Our home was recently appraised for 650K. Zillow estimates the value at 521K. The estimate makes us one of the lowest priced homes in the subdivision. We have all upgrades in our home and it is the largest of the homes that were originally built in this subdivision. It was appraised at 750K before 2009. Our home has a basement. Neighbors do not have basement on one side and you appraised higher. Really? -- James E. - Fort Hunt

If you search the Internet for the phrase "Can I trust Zillow?" or "Can I trust Z-Estimates" you'll find countless posts by angry property owners and leery property buyers who have discovered the hard way just out inaccurate Zillow's pricing can be. Many people in Manassas claim that Zillow's valuations have a margin of error of around 20%. Even if we assume the margin of error is only 10%, in Northern Virginia that means a "z-estimate" is only within $50,000 of the actual value. If the margin of error is an improbable 5% that means that a z-estimate is only within $25,000 of the asking price.

Yet Zillow (for now) remains popular with some real estate shoppers. Home sellers and property buyers should understand that there is not a single neighborhood in Manassas where either a bank or tax collector uses Internet for tax assessment or appraisals. Our professional advice is to take estimates from any computer with a grain of salt. Putting too much reliance into a computer logarithm can cause a great deal of unnecessary anxiety.

Contact one of our local experts today for a free comparative market analysis of your property's market value. We promise that a website won't set the market value. Instead, your friendly neighborhood Nesbitt Realty real estate agent will account for the unique variables which make up your real estate's ideal price.