Instead of appraisers moving house to house to inspect and photograph properties from the street, BC Assessment has contracted a private company to do the work, using technology to streamline its efforts.
Tyler Technologies will be traveling through the Kootenay region next month in a white van identified with decals.
Using digital cameras mounted inside the van, the crew will update property assessment photos for about 3,315 single family homes in Trail and nearly 1,820 in Rossland.
“As the Crown corporation responsible for accurately valuing all properties in B.C. and continually serving as a leading source of the province’s property information, we are always looking for innovative ways to provide more timely, accurate, equitable and fair assessments to all property owners,” Rod Ravenstein, deputy assessor for the Kootenay Columbia region, noted in a news release.
Tyler Technologies will only capture the property from the front, including the street address, and will discard any details that may relate to the identity of the homeowner.
The visuals are used by BC Assessment in its daily business.
“The assessment rolls prepared by BC Assessment are used by local governments when preparing and calculating the annual property tax invoices for all properties within each jurisdiction (applicable tax rate x property assessment value = property tax owing),” explained Michelle McIsaac, Trail corporate administrator.
For more information, visit bcassessment.ca