Google’s Real Estate Search Expansion Rattles Zillow Investors
Alphabet's Google is testing disruptive home listing features in search results, sending shockwaves through online real estate platforms. Zillow Group shares plunged over 10% Monday as the tech giant introduced tour scheduling and agent contact links directly in mobile search results.
The market reaction extended beyond Zillow, with CoStar and Rocket Companies also seeing notable declines. While Goldman Sachs analysts downplayed immediate impacts—citing Zillow's direct traffic dominance and Google's limited market rollout—the long-term threat to specialized portals appears significant.
This development underscores tech's accelerating encroachment into vertical markets. Just as cryptocurrency exchanges face disruption from traditional finance's digital asset ventures, real estate platforms now confront competition from search engine behemoths leveraging their distribution power.
