Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Is spatialest a CAMA system?
A. No. Our understanding of a CAMA system is one which manages property and land information – a Cadastral Management system. Changes in property characteristics, land ownership, parcel maintenance and so forth are key processes in a CAMA system. spatialest® is a modelling toolset that uses geography and property information simultaneously. Consequently the absence of a ‘CAMA’ system does not inhibit the spatialest® process as long as a database containing property information is available.
Q. If spatialest isn’t a CAMA system, what do we get?
A. spatialest® will create and manage estimates of property value (or rental value) based on the comparable sales (or rental) approach. This information can then be reported and mailed to the client or posted on the web. spatialest® is an analytical toolset capable of incorporating geography within analysis. This isn’t easily done within normal regression processes without encountering issues such as a lack of representative sales per ‘neighbour’.
Q. CAMA systems take an eternity to implement. Does spatialest take as long?
A. No. Because of the flexibility of the software spatialest® will require a fraction of time normally required for a CAMA implementation.
Q. What data can be used with spatialest?
A. spatialest® can utilise a series of various data including direct access to database information and spatial data, such as ESRI shape files, MapInfo data and so forth. ASCII data may also be imported.
Q. What CAMA systems can be used with spatialest?
A. spatialest® can utilise any CAMA system.
Q. How does spatialest® integrate?
A. spatialest® integrates at the database level thereby obviating unnecessary costly duplication of effort but maintaining database and user integrity.
Q. Does spatialest® need a database?
A. No. All model and analytical processes are recorded and managed on the local system using XML. Once the exploratory analysis is complete the generated results are uploaded to the main server via the spatialest Upload Utility.
Q. Can spatialest report the results?
A. Any analysis performed within spatialest is stored in a project file and an associated XML file. This means that any part of the analysis - from the regression coefficients or the comparables used - can be accessed and included in a corporate reporting solution.
Q. Is spatialest® the same as ArcGIS?
A. No. Unlike spatialest®, ArcGIS or other mainstream GIS products, have not been designed for the appraisal process and so they do not have a valuation component. spatialest® is unique in that it uses GIS to generate estimates of property value which makes it a very specialized toolset. While spatialest does offer core GIS functionality it is not designed to be a generic GIS application such as ArcGIS.
Q. Do I need to be proficient in GIS to use spatialest?
A. No. spatialest® requires the user to have only a basic knowledge of GIS which is covered in Day1 of the ‘Introduction to spatialest®’ training course. One of the great advantages of spatialest® is that the appraiser can quickly and easily incorporate their ‘local’ knowledge of the market area in the appraisal process without the need for complicated GIS procedures.
Q. I already have a GIS component in my CAMA system – how does spatialest® differ?
A. spatialest® is the only product that accurately incorporates geographic influence within analysis. So, whilst other products are able to query and perhaps update the property database via a GIS link, none use GIS to produce an estimate of value.
Q. What training is required?
A. Training courses are available in spatialest®. The ‘Introduction to spatialest®’ course is a workshop based tutorial which will utilise the user's data to consolidate learning. This is a 4 day course. Additional training or consultancy is available upon request.