Vanguard Appraisals, Inc. Copyright © 2021
CAMAvision Demystified Senior Software Engineer
13 years of service May 18TH, 2021
Tax Districts
In version 24 of CAMAvision, tax districts were reworked and moved into their own section in Table Maintenance
Tax Districts
This new section appears between
Tax Districts
At the top of this section is one new table called the District List
Tax Districts
This table defines how the districts are setup in your system
Tax Districts
The DistID field ties to the physical tax
Tax Districts
The DistOrder field determines the
Tax Districts
The DistType field defines the type of
Tax Districts
The InUse field explicitly declares if this
Tax Districts
One of the constants in life is change; and tax DISTRICTS, FUNDS, and
SUBFUNDS, are not exempt from this
Tax Districts
Tax Districts
Go to the Levy table | TEST of the district where the SUBFUND is to be added and add a record
Tax Districts
Since this is a new SUBFUND being added to an existing FUND, no further action is needed past copying the pricing table from TEST to MAIN and running a revaluation
Tax Districts
Tax Districts
Go to the District table | TEST of the district where the FUND is to be added and add a record
Tax Districts
Notice the Levy field is set to 0.000000, this is due to no SUBFUND(s) being entered into the corresponding Levy
table yet
Tax Districts
In order to add the SUBFUND(s) to the newly created FUND we first need to copy the pricing table from TEST to MAIN
Tax Districts
Now go to the Levy table | TEST of the district where the FUND was just added and add all the needed SUBFUND records as shown previously
Tax Districts
Once the SUBFUND(s) have been added we need to copy the pricing table from
TEST to MAIN
Tax Districts
The final setup in the process is selecting the MASTER districts which should utilize the newly created FUND
Tax Districts
Go to the Table Utilities | Taxing District
Auto Complete and update any of the
MASTER districts
Tax Districts
Changing Auto Complete selections will force a revaluation, but once that has been run against Real Estate and
Personal Property the new FUND has
been successfully added Adding a new FUND
Tax Districts
Tax Districts
Go to the District List table | TEST and find the next [EMPTY] district
Tax Districts
Next, add any needed FUNDS to the appropriate DISTRICT table and copy the pricing tables from TEST to MAIN
Tax Districts
Follow the steps previously stated for adding any needed SUBFUNDS
Tax Districts
The final setup in the process is setting up all the MASTER districts in the Auto
Complete table for this new DISTRICT
Tax Districts
Go to the Table Utilities | Taxing District
Auto Complete and update any of the
MASTER districts for this new DISTRICT
Tax Districts
Run a revaluation, after which the new
DISTRICT is found in Parcel Maintenance
Tax Districts
Tax Districts
Go to the Levy table | TEST of the district where the SUBFUND to be removed is located and clear out the record
Tax Districts
In order to complete the SUBFUND
removal from parcel data, copy the pricing table from TEST to MAIN and run a revaluation
Tax Districts
Tax Districts
Go to the Table Utilities | Taxing District
Auto Complete and update any of the
MASTER districts for the FUND being
removed
Tax Districts
Go to the District table | TEST of the district where the FUND to be removed is located and clear out the record
Tax Districts
Now go to the Levy table | TEST of the district where the FUND was just cleared and clear all the associated SUBFUND
records as shown previously Removing a FUND
Tax Districts
Once the Auto Complete, FUND and
SUBFUND(s) have been taken care of, we
need to copy the pricing tables from
TEST to MAIN and run a revaluation Removing a FUND
Tax Districts
Tax Districts
If a FUND or SUBFUND needs to reused
and/or merged it would be best to talk to your Sales Rep and/or CAMAvision
support prior to making any changes
Tax Districts
When dealing with TIF districts:
• Always remember to enter TIF levies as 0.000000
• New TIF, means a new TIF master district
Tax Districts
When maintaining DISTRICT information always remember to make changes in
“Your mission, should you choose to accept it …”
“Your mission, should you choose to accept it …”
Exports
In version 24 of CAMAvision, value exports were rewritten to be file driven, instead of hardcoded within the application
Exports
Now if a change is needed to an export, the correction can be made and uploaded, without the need for a new CAMAvision executable
Exports
For this new update process to work, users need to allow CAMAvision access to the Internet
Exports
Exports
Exports
A new Update button has been added at the top of the dialog
Exports
It will be enabled when one (or more) of the exports available to your county have an update available
Exports
Exports
To apply any updates, click on the
Update button ... once the button disables, the export(s) have finished updating
Exports
The setup options for an export remain largely the same as in previous versions, all options are now contained within the same screen instead of on separate tabs
Exports
The first selection area contains the exports to execute and which PDFs/map areas to include
Exports
The next section selects file options, including prefix, output directory, and how to format the output records
Exports
The final section contains any specific export options needed in order to format the output to your specifications
Exports
Once all the needed options are set, the
Export button will enable … clicking it will start the selected export(s)
Exports
Once the export is complete, a dialog will be displayed detailing the number of records in each output file and the time it took to process through them
Exports
The next thing to notice is there is no longer an activity log shown on screen
Exports
A log file is produced instead in the same directory as the actual export files … it will have an *_Log.xlsx file name
Exports
Looking at the log file, it contains a worksheet for each output file created
Exports
NOTE: The value export now produces two additional files which do NOT need to be transferred to your tax vendor
Exports
From the export dialog you can still produce a file layout by clicking on the
Exports
Doing so will produce a *_Layout.xlsx
Exports
A final thing to note, is the GIS Request Export has been moved to be within the value export dialog
“Missed it by that much.”
Certifying
Real Estate data within the CAMAvision system is contained within two databases, a WORKING (or next year database) and CERTIFIED (or current assessment database)
Certifying
Moving the data from the next year data to be the current assessment data is called CERTIFYING
Certifying
There are two main ways to CERTIFY: in
Certifying
The BATCH process is in the BATCH
menu | under Maintain Certified and is generally ONLY used once a year
Certifying
The sequence out of the WORKING
database typically goes:
a) Produce the ABSTRACT and submit b) Create a prior year snapshot
Certifying
When running in BATCH you will want to
CREATE new parcels and COPY ALL pricing
Certifying
Personal Property and Centrally
Assessed data ONLY lives in the
CERTIFIED database and therefore does
not need to be part of the certification process
Certifying
At times during the year, you may need
to CERTIFY individual PARCEL changes,
like name and address changes or permit entries
Certifying
When these types of changes are entered on the WORKING database, they can be PARCEL certified
Certifying
All three options pull up the following dialog
Certifying
Take great care when (un)checking sections to include in the certification as ANY section with an asterisk behind the name, may trigger a value change
“A martini. Shaken, not stirred.”
Listing
Implemented several releases ago, the
Listing tab provides an alternative
method for modifying residential, agricultural, and yard characteristics
Listing
Utilizing PDF form-fills, the listing tab came about to allow listers the ability to focus solely on what a structure has, by eliminating all references to value
Listing
If you have a remote license, you will have an additional tab within parcel maintenance called Listing
Listing
Three structure types are currently supported: Residential, Ag Buildings, and Yard Extras
Listing
Listing forms can be generated on existing structures
Listing
They can also be used to pick up new construction
Listing
Even new construction of a partial complete variety
Listing
Changes made to existing structure data will be highlighted
Listing
Forms can be kept for historical purposes even after being applied back to the parcel
Listing
Many forms have additional information which may prove useful
Listing
Since they are PDF form-fill documents, they can be customized
Listing
It can also provide a mechanism for editing CAMAvision data on non-Windows-based devices (i.e. Android and iOS)
Listing
It does this by leveraging existing applications native to the device’s operating system
Listing
The listing tab can generate a combined PDF for the entire parcel
Listing
Doing so places the forms within parcel maintenance in a DRAFT state
Listing
Listing
This additional information includes general parcel information, land, sales, permits, notes, photos, sketches, and a permission to inspect page
Listing
None of this additional information is editable from within the PDF, and is provided solely to support the listing of the property
Listing
Once the combined PDF for the parcel has been generated it can be moved onto the external device (this can be done via email or a file sharing platform)
Listing
Once on the device, make edits using your application of choice
Listing
If supported, you can also add comments to the forms detailing additional notes or reminders for when it gets checked back into the parcel
Listing
Once the listing is complete the combined PDF is brought back into the parcel
Listing
A data check exists, detailing any parcels with listing forms checked out
Listing
While the listing forms may not always be the best solution for picking up every type of parcel, they do provide you with a couple of additional options when selecting the best tool for the job
“You know, I have one simple request, and that is to have sharks with frickin’ laser beams attached to their heads!”
“You know, I have one simple request, and that is to have sharks with frickin’ laser beams attached to their heads!”
Query Wizard
There is more to the query wizard than just a pointy hat
Query Wizard
If getting results can be considered the hat, then exporting those results to a file can be considered the robe, and producing custom reports from the results the staff
Query Wizard
In previous UGMs we have focused on the pointy hat, but this time around we aim to complete the ensemble
Query Wizard
Query Wizard
Say you have a simple request from your treasurer for a file with your real estate tax totals … did you know this is something you can do yourself through the Query Wizard EXPORT?
Query Wizard
The first step is creating your query and getting the output to contain the fields in the desired order
Query Wizard
Next, verify the results of the query
Query Wizard
If everything looks like you want it, go up to File | Export Results
Query Wizard
Choose the type of file to make, the file name, location, and other characteristics … click on the OK button
Query Wizard
Checking the output directory, we now have a pipe-delimited file of real estate tax values
Query Wizard
Now that our wizard is fully clothed, it is time to give him (or her) a staff
Query Wizard
Query Wizard
We want to verify sale information for residential sales … why not let CAMAvision produce the verification?
Query Wizard
We already have a template document
Query Wizard
On this verification we want to show the Parcel PIN, current date, BOOK/PAGE of the sale, DATE OF SALE, and LEGAL DESCRITPTION of the parcel along with our sales verification questions
Query Wizard
Just like with the export, the first step is creating your query
Query Wizard
All that is left is creating our template
Query Wizard
Now when we preview it formats using the custom layout instead of the grid
Query Wizard
This example only used labels, fields, and horizontal line objects, but there are many more available
“Sometimes the truth hurts. In these situations, I recommend lying.”
“Sometimes the truth hurts. In these situations, I recommend lying.”
Favorites
CAMAvision has dozens of features throughout scores of menus, but most users tend to routinely use a handful of them
Favorites
Since this is the case, wouldn’t it be helpful to have a way to group these features together in one, easy to find, location?
Favorites
To fill this need, the Favorites menu was born … to edit the Favorites menu, right-click anywhere within the left-hand side folders and select Edit Favorites Menu…
Favorites
Favorites
Favorites
Now the selected items sort to the top in the order they are displayed
Favorites
Items can be rearranged as desired
Favorites
Adding dividers between options can clean up our Favorites list
Favorites
“You know the problem with drawing lines in the sand? With a breath of air they disappear.”
“You know the problem with drawing lines in the sand? With a breath of air they disappear.”
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