The Benefits of Using Parcel Maps Integrated with Advanced Spatial Technology

With more and more counties growing rapidly, a higher degree of precision in developing parcel mapping applications is necessary. Parcel data is the main source of property information that includes its topography, aerial view, location, sales data and ownership. So, to significantly improve the accuracy of the information presented in a plat map, it is important to use better mapping tools and technologies. Improved parcel boundaries can give you better accuracy in location, graphics display of the property and spatial analysis. Companies that specialize in incorporating cities and towns in the US usually have a vast repository of parcel boundaries that you can integrate into your geospatial processes.

A successful parcel map provider can give you consistent update on the information that needed to be included in your map or list. The product should be delivered parcel shapefiles format to have a unified map of a county. The Assessor’s Parcel Number (APN) should also be indicated in the map along with the lot geometry and size so that you can verify the information presented to you prior your preliminary title report. This can help you save time and effort from trying to correct any errors. A correct parcel map also makes you eligible for loan application and buying the property of your choice. Getting quality parcel boundaries from an esteemed supplier can also give you very precise property locations for all of your data research and analysis. This is especially true for people who wanted to know the current market value of a property including the tax rolls associated with it. There are also companies that use advanced technology when doing data entry in GIS data, allowing you to have a complete picture of your property with physical characteristics close to the actual appearance.

An example of an excellent aerial map is Google Maps. The said Internet giant has brought GIS applications and parcel data mapping into a higher, new level. Many GIS experts were surprised to what Google Maps has achieved throughout the years, which is to have an ability to visualize data in a map. It started the popularity of satellite images that somehow people have also started taking it for granted. This is why when Google integrated parcel data to their maps it created a buzz among online communities. Thus, the demand for maps using satellite or aerial images soared high, leading to the development of newer spatial technologies.

Parcel data now represents another level of sophistication for ordinary online users. This kind of technology made research on properties a lot easier and convenient for people. Gone are the days when buyers need to visit a land office for a parcel map or refer to yellow pages for information. Today, they only need to connect to the Internet to see the physical characteristics of a property across different counties. Online maps became a greater tool for looking at the exact boundaries of a property, size, owner’s info, outline of a property and neighborhood. Buyers are now given the option to choose convenient ways to looking at houses or vacant land for future development.

How to Make Use of Parcel Maps

Only a few people would spend some of their time to study a parcel map closely. Little did other people know that understanding how to read parcel maps are very important in helping themselves come up with an informed decision about buying or selling a property. Laws about incorporating cities or counties in the US would not be made if there is such little importance in mapping these cities for legal and sales reference purposes. Parcel or plat maps are created to show boundaries of an existing property like houses and schools. Each parcel offers very significant information into like the name of the property owner, contact information, address of the site, size and geometry of a lot and orientation of the property. With much information it presents, parcel boundaries are drafted and stored by the county property appraisers.

Parcel storage is also done for tax assessment, wherein the property appraisers determine the market value of a property every year based on the most recent sales data of the same properties. The taxes of the respective properties are then levied based on the computed market value and rates defined by the state government. There are companies that provide parcel maps with property boundaries and tax records for a certain county or state. One of the major benefits you can enjoy by having this is that you can save time and money whenever you do research about a property in different counties. You can also ask if your provider offers a unified interface or platform where you can view all property information in a county of your choice. Other information you should ask about include aerial maps of the property, flood zone maps, dedicated public spaces, among many others.

In most cases, property buyers can take advantage of the benefits of having a parcel data than property sellers. It is not far fetched to say that parcel maps are created for sales purposes so that real estate agents can explain to buyers some specific information they need to know. For example, buyers can use parcel maps to search for vacant lot for development purposes, analyze the market value of a property and learn about the owner’s information. You can visit websites that provide parcel map and data of a certain state. You can use their GIS data and viewer to have an initial look of the property’s image.

In researching the property owner information, you can search them by using a parcel ID number. It is in this method by which you can get to know the site address, sale date, prices and other legal descriptions. Parcel map research will not take too much of your time since each in each county, there is a unified shape file. The tax information is also included as well as the GIS attributes of multiple counties. You can also request for a custom parcel map or list to let you have a variety of choices, and then refine your parcel list with map layers like flood zone areas.

Different Types of GIS Data and their Role in Speeding up a Parcel Mapping Project

It is inevitable for counties or cities to experience rapid growth. People from another state start moving to one another for different reasons. Regardless of their purpose, it is a normal action for real estate developers to take advantage of this opportunity by developing some more subdivisions in a county. It is also this reason that land surveyors and cartographers have to update county maps as often as possible to provide accurate information. Failure to provide up-to-date information in a parcel map might mean serious problems to property buyers and sellers since this kind of map is required by law. Thus, there are rules and regulations that govern the creation of plat maps of a particular place. For instance, wrong information on the size and shape of a lot can be a ground for turning down a loan application not until it is corrected.

It is very challenging for parcel map cartographers and surveyors to keep up with plat edits. This is why there is a great need for better technologies to be used in making such necessary edits on a plat map. This is especially true in some of the fastest-growing counties in the US. Such counties heavily rely on a software program that is designed to increase plat mapping productivity. A prime example of this software is text-to-vector program. By using plat mapping technologies, it can help companies reduce labor costs in doing parcel data entry. Data entry in GIS alone takes up 90 percent of the total budget for a project. Technology can help cartographers and urban planners speed up their GIS data entry process, increasing the level of productivity. This is especially true in the creation and editing of any parcel data.

GIS data have three main sources; field data, electronic data and paper data. Examples of electronic data included aerial and satellite imagery, databases and CAD drawings. Field data is usually gathered by using automated ways like computers, data collectors and other handheld gadgets. Lastly, paper data come from word documents, books, text files, scanned photos and other paper documents relevant to the project. And because of the much information that can be gathered through paper based data, it is this GIS data source that provides the highest conversion cost. Out of using paper based files, rasterization is a method commonly used for the creation of GIS features.  Another method is digitizing where line tracing is also done similar to rasterization. Line tracing is done only by hand on a handheld device like tablet PCs or even through desktop computers.

In creating GIS attributes through paper based documents, keyboard entry is the main tool for doing it so. This kind of method may be slower than other means to creating GIS attributes but the results are pretty much accurate. Besides, the most important objective to be achieved is to gather all necessary data to have a full picture of the parcel mapping project. In this way, corrections are made as well as an up-to-date information is now provided.