How to read a Demand Score before you make an offer

Short answer

A Demand Score is a 0–100 summary of buyer activity on one Zillow listing, built from saves, page views and days on market. It is not a price opinion, an appraisal or a forecast of what a seller will accept. Open the breakdown, check for a days-on-market reset, and compare the price with recent sales before offering.

Before you lean on it for an offer:

1. Open the breakdown, not just the number. Two listings with the same label can get there in very different ways.
2. Check the days on market. Days on Zillow can reset when a home is relisted, which makes a listing look fresher than it is.⁵
3. Look at what the score leaves out. Price cuts, back-on-market status, condition and recent sales aren't in the number. Check them separately.

1. What does a Demand Score measure?

A Demand Score measures buyer activity on one listing (saves, page views and days on market), not the home's value or condition.

Zillow's own guide for agents defines the three inputs. Total saves "is the number of times users have saved your listing." Total page views is "the total number of times your Showcase listing has been viewed since it went live, including repeat page views by the same unique user." And "Days on Zillow" is "the number of days a property has been listed for sale, up until it goes pending."¹ (Those definitions come from Zillow's Showcase dashboard guide. Zillow shows the same three counts on most standard listings too, but some listings hide them.³)

Caza turns each input into 0 to 100 points and takes a weighted average:⁴⁶

You can change the three weights with sliders in the Caza popup. They always add up to 100%.⁶ If only one of saves or views is missing, the score uses the other inputs and spreads the weight across them.⁴⁶

What's not in the number: the price, the home's condition, nearby sales, price cuts, and whether the home has been back on market. Caza shows price cuts next to the score, and a "Back on market" flag when Zillow's listing status says so, but neither one changes the score.⁶ It also says nothing about who the buyers are or whether anyone has toured.

When Zillow hides both saves and views, Caza shows no score at all instead of a guess. The same goes for sold and off-market listings.⁶

2. What do the Hot through Slow labels mean?

The labels are fixed cutoffs in Caza's formula. They aren't based on your local market, price range or season, so use them to sort similar homes in the same search, not as a verdict.

The number comes with a label:⁴⁶

A "Warm" home in a slow market might be one of the most active listings in your search. In a fast market, the same number might be middle of the pack.

Raw counts need the same local context. See how to see Zillow saves for how to compare saves per day across similar listings.

3. How do you read the breakdown behind the number?

Open the breakdown on the score chip and read the inputs, not just the number.

On a listing page, hover over the score chip in Caza's panel. The breakdown shows each input's points and weight, the pace bonus, and a short "How the score works" note.⁶ On a search results card, hovering over the badge shows the saves, views, days on market, any price cut, and the saves pace.⁶

A few patterns are worth noticing. None of them proves anything on its own:

• Many views, few saves. People are clicking on the listing but not keeping it. Possible reasons include eye-catching photos, a price that draws curious clicks, or something in the listing that turns buyers off. It's a reason to ask questions, not a conclusion.
• Steady saves, fewer views. Fewer people are looking, but the ones who look are keeping it. That can mean narrower but more serious interest. It can also mean a niche home or a small market.
• Strong saves and views, but a long time on market. Interest without a sale. Ask the listing agent whether an earlier deal fell through, and check the price history.
• A high score driven by very few days. In the first week, the days-on-market part is close to its maximum and the pace bonus is easy to earn, so the score leans heavily on time. Caza labels these "New listing" instead of showing a saves pace.⁶ Give it a few days before you read much into it.

A worked example (hypothetical)

These listings and numbers are made up to show how the formula works. They aren't typical, and they aren't data from any real listing. Scores use Caza's default weights.⁴⁶

A and B have both been listed for three weeks, and both are "Warm." But A has about 2.9 saves a day and B about 0.4. B's score is held up by views and by the days-on-market part. Reading only the label, you'd treat them the same. The breakdown says they aren't.

C has been on the market three times as long, and its days points have dropped to 30. That alone is a reason to open the price history. Has it been cut? Was it pending and then back on market? Did the days counter reset at some point?⁵

You can try your own numbers in the free Demand Score calculator.

4. How should you use a Demand Score before an offer?

The score can help you decide which homes to look at closely, and how quickly. It can't tell you what to offer. A sensible order:

1. Check the days. Open the price history and rebuild the current selling attempt. A relist can restart Days on Zillow.⁵ If the real time on market is longer, the score is overstating freshness.
2. Check the flags. Look for a price cut (how big, how recent) and a "Back on market" flag. Caza shows both but doesn't score them.⁶ For what a cut can tell you, see what a price cut on a Zillow listing tells you. Zillow's listing doesn't say why a home came back on market. Ask the listing agent.
3. Check the price against sales, not activity. Demand describes interest. Value comes from comparable sales. See how to pull comps on Zillow and how to tell if a listing is overpriced. Later, if you finance the purchase, the lender's appraisal lets you "see how the price you agreed to pay compares to similar and recent property sales in your area."²
4. Check the house. The CFPB says a home inspector "should tell you whether the home you want to buy is in good condition and whether you are buying a 'money pit' of expensive repairs," and advises: "Get your inspection before you are finally committed to buy the home."² No activity score replaces that.
5. Then decide on timing and terms with your agent. High, rising activity on a fairly priced home is a reason not to wait around. Low activity after weeks on the market, especially with cuts, is a reason to ask what the seller would consider. See how to spot a listing that will take a low offer. Either way, the outcome isn't guaranteed.

What this guide can't tell you

• What a specific seller will accept, or whether you'll win a bidding situation
• Whether there are other offers, or whether anyone has toured the home
• Why a listing went back on market or was relisted
• Whether a home is fairly priced (that takes recent comparable sales, and an appraisal if you're financing)
• The home's condition (that takes an inspection)
• How Zillow counts views and saves internally beyond its public definitions, or why some listings hide them
• How your local market compares with Caza's fixed Hot-to-Slow cutoffs

FAQ

Related on Caza

• What "days on market" means on Zillow
• Can you sort Zillow by saves, views or price cuts?
• How to see how many people saved a Zillow listing

You don't need Caza for any of this. Each listing's counts and price history, plus a spreadsheet or the free calculator, will do it. Caza does the same thing faster: it puts the score, its breakdown, price cuts and a back-on-market flag on Zillow listings and search results, and can sort a results page by Demand Score, most saves, most views, most days on market or most price drops.⁶ It's a Chrome extension; the Demand Score works without a membership.

Caza is not affiliated with or endorsed by Zillow. This guide is general information, not legal, financial or real estate advice, and nothing here promises a particular deal or outcome.