Aerial photos for property tax purposes?
Assessing property for
tax purposes is never fun for anyone involved – neither the homeowner
nor the appraiser himself. When new property is being constructed, appraisers must go and take an initial look at the
property to determine an interim amount for tax purposes.
This is fine, except when the house is completed, many people do not grant
assessors access again sighting privacy issues. This leaves the tax people
to rely on comparables and other sources to determine the value of the newly
built home.
But now, new technology is being developed involving aerial photos to get
the value of the property, without
ever even stepping foot on their lawn or talking to the homeowners. But
these aerial photos mean a plane would be flying overhead snapping pictures
of the property, and this has many homeowners upset about privacy issues.
An October 8, 2006 article by Roger M. Showley of The San Diego Union Tribune,
“Prying Eyes? Computerized aerial photos cold ease county assessor’s
job, but privacy issues loom,” looks into the controversy that is
developing.
“In a move that would give a new tool to the assessor,
the county is considering spending $1 million a year to conduct aerial photographic
safaris over all 4,200 square miles of public and private property holdings
– not only for assessment purposes but also to aid law enforcement,
fire fighting and land-use planning.”
County assessors are saying that the estimates will help them to do their
jobs more accurately and efficiently, since they could pair the photos with
their on-site reviews.
But opponents to the new technology are saying that the aerial photos are
an invasion of privacy. Although the picture can not make out the faces
of people on the ground, they can pick up other details such as the make
of a car in the driveway or the contents of an open garage door.
“Beth
Givens, director of the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse in San Diego, said
she is concerned that government-sponsored aerial surveys will become more
intrusive as technology advances. She mentioned that a remotely controlled
aerial drone can fly over an area using video camcorders. ‘What I'd
like to see is the county develop a privacy policy surrounding its use of
this technology and put some limits in.’”
San Diego is actually one of the bigger counties in California that has
not yet adopted this new technology.
Both Los Angeles and Orange County have become fans of aerial photography
for tax assessment purposes.
“Los Angeles County assessor Rick
Auerbach said his budget for aerial surveying covers $390,000 of the $5
million Pictometry contract to fly the county every two years. ‘My
staff finds it really useful,’ said Auerbach. ‘They really like
aerial photography.’”
Orange County also had god things to say about the new technology.
“Orange County Assessor Webster J. Guillory's advice to San Diego:
‘I think it's a valuable product. It will save them time and cost.’”
It definitely does look as if San Diego is going to jump on the aerial photography
bandwagon, but it may not be for a while. The assessors and officials in
San Diego do not think any major changers or deals will be made until 2008
or 2009.
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