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Just wondering, as I continue to ponder a move to this great state. In a state nearby where I live, the state of NY, there is a local government (Westchester) that is flying airplanes over people's houses and taking hi-rez photos in order to figure out who has put additions or expansions on their property in the past 20 years and failed to report it to the assessor's office for a property tax review.
I'm all for paying one's property taxes and honesty in reporting improvements. I'm not for government spying on everyone's property. If this were tried in NH, what would the response be? Has it been tried?
Hopefully not. But the current crop of liberals at the state level may start this. They started taxing views a few years ago: N.H. Puts a Price on Panoramas
I wonder if a couple lives in a house but one is blind if they get a 50% reduction in the view tax?
yes - it's been done in NH - many times - here is a link to a site where you can type in any address in the state and get multiple pictures of your home, your backyard, your neighbors yard, etc....
the pictures of my property are so close, I can read the license plates on the cars - they were taken at various times of the year - I can distinguish by the lawn furniture placement which year...
in some photos, my neighbor's pool is not there yet, but in others, the pool is there and the owners are in it...bet they didn't know they were being photographed.
Big Brother is HERE.
edited because the link was showing as incompatible with the browser - so in case it doesn't show up again, it is http://maps. live. com/ without the spaces in between
try it! check out your home...check out your childhood home....check out your neighbor's home...lol
Last edited by buck naked; 04-10-2009 at 03:03 PM..
Reason: link incompatible
yes - it's been done in NH - many times - here is a link to a site where you can type in any address in the state and get multiple pictures of your home, your backyard, your neighbors yard, etc....
the pictures of my property are so close, I can read the license plates on the cars - they were taken at various times of the year - I can distinguish by the lawn furniture placement which year...
Big Brother is HERE.
try it! check out your home...check out your childhood home....check out your neighbor's home...lol
With out a doubt big brother is here. While serving in the Army we used surveillance equipment that did some impressive stuff.
That being said, using the above linked website, any of the pictures of homes in our town were no where near the what bucknaked was able to see. Anybody else get similar views?
MSN maps show my old truck parked in front of my old apartment in Newmarket.
Google maps shows my current place in Portland with the front door wide open so you can see into the hall. This was before I lived here though.
I don't care about the 'spying' stuff. I think it's entertaining finding pics of my crap online.
The level of detail in the photos being taken in Yonkers and Rye are supposedly far greater than what you can get even on maps.live.com. They took them so close that they can see the cracks in your paint.
They took them so close that they can see the cracks in your paint.
It's amazing what a Cessna, digital camera, & decent lens can accomplish. While its an uncomfortable thought the ability to do this has existed since the 1920s (not digital- but decent quality discreet aerial photography).
That said- there is another argument to be raised here. If someone has built an addition to their home and has chosen not to disclose it they are essentially ripping off everyone else in town. By using aerial photography the town can determine if such additions exist in a non-obtrusive way. A GOOD way to address this would be to simply inform residents of when the flights are scheduled to occur; no different than saying "the assessor will be at your home to check it out"- just less invasive.
I think the reaction by NH residents would vary based on the circumstances. When our town was re-assessed we all received letters saying when they would be out and about...if they announced the same but said "by plane"...I imagine it would go over just fine.
It's not just 'overhead planes' either. Google has a street team that takes street level photos in the major cities. You can 'drive' through a major city on your computer. Its awesome to watch. I don't mind the loss in privacy. Now if they were snapping pics of what was going on inside my house, that's a different story. Last thing I need is a line of porn directors outside of my door, trying to lure me in so that they can make money off of my talent.
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