As a real estate appraiser, I’ve been asked many times what my approach is to determine fair market value. While there are three main approaches to value (income, cost, and sales comparison), for residential appraisals the sales comparison approach is almost always used. The other two approaches are more often used for income producing properties and unique structures.

You’re thinking about selling your home but you don’t know how much it is worth. You can jump on Zillow and Trulia, but how reliable are they?