Understanding
Property Inspection
Property Inspection
Property inspections are essential for assessing and ensuring fair property valuations. In fact, they are so important that the Massachusetts Bureau of Local Assessment requires every municipality to inspect each parcel at least once every ten years.
We take property inspections seriously. Scroll down to better understand what happens during an inspection, meet our data collectors, and schedule an inspection. Have any questions - please feel free to contact our customer support team at 508-974-9298. Thank you for helping us ensure equitable property values!
The Town of Somerset Property Inspection Process
What happens during a property inspection? Let us walk you through the process, step-by-step.
The Front Door
PROPERTY INSPECTION PROCESS | STEP 1
We know your time is valuable, so we'll be as efficient as possible. Complete inspections usually take 10-15 minutes for the interior, and about ten minutes for the exterior.
Every property inspection begins at your front door with a knock. One of our friendly data collectors, direct from our office or that of our partner, CIDARE, will be waiting with their city ID badge plainly visible.
The Interior Inspection
PROPERTY INSPECTION PROCESS | STEP 2
Most inspections begin with a brief interior inspection. As you guide the data collector through your home, from the basement to upper levels, we note the following:
- If there is a basement.
- How the property is heated and cooled.
- The construction materials used to build the building.
- The number and types of rooms.
- The number and types of bathrooms.
- The overall condition of the property's interior.
- How the property is heated and cooled.
- The construction materials used to build the building.
- The number and types of rooms.
- The number and types of bathrooms.
- The overall condition of the property's interior.
Feel free to ask your data collector any questions. They will try their best to answer everything and if they don't know the answer, they'll pass the question to the assessor.
Important: No photos are taken inside of the building. Once the interior inspection is complete, the data collector will proceed with the exterior inspection.
The Exterior Inspection
PROPERTY INSPECTION PROCESS | STEP 3
The exterior inspection goes quickly. The data collector will walk around your property to take reference photos and note the materials used to construct the facade and the roof. They will then measure the property using a LiDAR system.
The data collector will also review the property sketch to make sure that the subareas of the property are correctly referenced.
Outbuildings and Other Features
PROPERTY INSPECTION PROCESS | STEP 4
The final step in the inspection process is the observation of outbuildings and other special features. Each data collector will note any fixed structures separate from the house (such as a shed or garage) and any special features on the property (such as a pool or patio). For each outbuilding and feature, the data collector takes a picture and records condition information.
And that's it! Your property inspection is complete!
Meet Our Data Collectors
Get to know our data collectors so that you recognize who is collecting your property data!
Swipe left to get to know the team ➝
Swipe left to get to know the team ➝
Hakim Boulil
CIDARE, Inc.
Hakim works for our partner, CIDARE, Inc., which executes cyclical and building permit inspections for the Town of Somerset. A former architect and a data collector many years, Hakim brings his friendly personality and his extensive knowledge of design and construction to every property inspection he performs.
Joshua Troh
CIDARE, Inc.
Josh works for our partner, CIDARE, Inc., which executes cyclical property inspections for the Town of Somerset. An architecture major that worked for several years at Centrepoint Architects and as an independent consultant, Josh has been involved with all aspects of real estate, from design to build to valuation.
Yukit Wu
CIDARE, Inc.
Yukit works for our partner, CIDARE, Inc., which executes cyclical and building permit inspections for the Town of Somerset. Fluent in Mandarin and English and a former home inspector, Yukit not only excels at collecting accurate property data, he is also good at helping property owners understand how their data is used.