B.C. Assessment has signed an agreement with Esri Canada, a provider of enterprise geographic information system (GIS) technology, to pilot the company’s prototype of Assessment Analyst 3D, which it says is the world’s first geospatial 3D assessment analysis solution. This technology allows appraisers to conduct detailed valuations of condominiums, commercial buildings and individual units using 3D geoprocessing and analytics from their desktop.

“In the Vancouver Sea to Sky assessment region, we have over 120,000 residential strata units,” says Jason Grant, assessor for Vancouver Sea to Sky Region. “It is challenging to physically inspect this property type for assessment purposes. We hope that the 3D modelling solution…will enable us to further enhance the accuracy of our property data and increase our operational efficiencies.”

When determining assessed values, B.C. Assessment appraisers analyze timely real estate sales transactions to find comparable properties. In addition, they consider a property’s unique characteristics such as location, age, condition, size and view. Having a current inventory base is vital to the process, says the corporation in a news release. Discrepancies between the assessed value and the sale price of a property can arise, because it is impractical to physically inspect every single unit in a building for inventory verification purposes. Complex 3D models of strata buildings allow appraisers to visually analyze the effects of some key drivers of value, such as view and floor height, on a unit-to-unit basis, without having to leave the office, it says. Appraisers can also use this tool to audit and correct data discrepancies, leading to more precise assessments.

For information: www.esri.ca/assessmentanalyst.