Why do people take pictures of already bought homes?

I bought a home about 4 months ago and i saw two different people taking pics of my home. anyone know why they do this? the first time i called the cops. then my friend had the same problem and actually was able to ask the person why she was taking pictures of her home and her answer was that she was an appraiser and it normal to get that done the first yr of home purchase. anyone know if this is true? i find it hard to believe.Why do people take pictures of already bought homes?
Several reasons:


1] The insurance company has an interest in your home. You bought a fire insurance policy or a home owner's insurance policy, didn't you?





IF there is a claim and its discovered you didn't take proper care of that property, the insurance company may deny paying the claim, because of your negligence.





2] IF you got financing for the property - for the same reason. The lender wants its interest protected by you - as the legal owner. They want the property properly cared for AND the mortgage payment on-time or ahead of time.





3] The municipality and the county where the property is located. IF you decide to start making exterior changes to the property AND you did not get the necessary permits, you could find yourself in court being sued by the municipality and county, because you failed to get the necessary permits for the work you did.





4] Oh yes, some of your neighbors may want to take pictures of your property, because there is something about your property they saw which they would like to duplicate for their property.





5] Historic reasons.





6] Real estate agents and appraisers because your property is used as a ';comp'; or comparable in various appraisals and market evaluation reports for their listings. This is the answer to your friend's question AND to confirm your thoughts of what your friend was told by the appraiser. This happens ALL the time!





Thanks for asking your Q! I enjoyed taking the time to answer it!





VTY,


Ron Berue


Yes, that is my real last name!Why do people take pictures of already bought homes?
County assessors keep current pictures of homes at all times. You can check it out. Go to your county assessors wesite and do a property search. Put in you address and you will be able to pull up a picture of your home. Hope I helped.
They are appraisers using your home for a comp to do a appraisal on a home close to yours for a purchase or refi. This will go on for about 6-9 months. How do you think you got a loan, appraiser had to go out and take pictures of other homes that sold so they could do the appraisal for you, its their job. By the way it is not illegal to take a picture of your home from a street or sidewalk, just can't go into your yard. I don't know why you would find it hard to believe, how do you think appraisal is done? Ask any Realtorits been going on for 25 years.
Two situations that come to mind:





As you noted the city or county could be updating their appraisal for property tax revaluation. This is very common when a house has changed hands.





Your homeowners insurance company requires the agent to get a picture of your home. Also very common as most companies want a picture on file.
Maybe they are apprasing for property tax purposes.
I think just to say oh i missed this house. i should have bought it damnnn.
If your house has just been sold, then the worth of the house has been established (it is how much you paid for it). What these people are most likely doing, is putting together a list of comparables homes for a customer selling a similar house in a different location. They need to get comparables to get a fair appraisal. Other people were wondering the same thing when your house was put on the market.