I guess you have to drive the comps because you cannot use google maps or bing maps to see if there is a highway next door to the subject, or a junk yard, but since I have lived in the area for twenty years , I must drive by the property
Actually, I used GIS maps to determine the property line and noticed the junkyard BEFORE I drove out there. I knew where it was because I lived in the next county to the north for over 40 years, have a friend who used to live about a mile down the road from the property, and drove past the property every workday for well over 12 years. I still drove the comp because driving past a property is NOT the same as doing an exterior inspection, period.
:new_snipersmilie:
I do not deny the requirement is there , My argument is the requirement to do drive by's relies on old technology ,and the guideline needs to be changed . Innovation is a business tool , following outdated guidelines is an anchor for business, any business.
MLS comps pictures are taken by agents of the seller looking to cast the property in the most favorable light. Ever notice that REOs, etc, never seen to have interior photos and properties without an MLS photo are either actually vacant land or REALLY run down properties? Also, as some appraisers do like driving the comps so too some agents and the picture thus may be an old reused picture (missing salient details) or even a totally incorrect picture (flipped is the least problem, could be different property entirely as picture was of a model home before property was built, or is the house 3 doors down, or is from 5 blocks away, or is from a block away from the office, who knows?).
As for Google Maps & Google Earth are very interesting and can help alleviate the question of "where" (although it can be a house off and requires a different set of verification steps) but do you know WHEN the image was taken? Have there been changes? Same with GIS. GIS for the property I live in shows half the driveway on the neighbor's lot (and most along here are so shifted). For example, if I use Google Maps the "approximate address" listed for directly in front of my house is actually that of the house two doors down and our address does not even show up. I know the image is over2 years old as the car in the driveway was totaled out over a year ago and I remember the truck driving by about 3 years ago, yet the copyright is listed as 2009.
So, the adage I learned in college (while an ACS major) still holds true:
"To err is human, but to really fouls things up requires a computer."
Can't say how many times I tried to explain to clerks, etc, that the problem with computers is that people believe that they can NOT be wrong rather than that they are subject to the quality of the input and the programming.
Short version: Verify your data in person!
community for the discussion of real estate appraisal. Register a free account to be able to post and unlock additional forums and features.
Keep up with all your google maps, living there for 20 years, old technology excuses... I'm out here, I'm waiting... Sooner or later myself, or someone like me, will obtain a copy of one or more of your reports... And because you're not driving your comps, you'll muck it up, I'll know why you mucked it up, and you and your state board will get to know each other better... 
