Locating Addresses

QUESTION:  How do I find addresses in a city divided into quadrants?  I live in an area where street names are divided into North, South, East and West quadrants.  GeoLocator cannot find my address when I import or locate an address, why?

ANSWER:  Street names which are also compass directions are ambiguous.  It is hard to tell what is the street name and what is the street directional.   Normally, GeoLocator handles many different spelling variations of directional and road types.  But in this case, you must know exactly how the map wants the street spelled.

Florida, Utah, and Washington are states where this occurs most often.  For example, in Salt Lake City the address "1399 East 2700 South Street".  The street name body is "East 2700 South" and the suffix is "Street".  Our map database has this street indexed as "E 2700 South St" and this is the way you must enter the address.

SOLUTION:  You can use the LIST STREETS button on the GeoLocate | Locate Address dialog to find how the street name is actually stored in the map database.  Also try abbreviating the prefix, e.g.: use "E" instead of "East" or vice versa.  If still in doubt, pan and zoom on the map until you see the street.  Click on the street and let the map tell you how that street name is spelled.
 

QUESTION:  Can I add missing subdivisions to my map database.  I sometimes see a misspelled street or a missing address range.  Can I do anything to update the map?

ANSWER:  Not by drawing on the map, but you can help us keep the map up-to-date by letting us know what needs to be changed.

SOLUTION:  Click here to report the errors and omissions you observe.

When we update maps, we take the discrepancy reports we have received and use the information you have provided to guide the map updates.  Our maps are updated 4 times a year, although it may be a year or more before any specific discrepancy is corrected.  In many cases, GeoLocator will still be able to locate missing addresses using our WebLocator "Search the Web" feature.

For additional help in locating missing addresses, go to our Help Menu and click on "Tips for Locating Addresses".
 

QUESTION:  Message "Error Locating Address" in the New York area and Hawaii.  I have selected GeoLocate|Locate Address from the menu bar, and input my address as 39-50 234th Street.  Why is the Icon placed in the wrong location on the map?

ANSWER: In New York and Hawaii, many addresses include a hyphen (-), in this example 39-50.  After you input your address, and select OK, GeoLocator does not understand the hyphen (you get the error message) and deletes the hyphen in the address line (after you select OK, from the error message box).  Note that the address now becomes 3920. If you select OK, GeoLocator will then search for 3920 234th Street, and place your Icon in the wrong location.

SOLUTION: Fixed in Version 4.0.H.

If you are using a prior version and you have an address with a hyphen, remove the hyphen and all ensuing numbers.  Thus, 39-50 234th Street, should be input as 39 234th Street.  The Icon for 39-50 is then placed at the end of the 39-00 block. You can then click and drag the Icon to the correct location within the block.
 

QUESTION:  Message "Exact match for street not found"?  Why can't GeoLocator find the address I am looking for?

The completeness of our map coverage varies.  Below we give several tips on how to work around missing streets.  Also please read the answer to "Can I add missing subdivisions to my map database?" above.

1.  List Streets

Sometime the spelling of a street on the map is different from local usage. For example "Cherry Hill" might be abbreviated "Cherry Hl" or "Hard Wood Drive" might be named "Hardwood Drive". Use the List Streets button on the Edit Address dialog.

2.  Continue Search and Search the Web

GeoLocator presents the most likely matches first. If you do not see what you are looking for, use the Continue Search or Search the Web buttons on the Select Address dialog.

This is particularly true if a comparable is in a different zip code than the subject since many appraisal programs use the city and zip of the subject instead of using the city and zip placed on the second line of the comparable address.

3.  Street Substitution

Try locating a major intersection.

To do this on the Edit Address menu you would replace the property address with the full name of one major street and then fill in the Cross Street field with the name of the other major street.

After the map is drawn, click-and-drag the property marker to the correct location.  Remember to click on the property marker and use the Edit button to restore the correct property address.

For additional help in locating missing addresses, go to our Help Menu and click on "Tips for Locating Addresses".

4.  Map Detail Level

When your comparable properties are far apart and you are at a scale greater than three miles, GeoLocator simplifies the map.

To restore the road detail, select Map Detail Level from the View menu and set the detail level to zero. This will cause the program to print all streets instead of simplifying the map as you zoom out.

You might also try using Print All Properties from the File menu. This prints an overview map zoomed out to cover all the properties, then it zooms in to each group of properties and prints detailed neighborhood maps.

5. Reporting Missing Streets

If after zooming in (below a 3 mile scale), if you see that a street is missing, the best way to tell us about the missing street or development is to Click here to report the errors and omissions you observe.

Your feedback is important to us and will be included in a future map revision. The maps are revised 4 times a year, although it may take a year or more for any specific discrepancy to be corrected. Your feedback is the best way to insure that your area is updated.
 

QUESTION:  Message "Address not in licensed county"?

ANSWER:  GeoLocator has been unable to locate the address you are trying to find within the county maps that you have loaded onto your computer.  This may have two causes.  If you have recently upgraded an evaluation to a full license by registering GeoLocator, you may need to install your additional counties. (Click here for how to)  Check that the zip code and city name are present in your address and are correct.  Otherwise, the street you are trying to find may not yet be on the map.  Search for an older nearby major road instead.

For additional help in locating missing addresses, go to our Help Menu and click on "Tips for Locating Addresses".
 

QUESTION:  What is a "Match Type"?

ANSWER:  The Match Type tells you how accurately the property has been positioned.

Block Matches are placed on the correct block and side of the street according to the house number.

Street Matches can only be placed at an arbitrary place along the street since, for that street, the address ranges have not been captured in our map database. We cannot determine which precise block it should be on.

Zip Matches estimate the position of the property to be at the center of a 5 digit or 7 digit postal code area.

GeoLocator lists the Match Type in the Select Address window to warn you that an approximate position is being used.  At that point, you can press Cancel to return to the Edit Address window.
 

Question:  A comparable property was placed on the wrong block. Why?

The address range information for that street is missing from our street database so that we do not know what block to place it on.

You can either click and drag the property to the correct location or enter a cross street to improve the initial position of the match.  Do this in GeoLocator when the Select Address screen is presented that lists one or more possible matches.  You select Cancel on the Select Address screen and then enter a cross street on the Edit Address screen.  Then select Retry to locate the intersection of the two streets.

If two comparables can only be located using Street matches, then they will land on top of each other and you should drag the property marker circle to separate the comps from one another and the arrows will follow the property marker to which they are attached.  Alternatively, just enter separate cross streets for the two comparables so that they end up on different intersections.
 

QUESTION:  How do I locate properties on County Roads?

ANSWER:  County road names are difficult to locate because there is no U.S. standardized naming convention.  For example COUNTY ROAD J may be spelled:

CO J HWY
CO ROAD J
COUNTY J RD
CO J

and on and on... and may be spelled differently in different parts of the same county.

The user should either use the LIST STREETS button on the EDIT ADDRESS form to locate the spelling variations.  Be sure to scroll up to the beginning of streets which start with "CO".  Alternatively you can use street substitution and just replace the county road name with another nearby street name which is easier to locate.