HouseSigma says no automated valuation model is perfect, including its own. Here is where online estimates and BC Assessment go wrong on Burnaby homes.
Automated estimates cannot see inside your home, and BC Assessment is describing last July. Both are starting points, not prices.
A comparative market analysis starts from the same sold data these tools use, then does the part software cannot: it looks at the property. Two Burnaby townhouses in the same complex, same floor plan, same year, can be $80,000 apart because one backs onto Canada Way and one faces the courtyard, or because one has a 2024 kitchen and the other has the original 1998 one. A model that has never been inside cannot price that. On strata property the gap widens, because the depreciation report, the contingency reserve fund balance, and any approved special levy all move value, and none of them appear in sold data.
Online estimate tools are genuinely useful and they are free. HouseSigma applies a model to recorded sales and market trends and returns a number in seconds. Zealty publishes deep British Columbia data including sold prices, long MLS® history, and its own valuation tool. BC Assessment sends every BC owner an annual assessed value used for property tax. For a rough sense of the market, for tracking a neighbourhood over time, or for a first sanity check before talking to anyone, these tools do a job no agent does as quickly. HouseSigma is also open about the limits, stating on its own help pages that no automated valuation model is perfect and that the estimate is a starting point for research.
An online home value estimate for a Burnaby property comes from an automated valuation model that reads recorded sale data. HouseSigma states on its own help pages that there is no perfect automated valuation model in the world, including HouseSigma's, and that its estimate should be used as a starting point rather than a number to follow exactly. BC Assessment is a different thing again: its appraisal reflects the value as of July 1 of the previous year, so by August a 2026 assessment is describing a market that is roughly thirteen months old. A comparative market analysis from Jersey Li, a Burnaby REALTOR® with Sutton Group - 1st West Realty, is prepared from current comparable sales after seeing the property, and accounts for condition, renovations, exposure, and strata finances that no automated model can read.
| Factor | Jersey Li | Online Estimates and BC Assessment |
|---|---|---|
| How the number is produced | Comparable sales chosen by hand after seeing the property, adjusted for condition, layout, exposure, and timing. | A model applied to recorded sale data and market trends. HouseSigma describes its estimates as based on long-term market trend and nearby comparables. |
| Has anyone seen the property | Yes, in person, before the number is given. | No. No automated model has been inside the home. |
| How current the data is | Current sales, including pending and just-closed activity in the same building or block. | Recorded sales only. BC Assessment is fixed to July 1 of the previous year, so a 2026 assessment describes the market as of July 2025. |
| Renovations and condition | Priced directly. A new kitchen and an original one are not the same asset. | Not visible in sold data. This is the most common reason an automated estimate is well off on an older Burnaby home. |
| Exposure, view, and noise | Accounted for. In Burnaby this is a real number on units facing Kingsway, Canada Way, or the SkyTrain guideway. | Not captured. Two units at the same address are usually treated alike. |
| Strata financial position | Reviewed. The depreciation report, contingency reserve fund balance, and any approved special levy are read before a number is set. | Not included in any automated estimate. |
| Stated accuracy | No accuracy claim is made here, because none can be proven in advance. What is shown is the comparable sales the number is built from. | HouseSigma states that there is no perfect automated valuation model in the world, including its own, and that the estimate should be a starting point rather than followed exactly. |
| What it is designed to do | Support a list price or an offer price on a specific property. | Give a fast, free, no-obligation estimate. BC Assessment exists to distribute property tax, not to price a sale. |
| Cost | Free, with no obligation to list. | Free. |
| Speed | A day or two, including a visit. | Seconds. |
| Usable for a mortgage or legal purpose | No. A lender or a court needs an appraisal from a licensed appraiser, which is a separate service again. | No, for the same reason. |
| Bilingual explanation, English and Mandarin | Yes, including walking through the comparable sales line by line. | Interface language options vary; there is nobody to ask follow-up questions. |
| Factor | Jersey Li | Online Estimates and BC Assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | Free |
| Time to get a number | About one to two days | Seconds |
| Property inspected first | Yes | No |
| Valuation date | Today's market | Recorded sales; BC Assessment is fixed to July 1 of the previous year |
| Obligation | None. A CMA does not commit you to listing. | None, though some tools require an account or an email address. |
Send the address and the timeline. Jersey will give you the honest read, including when the other option is the better one for your situation.
Which option fits better depends on your specific situation. Use this guide as a starting point, then book a call to apply it to your actual property.
| Scenario | Jersey Li | Online Estimates and BC Assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Curious what your home is roughly worth | ||
| Setting an actual list price | ||
| Deciding what to offer on a specific property | ||
| Tracking a Burnaby neighbourhood over several months | ||
| Renovated home or unusual unit in its building | ||
| Checking your assessed value for property tax |
Use the online estimate first. It costs nothing, it takes seconds, and it will tell you roughly which range you are in. Do not price a listing from it, and do not write an offer from it. Every automated estimate is a statistical guess made without ever seeing the property, and BC Assessment is not even trying to describe today, since it is fixed to July 1 of the previous year. On a $1,500,000 Burnaby home, an error of 5% is $75,000. That is the size of mistake worth a phone call to close.
HouseSigma does not publish an error rate, and it is direct about the limits on its own help pages: there is no perfect automated valuation model in the world, including HouseSigma's, and the estimated price should be used as a starting point for your research rather than a number to follow exactly. In practice, automated estimates land closest on standard units in large buildings with lots of recent sales, and drift furthest on renovated homes, corner or view units, and detached properties where the land value dominates.
Because they are measuring different days. BC Assessment states that its appraisal reflects the value as of July 1 of the previous year. Notices arrive the following January, so by mid-2026 your assessment is describing the market as it stood in July 2025. In a market that has moved in either direction since then, the assessed value will be wrong as a sale price, and it is not designed to be one. It exists to allocate property tax.
No. An automated estimate has never seen inside your home. It does not know that the kitchen was redone in 2024, that the unit faces the courtyard instead of Canada Way, or that the strata approved a special levy last spring. On a $1,500,000 Burnaby home, being 5% out is $75,000. List too high and the property sits and then reduces from a weak position. List too low and you leave the difference on the table. Use the estimate to get oriented, then get a comparative market analysis before you set the number.
A comparative market analysis is a REALTOR®'s opinion of likely sale price, built from recent comparable sales after seeing the property. It is free and it carries no obligation. A formal appraisal is a separate service performed by a licensed appraiser, it costs money, and it is what a lender or a court will accept. If you need a value for a mortgage, a divorce, or an estate, you need the appraisal. If you need a number to list or to offer at, you need the CMA.
Yes, genuinely. They are the fastest way to see recent sold prices on a street, watch how a Burnaby neighbourhood is moving over months, and check whether a listing price is roughly in line before you spend time on it. Zealty in particular publishes deep British Columbia sold data and long MLS® history. The distinction worth holding is between data, which these tools provide well, and a price for a specific property, which requires someone to look at the property.
Exposure, floor, condition, and parking. In Burnaby the difference between a unit facing Kingsway and the same floor plan facing the courtyard is real money, and so is the difference between an original kitchen and one redone last year. An automated model reading the address and the square footage treats them as the same asset. A CMA prices them apart, because the buyer will.
No. A comparative market analysis is free and carries no obligation to list, sign anything, or make a decision. Plenty of Burnaby owners get one to understand their equity position, to decide whether to renovate before selling, or simply to plan two years out.
Every fee, dollar figure, and legal rule on this page comes from the company's own published material or from the regulator. Pricing changes, so check the original before you rely on it.
Model the commission and your net proceeds at your actual price point.
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What goes into a comparative market analysis on a Burnaby home.
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