(1) The objective element on which a tax is imposed. (2) The aims or purposes for which the tax is designed. Note: This term, as defined in (1) above, does not seem to be distinguished adequately from "measure of tax," "subject of tax," and "tax base." Such distinction as can be drawn is pedantic, and the use of the term in this sense is not recommended. It is also recommended that the term "purpose of tax" be substituted for the second usage given above. Compare measure of tax; subject of tax; tax base.

The quality of being definable by specific criteria without the need for judgment. Quantitative variables are objective.

Objective data are variables for which the correct value can be verified. Examples include zoning, corner lot (yes or no), land area, and front feet

One recording or occurrence of the value of a variable, for example, one sale ratio among a sample of sales ratios.

This divides depreciation into all its various components-curable physical deterioration, incurable short-lived-item physical deterioration, incurable basic structure (long-lived items) physical deterioration, curable functional obsolescence, incurable functional obsolescence, and economic (external) obsolescence-often for each major building component.

A decrease in the value of a property occasioned solely by shifts in demand from properties of this type to other types of property and/or to personal services. Some of the principal causes of obsolescence are: (1) Changes in the esthetic arts; (2) changes in the industrial arts, such as new inventions and new processes; (3) legislative enactments; (4) change in consumer demand for products that results in inadequacy or overadequacy; (5) migration of markets that results in misplacement of the property. Contrast depreciation, physical; depreciation, economic.

The act of taking or holding possession of property.

(1) The ratio of the occupied units (for example, square feet of floor space, living units, or rooms) of a property to the total available units. (2) The ratio of the actual gross income from leased units of a property to the total gross income that would be obtained if all units were leased at standard rates.

Computing machinery not under the direct control of the computer's central processing unit.

Environmental permits allow certain amounts of air pollutants to be released into the environment. If an industry wishes to expand and increase air pollution emissions, it may first be required to reduce its current level of emissions, so that the expanded plant will not emit more air pollution than did the original plant. A company may also trade air pollution allowances with another company to facilitate expansion of the first company. Both these exchanges (intercompany and intra-company) are called "offsets."

An empirical rule that ascribes half of the value of a lot to the front third and the other half to the rear two-thirds. Compare 4-3-2-1 rule; Harper rule; Hoffman rule.

A freely competitive market in which any buyer or seller may trade and in which prices are determined by competition.

Expenses necessary to maintain the flow of income from a property. These are deducted from effective gross income to obtain net operating income, which is then capitalized in the income approach to obtain an indication of market value. Such expenses generally include the costs of property insurance; heat, water, and other utilities; repairs and maintenance; replacement reserves for such items as heat and air-conditioning systems, water heaters, built-in appliances, elevators, roofing, floor coverings, and other items whose economic life will expire before that of the structure itself; management; and other miscellaneous items necessary to operate and maintain the property. Not considered operating expenses are depreciation charges, debt service, income taxes, capital improvements, and personal or business expenses of the owner. In addition, for assessment purposes, property taxes are usually treated as an adjustment to the capitalization rate rather than as an expense item.

Property under an operating lease not included as an asset on the books of the lessee company.

Summarizes in writing the gross income, annual expenses, and resulting net operating income of a business during a specified period of time.

(1) The property, taken as a whole, that is used in a public utility operation. (2) A term used to define an integrated set of assets whose value is based on the interaction and contribution of the assets as a whole.

The principle that the cost of a resource for one use is the value of the resource in its best alternative use.

A statute or law that designates an enactment by a county's or municipal corporation's legislative body.

A fee charged by a lender (called the loan "originator" ) for making a real estate loan.

A map-plotting system whereby parallel lines project from points on the sphere to a plane tangent to the sphere at the map center.

A photograph derived from perspective photographs and equivalent to a photograph made by orthographic projection. In a perfect orthophotograph, there are no displacements of images because of tilt or relief.

A photomap prepared from an orthophotograph or a precisely controlled assembly of orthophotographs; generally published in standard map format.

Observations that have unusual values, that is, they differ markedly from a measure of central tendency. Some outliers occur naturally; others are due to data errors.

(1) Goods produced by a firm. (2) The information returned by a computer to its user.

The inability of a property to yield a reasonable return on value of the land and the reproduction cost of improvements (less accumulated physical depreciation) because of its adaptation to the production of more goods or services that can be profitably sold in the market available to it. See Super-adequacy and functional obsolescence.

Method of estimating accrued depreciation based on straight-line depreciation in which the building is assumed to depreciate by a constant percentage each year over its economic life.

A form of tax and expenditure limitation, applicable to all governments in the state, in which an upper limit is placed on either the property tax rate or the rate of increase in the property tax rate.

A capitalization rate that blends all requirements of discount, recapture, and effective tax rates for both land and improvements; used to convert annual net operating income into an indicated overall property value.

An improvement whose cost exceeds the cost of an alternative improvement by more than the excess of the present worth of the given improvement and the land over the present worth of the alternative improvement and the land, often because a structure is too large or too costly for the most profitable use of the site. Contrast underimprovement.

The amount by which one photograph duplicates the area covered by another photograph, usually expressed as a percentage. Overlap may be end or forward (along the flight path) or side taken during two or more parallel flights); both end and side overlap are customary when more than one line is flown.

A transparent medium on which data or features (for example, floodplains, flight lines and/or area to be photographed) are plotted to be superimposed on a map, thus avoiding defacing the map. (2) Digitally merging two digital data sets.

The rights to the use of property, to the exclusion of others.