How to Get a Job at Zillow

Zillow Details & History

Zillow is a popular real estate and rental marketplace. The company was founded in 2006 by Rich Barton, Lloyd Frink, and Spencer Rascoff and based in Seattle, Washington. Zillow officially launched its website in 2006, which gives users the ability to view houses for sale, rental listings, and various home values, otherwise known as Zestimates.

Zillow has added several features to its core product to improve their market positioning. Some notable launches include a program to buy and sell homes through "Zillow Instant Offers," and a mortgage lending system called Zillow Home Loans. There are several others, and they're always working hard to improve the product.

Zillow is one of the most popular real estate websites in the United States, and even with a decline in the housing market are poised to dominate in 2023 and beyond.

Zillow Office Locations

Zillow is headquartered is in Seattle, Washington. They allow remote work for most roles, but also have other US-based offices in several cities including Scottsdale, Denver, Stamford, Dallas, Chicago, New York, San Francisco and Irvine. It's also worth noting that Zillow has a small footprint in Canada and plans to expand internationally.

Zillow's Primary Competitors

The real-estate tech market has always been one to watch. Since Zillow has so many different product offerings, they have a plethora of competitors to keep an eye on. Some notable ones: Redfin, Trulia, Compass and Realtor.com.

Top Zillow Departments for Entry-Level Roles

• Product
• Marketing
• Operations
• Sales

Diversity at Zillow

Zillow does not self-report breakdowns of women and minorities, but they do disclose diversity goals. They have goals around increasing representation of women and BIPOC talent in both their workforce and leadership positions. These goals did not have numbers attached.

Is remote work allowed at Zillow?

Depending on your position, yes! 90% of employees can work from home at least part-time. Obviously a realtor or operations associate cannot work remote, but most of their tech teams have this ability. They also include a $450 setup bonus for new employees, along with a monthly "home office" stipend to support phone, internet, and other various things.

Does Zillow have good benefits?

In a word, yes. We've ranked their benefits package a 8/10. Some unique perks besides healthcare, 401k match on 4%, and remote work:

• Remote work monthly stipend (if applicable)
• Free lunch & snacks if near an office
• $75/month wellness/gym membership reimbursement program
• $100/month cell phone reimbursement program
• 16 weeks of maternity and 8 weeks of paternity leave
• Short-term work authorization outside the US for 4 weeks/year (working vacation!)
• 6-week fully paid sabbatical after 6 years (Reboot & Recharge Program)

Who is Zillow looking to hire?

Zillow values people of all backgrounds to create community in their workforce. They especially seek out those who demonstrate their company values.

Zillow Values

• Better Together
• Include & Empower
• Customers are the North Star
• Turn on the Lights
• Deliver Quality on Time, Every Time
• Think Big, Move Fast
• Do the Right Thing
• Own It

Zillow Interview Process

The interview process for Zillow heavily depends on what position you're going out for. If you're looking to apply as an engineer, you will have to complete some a coding questionnaire after the recruiting screen (round 1.5), before you even talk to the hiring manager. Otherwise, you can expect loosely a three-round interview process.

Round 1 Interview at Zillow: Recruiter Screen

A recruiter screen is extremely normal for larger companies to vet you for the role you're applying for. They will ask some "screener questions," often written by the hiring manager, to try and weed out the applicants who are not qualified to save everyone time. Expect to talk about previous experiences that mimic the wording in the job description.

Round 2 Interview at Zillow: 4-Team Member Interviews

This is a mix of technical and behavioral questions to weed out if you're a good fit for the particular role. They'll hit hard on things like communication, problem solving capabilities, and teamwork styles. If you're interviewing for a technical role, expect questions about your field from experts.

Round 3 Interview at Zillow: Hiring Manager & General Manager

This is probably the most important step of Zillow's interview process. The third round of interviews is usually with the hiring manager and senior leadership for the department you're applying for. These guys have the final say, so plan accordingly! (We know you will)

Zillow Internship Program

Zillow fosters a great internship program to both undergraduate and graduate students, and it's completely remote! The internships normally span 10-12 weeks over the summer season. Zillow integrates their interns into the relevant business teams so they're always doing meaningful work to gain real experiences.

Zillow accepts interns in the following areas: Software Development Engineering (BS/MS), Data Science & Analytics (BS/MS), UX/UI (BS/MS), Applied Science (MS/PhD), Computer Vision (MS/PhD), Product Management (MBA), Strategy & Operations (MBA), Human Resources (MS), and General Business (BA).

To qualify for an internship, you must have at least a semester of school remaining after the summer of your acceptance. Internship applications usually open around September for the following summer, and close early 2023.

Zillow Associate Product Manager (APM) Program

Zillow does both an APM program and a PM internship program.

The PM internship program is only open to MBA candidates, and lasts the normal summer internship length. The APM program on the other hand is a 12-18 month rotational development program for recent graduates, and places candidates on teams that resemble their areas of study.

We have a tried-and-true process to help our Bridged readers get hired. It's 5 primary steps, but the meatiest is finding ways to get specific experience. Read on for recommendations.

Identify Your Target Role

Do your research, through Bridged or another company, to identify roles that may align well with your interests and core competencies. You can start here with our review of Best Entry-Level Tech Jobs to explore some options.

Explore Ways to Get Experience

There are lots of ways to gain job experience without being on the job. Bridged gives several recommendations in our Job Guides for each job, but you can start by exploring programs like Coursera or Udemy to get valuable, resume-ready certifications from reputable sources.

Use Jobscan to Optimize Your Resume

We've written a whole article about this, but you'd be surprised how many resumes NEVER see the eyes of a human! That's because of a pesky-little thing called an Applicant Tracking System (or ATS for short) that scans and ranks resumes based on their matchability to the job descriptions. Unfortunately, a lot of these programs are outdated, and won't pick up the best candidates! Jobscan helps you get around this with comprehensive resume scanning and improvement recommendations. Get our full review writeup here.

Use Linkedin Premium to Find and Reach out to Zillow Recruiters

Roles these days, especially entry-level roles, are pretty competitive. There's no getting around it. However, showing you have the chutzpah to reach out shows wonders.

Premium subscriptions allow you to view more profiles and send more Inmails to locate and reach out to a recruiter that works on an area that hosts your target roles. Be funny, and emphasize the work you've done to match with their company. Mention Zillow's values, and how you'd relate. A little human connection works wonders.

And Finally: Be Patient

It's a weird world out there in the job market. Everyone is getting rejections. Don't let it get to you, and keep upskilling in the process. Someday you'll see you're exactly where you need to be, and on the right path. Good luck!

Zillow is a great target company for an entry-level tech role. Be persistent, and keep applying. You've got this.

Here at Bridged we are huge fans of stacking micro-certifications to achieve desired career results. We're building a product to make your career planning fun and affordable, and we'd love to talk to YOU! Was this article helpful? Did you land an interview at Zillow?

Let us know at hello@getbridged.co