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Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies) | 9 Months Ended
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Sep. 30, 2020
Accounting Policies [Abstract] |
Basis of Presentation | Basis of Presentation The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements include Zillow Group, Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. These condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) and applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) regarding interim financial reporting. Certain information and note disclosures normally included in the financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP have been condensed or omitted pursuant to such rules and regulations. Accordingly, these interim condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited financial statements and accompanying notes included in Zillow Group, Inc.’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, which was filed with the SEC on February 19, 2020. The condensed consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2019, included herein, was derived from the audited financial statements of Zillow Group, Inc. as of that date. The unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements, in the opinion of management, reflect all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments, necessary to present fairly our financial position as of September 30, 2020, our results of operations, comprehensive income (loss) and shareholders’ equity for the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2020 and 2019, and our cash flows for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2020 and 2019. The results of the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2020 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the year ending December 31, 2020 or for any interim period or for any other future year.
Use of Estimates | Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make certain estimates, judgments and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the related disclosures at the date of the financial statements, as well as the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the periods presented. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates, including those related to the net realizable value of inventory, amortization period and recoverability of contract cost assets, website and software development costs, recoverability of long-lived assets and intangible assets with definite lives, share-based compensation, income taxes, business combinations and the recoverability of goodwill, among others. To the extent there are material differences between these estimates, judgments or assumptions and actual results, our financial statements will be affected. The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced significant additional uncertainty with respect to estimates, judgments and assumptions, which may materially impact the estimates previously listed, among others.
Recently Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted | Recently Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted In August 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued guidance which simplifies the accounting for certain financial instruments with characteristics of liabilities and equity, including convertible instruments and contracts in an entity’s own equity. Among other changes, the guidance removes the liability and equity separation models for convertible instruments. Instead, entities will account for convertible debt instruments wholly as debt unless convertible instruments contain features that require bifurcation as a derivative or that result in substantial premiums accounted for as paid-in capital. The guidance also requires the application of the if-converted method to calculate the impact of convertible instruments on diluted earnings per share. The guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2021, with early adoption permitted for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2020, and can be adopted on either a retrospective or modified retrospective basis. Although we continue to evaluate the timing and method of adoption and impact of this guidance on our financial position, results of operations and cash flows, upon adoption we expect this guidance to result in a reclassification of conversion feature balances from additional paid-in capital to debt and to decrease reported interest expense for our convertible senior notes. In March 2020, the FASB issued guidance which provides optional expedients and exceptions for applying GAAP to contracts, hedging relationships and other transactions that reference the London Inter-Bank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) or another reference rate expected to be discontinued because of reference rate reform. This guidance is optional for a limited period of time to ease the potential burden in accounting for, or recognizing the effects of, reference rate reform on financial reporting. This guidance is effective from March 12, 2020 through December 31, 2022. Entities may elect to adopt the amendments for contract modifications as of any date from the beginning of an interim period that includes or is subsequent to March 12, 2020, or prospectively from a date within an interim period that includes or is subsequent to March 12, 2020, up to the date that the financial statements are available to be issued. We expect to apply some of the expedients and exceptions provided in this guidance to our credit facilities, warehouse line of credit and master repurchase agreements, all of which reference LIBOR in the applicable interest rate. While the goal of the reference rate reform transition is for it to be economically neutral to entities, we have not yet determined the impact the adoption of this guidance will have on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows. In December 2019, the FASB issued guidance which is intended to simplify accounting for income taxes. It removes certain exceptions to the general principles and clarifies and amends existing guidance to improve consistent application. This guidance is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2020, and early adoption is permitted. We expect to adopt this guidance on January 1, 2021 and do not expect the adoption of this guidance to have a material impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.
Fair Value Measurements | Accounting standards define fair value as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability (an exit price) in the principal or most advantageous market in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date. The standards also establish a fair value hierarchy, which requires an entity to maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs when measuring fair value. There are three levels of inputs that may be used to measure fair value: •Level 1 — Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. •Level 2 — Assets and liabilities valued based on observable market data for similar instruments, such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities. •Level 3 — Unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity; instruments valued based on the best available data, some of which is internally developed, and considers risk premiums that a market participant would require. We applied the following methods and assumptions in estimating our fair value measurements: Cash equivalents — The fair value measurement of money market funds is based on quoted market prices in active markets. The fair value measurement of treasury bills, U.S. government agency securities and certificates of deposit is based on observable market-based inputs or inputs that are derived principally from or corroborated by observable market data by correlation or other means. Short-term investments — The fair value measurement of our short-term investments is based on observable market-based inputs or inputs that are derived principally from or corroborated by observable market data by correlation or other means. Restricted cash — Restricted cash consists of cash received from the resale of homes through Zillow Offers which may be used to repay amounts borrowed on our credit facilities (see Note 11), amounts held in escrow related to funding home purchases in our mortgage origination business and amounts held in escrow related to our Zillow Closing Services business. The carrying value of restricted cash approximates fair value due to the short period of time amounts borrowed on the credit facilities are outstanding and amounts are held in escrow. Mortgage loans held for sale — The fair value of mortgage loans held for sale is generally calculated by reference to quoted prices in secondary markets for commitments to sell mortgage loans with similar characteristics. Interest rate lock commitments — The fair value of interest rate lock commitments (“IRLCs”) is calculated by reference to quoted prices in secondary markets for commitments to sell mortgage loans with similar characteristics. Expired commitments are excluded from the fair value measurement. We generally only issue IRLCs for products that meet specific purchaser guidelines. Since not all IRLCs will become closed loans, we adjust our fair value measurements for the estimated amount of IRLCs that will not close. This adjustment is effected through the pull-through rate, which represents the probability that an interest rate lock commitment will ultimately result in a closed loan. The pull-through rate is based on estimated changes in market conditions, loan stage and historical borrower behavior. Pull-through rates are directly related to the fair value of IRLCs as an increase in the pull-through rate, in isolation, would result in an increase in the fair value measurement. Conversely, a decrease in the pull-through rate, in isolation, would result in a decrease in the fair value measurement. Changes in the fair value of IRLCs are included within Mortgages revenue in our condensed consolidated statements of operations. Forward contracts — The fair value of mandatory loan sales commitments and derivative instruments such as forward sales of mortgage-backed securities that are utilized as economic hedging instruments are calculated by reference to quoted prices for similar assets.
Segment Reporting | We have three operating and reportable segments, which have been identified based on the way in which our chief operating decision-maker manages our business, makes operating decisions and evaluates operating performance. The chief executive officer acts as the chief operating decision-maker and reviews financial and operational information for the Homes, Internet, Media & Technology (“IMT”) and Mortgages segments. The Homes segment includes the financial results from Zillow Group’s purchase and sale of homes directly through Zillow Offers and the financial results from title and escrow services through Zillow Closing Services. The IMT segment includes the financial results for the Premier Agent, rentals and new construction marketplaces, dotloop and display, as well as revenue from the sale of various other marketing and business products and services to real estate professionals. The Mortgages segment includes financial results for mortgage originations and the sale of mortgages on the secondary market through Zillow Home Loans, advertising sold to mortgage lenders and other mortgage professionals as well as Mortech mortgage software solutions. Revenue and costs are directly attributed to our segments when possible. However, due to the integrated structure of our business, certain costs incurred by one segment may benefit the other segments. These costs primarily include headcount-related expenses, general and administrative expenses including executive, finance, accounting, legal, human resources, recruiting and facilities costs, product development and data acquisition costs and marketing and advertising costs. These costs are allocated to each segment based on the estimated benefit each segment receives from such expenditures. The chief executive officer reviews information about our revenue categories as well as statement of operations data inclusive of income (loss) before income taxes by segment.

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