When you need some questions answered from a permitting or planning department, it can be challenging for them to assist you unless you are able to provide them with a good identification of the subject property or PIP (properly identifying the property). However, it can be challenging to figure out exactly where the property is… View Article The post How to Identify a Property Correctly appeared first on Scout Services.

When you need some questions answered from a permitting or planning department, it can be challenging for them to assist you unless you are able to provide them with a good identification of the subject property or PIP (properly identifying the property). However, it can be challenging to figure out exactly where the property is located, who you are supposed to talk to about utilities and how to turn them on, and what jurisdiction the property falls under. There are so many different people you will be talking with about the property and it can cause great confusion.

Luckily, there are certain steps that you can follow that will help you to identify the property correctly and eliminate all of the frustration and challenges.

The first thing you will need to do is validate what the jurisdiction is of the property. Although this might seem to be very obvious, it is an important step in validating the property. In order to figure this out, you will need to:
Get the Assessor Parcel Number (APN). This number will be located on your property tax ID
Have an accurate current address

These two pieces of information will then assist the permitting department when they contact the Jurisdiction Having Authority (JHA). Many JHA’s will have an assessor’s website that they are associated with and if they do, you will be able to put in your information online. If the JHA you are working with does not have a website, you will need to call them to find out the information you need.

For most cases, JHA will be able to verify the property or they will be able to put you in contact with someone who can. Once you have the JHA for the property, you will need to also get all of the historical addresses for the property. This can take a little bit of digging since there are changes to street names and town names over time. You will need to assemble a list of all known addresses that have been associated with your APN.

The next thing you will need to do is get the Site Investigation Report (SIR) for the property. This report will have you identify the exact location of your property. You will take the information that you received from the JHA’s records office and you will now be able to go to the JHA’s planning department website to locate the following information:

  • Codes for the building(s)
  • Environmental requirements for property
  • If there are any existing entitlements
  • Fire department regulations
  • Health standards for property
  • Public health standards for property
  • Zoning for property

Finally, you will want to check over all of your information to ensure that everything is completely accurate. It is very easy for there to be a simple mistake somewhere so it is in your best interest to double-check the information. If you follow these steps, it will help you to get the PIP for the project.