County-Wide Inspection Project

About the Program

Category: Community and Economic Development (Best in Category)

Year: 2014

Virginia state code mandates, “annual assessments….shall be made at 100 percent of fair market value.” In order to achieve 100 percent of fair market, all property records must have accurate data. Following an analysis, it was discovered that most of the property records had inspection dates of 10 years or older. Dated inspections, along with the fact that some additions/improvements are done without the proper permits, increased the probability of inaccurate property record information. In addition to the State Code of Virginia, the International Association of Assessing Officers (IAAO) guidelines recommend that all properties need to be inspected every four to six years. Assuming that most new construction is identified through building permits, a physical re-inspection of the property including an on-site verification of the property characteristics should be conducted in that four to six year period. Periodic field inspections help ensure that property characteristics data, maintained by our office, are complete and accurate. As an alternative to physical inspections, or field inspections, IAAO states that many jurisdictions use digital imaging technology tools to supplement field re-inspections for existing improvements. Digital imaging technology, or in our case Pictometry, is used with the provision that our initial field inspections are completed in a timely manner and that an effective system of building permits or other methods of routinely identifying physical changes is in place. In addition, a process was instituted to digitally scan all building plans for new construction and additions. Easy access to the scanned images made the process more efficient by reducing man-hours in the field measuring structures. Our Pictometry software shows all four sides of the structure as well as a bird’s-eye view. The clear image, along with the zoom capability, is clear enough to ascertain the various characteristics of a house, such as siding, decking versus patio, or roofing material. Employees are also able to clearly measure the width, length, and height of each structure with a high degree of accuracy.