make Me Move properties. For this feature, homeowners name a price for which they might sell their home.

Users can view pre-foreclosure, foreclosed, and Make Me Move inventory by visiting ""Zillow.com"":http://www.zillow.com/ and conducting a search using the pre-market filter. Foreclosure details are available for those who sign in.

_*In an earlier release, Zillow estimated its pre-market inventory numbered 1.8 million and later revised the number down to 1.2 million._