Sketch Inspect helps Medina County improve tax equity and add millions in new tax revenue
Medina County’s experience demonstrates how AI-powered tools like Sketch Inspect can modernize property assessments, improve accuracy, and deliver a strong return on investment.
Background
Medina County, Ohio, covers approximately 424 square miles and includes a mix of rural, suburban, and agricultural land. With around 145,000 sketches on 85,000 parcels, the county experiences steady growth as agricultural land transitions into residential developments. The Medina County Auditor’s Office, led by Auditor Anthony Capretta, is responsible for ensuring property assessments are accurate, equitable, and up to date. Under Ohio state law, the office must complete a comprehensive full-county reappraisal every six years, known as a “major reappraisal,” with smaller valuation updates, or “mini cycles,” every three years.
Challenge
Like most counties, Medina County faced several challenges in maintaining accurate data and assessing ongoing property changes across these cycles, including the challenge of tracking property changes across a diverse and growing parcel base. Discrepancies like unrecorded additions, newly built structures, or demolitions were difficult to capture, especially given limited resources. The county’s small team often relied on field inspections or data from local building departments, which could be incomplete or delayed. As a result, the manual process of reconciling property record cards with actual structures was time-consuming and expensive, leaving gaps in the county’s tax roll and creating inefficiencies in their reappraisal efforts.
Solution
To address these challenges, Medina County implemented EagleView’s Sketch Inspect tool in collaboration with their third-party reappraisal vendor. Sketch Inspect’s AI-powered algorithms analyze high-resolution aerial imagery to detect discrepancies between property records and current ground conditions. Sketch Inspect then classifies the discrepancies based on type and severity, allowing users to efficiently filter, review, and issue works orders, if necessary.
Using the tool, Medina County prioritized reviewing parcels with significant mismatches, such as missing structures, major additions, or property removals. Discrepancies were assigned for either GIS corrections, field reviews, or immediate action, allowing the team to focus their resources on high-value changes. This streamlined approach helped minimize reliance on manual labor while ensuring the accuracy of property records.
John Hunter, Director of Information Technology and Strategy for the Auditor’s Office, noted, “We see this as a huge value. The tool allows us to allocate skilled labor to where it’s needed most instead of sending staff into the field unnecessarily.”
We estimate Sketch Inspect has saved us 30-35% in potential costs compared to doing it the old-fashioned way.
John Hunter
Director of Information Technology and Strategy
Medina County Auditor’s Office
Sketch Inspect automatically identifies and categorizes discrepancies in CAMA sketch data. In this example, a parcel is seen as having both a major mismatched sketch as well as a missing sketch for a small structure, both of which contribute to missing tax revenue for the county.
Initial Results
Automatically identified 70,198 discrepancies across 145,467 sketches
Estimated $35 to $40M added to tax rolls, increasing tax revenue by roughly $12 to $14M
Data used to support reappraisal without additional staffing
Impact
The results of implementing Sketch Inspect are already clear. By automating the comparison of property sketches with aerial imagery, AI-driven workflows have enabled Medina County to identify 70,198 discrepancies across 145,467 sketches. Once corrected, the County estimates $35-40M in taxable value will be added to the tax roll, increasing tax revenue by $12-14M.
In addition to cost savings and increased tax revenue, the automated insights generated by Sketch Inspect ensure that property assessments are accurate and equitable, addressing changes that might otherwise go unnoticed. According to Hunter, “This technology allows us to allocate resources where they’re needed most and ensures we’re capturing an accurate, up-to-date picture of what’s on the ground. It’s a huge value to us—and to the taxpayers."
The use of Sketch Inspect also enhances the county’s ability to meet statutory requirements to review all properties while demonstrating fiscal responsibility.
“We’re confident this technology will exceed its cost by putting previously unrecorded properties on the tax roll.”
John Hunter, Director of Information Technology and Strategy, Medina County Auditor’s Office
Conclusion
Medina County’s experience demonstrates how AI-powered tools like Sketch Inspect can modernize property assessments, improve accuracy, and deliver a strong return on investment. By leveraging technology to streamline workflows, the county is saving time, reducing costs, and ensuring fair tax assessments for its residents—all without the need for additional staffing.
For local governments seeking a smarter way to manage property assessments, Medina County’s success story is a compelling example of how modern solutions can drive meaningful results.
Here a parcel is seen missing a sketch for what appears to be a shed. Sketch Inspect automatically identifies and categorizes this discrepancy, allowing staff to create a work order to resolve the missing sketch and ensure the county is collecting fair taxable revenue for the parcel.
