Assessment Matters by Valuebase.ai

Will Jarvis

Assessment Matters presented by Valuebase is a weekly show that delves into the world of real estate valuation and property assessment. Our expert guests share their insights on the latest trends and techniques in the field, and offer practical advice for professionals in the industry. Whether you're a seasoned appraiser or new to the field, you'll find valuable information and inspiration. From understanding mass appraisal methodologies to staying up-to-date on the latest technology, our podcast is a must-listen for anyone interested in the world of real estate valuation.

  1. 5d ago

    87: Tony Henderson | Navigating Government Procurement and the Future of CAMA Software

    Join host Will Jarvis at the IAAO 2026 conference for a conversation with Tony Henderson, founder of Baseline Advisory Consulting and a 33-year veteran of the property tax technology industry. Tony shares his journey from growing up as a courthouse brat to working as a field appraiser for CLT and later in sales for Tyler Technologies, and explains why he launched a consulting firm dedicated to helping jurisdictions navigate the complex world of CAMA and tax software procurement. The discussion covers the challenges of vendor lock-in and legacy systems, how to structure RFPs that go beyond checkbox responses, the importance of early vendor research and needs analysis, and how large language models and AI are poised to reshape the future of government software. 00:00 - Introduction and Tony Henderson's background from courthouse brat to college basketball referee to assessment industry veteran02:00 - Launching Baseline Advisory Consulting and identifying the need for better procurement guidance03:00 - The problem of vendor lock-in, private equity consolidation, and how RFP rules shape government software purchasing04:30 - Why property tax software is a generational buy and why institutional knowledge creates resistance to change05:30 - Common RFP pitfalls: copied templates, equal weighting, and the feature-function trap07:00 - How large language models and faster software development are changing the CAMA landscape10:00 - The shift from pull to push: third-party data, AI integration, and adapting legacy systems13:00 - Balancing risk mitigation with innovation in government procurement decisions15:30 - The accelerating power of AI models and why describing the problem clearly is the hardest part18:00 - Tony's full-lifecycle procurement consulting pitch: needs analysis, budgeting, RFP writing, vendor evaluation, and contract negotiation21:30 - Future plans for Baseline Advisory Consulting and where to find Tony online

  2. Oct 28

    86: Introducing Valuebase CAMA: The System Built for How Appraisers Work

    Join host Will Jarvis as he sits down with Cameron, an experienced assessor and member of the Valuebase team, to discuss the launch of the Valuebase CAMA System V5. The conversation covers what makes modern CAMA design different—from intuitive user interfaces inspired by F-35 fighter jet visualization tools, to built-in AI assistants that guide appraisers through workflows in natural language, to seamless GIS and map integration that keeps geographic context front and center. Will and Cameron also explore how the rising cost and rigidity of legacy CAMA systems creates vendor lock-in, the challenge of training a new generation of assessors, and how rapidly evolving software development is shifting the industry toward faster, more personalized service models. 00:00 - Introduction and Cameron's background in assessment, from field appraiser to Valuebase02:00 - Common complaints about legacy CAMA systems: poor usability, limited customization, and vendor lock-in03:42 - Designing better interfaces: how the CTO's F-35 fighter jet visualization experience shaped the Valuebase CAMA05:24 - Built-in AI assistant (ValPal): natural language interaction, guided workflows, and human-in-the-loop verification08:12 - Addressing the knowledge gap as experienced assessors retire and newer staff need training support09:30 - GIS and map integration: why seamless geographic visualization matters for daily assessment work11:30 - Attracting top engineering talent and pushing innovation across the CAMA market14:00 - Gamified design, 3D building envelopes, bulk parcel editing, and bringing joy to CAMA workflows15:50 - The shift from traditional software licensing to rapid, service-oriented deployment models18:55 - How to explore the Valuebase CAMA: live demos, easy data import, and where to learn more at valuebase.ai

  3. Oct 22

    85: Will Jarvis | Large Language Models, Prompting, and Free AI Tools for Assessors

    Join host Will Jarvis for a solo presentation on the rapidly evolving world of large language models and what they mean for property tax assessors. Will covers the connection between AI and property tax through Sam Altman's Moore's Law for Everything thesis, explains how transformer-based models work and why prompting skill matters, walks through practical use cases like drafting correspondence, summarizing appeals, and enriching parcel data, and demos two free ValueBase tools—ValPal and Ratio Pal—that assessors can start using immediately. 00:00 - Introduction and background on ValueBase, Sam Altman's investment, and the macro connection between AI and property tax03:00 - The astonishing pace of AI improvement: frontier math breakthroughs and what rapid model advancement means for society06:30 - Why humans still matter: agency, real-world interaction, and the enduring role of knowledge workers alongside AI08:00 - The wolves-to-dogs analogy and the debate over pausing AI development10:00 - Economic context: slowing productivity growth, rising costs of essential goods, and why we need more technological innovation14:30 - How large language models work: the transformer architecture, Attention Is All You Need, and text prediction fundamentals16:30 - The context problem: why LLMs are like the smartest intern who knows nothing about your office18:30 - Practical use cases for assessors: drafting correspondence, summarization, organizing tasks, and data enrichment25:00 - The critical importance of verifying model outputs and avoiding "AI slop grenades"29:00 - Why good grammar, encouragement, and clear prompting lead to better model performance33:30 - Anatomy of a useful prompt: task, context, output format, checks, and asking for clarification37:00 - Demo of Ratio Pal: uploading sales data, running ratio study statistics, and visualizing vertical equity41:00 - Demo of ValPal: assessor-specific LLM with state property tax codes, IAAO standards, and code execution44:00 - Q&A on learning to use AI tools, recommended resources like Andrej Karpathy's guides, and closing remarks

  4. Aug 26

    84: Ellen Brideau | Annual Revals, Equitable Exemptions, and Defending Against AI-Generated Appeals

    Join host Will Jarvis as he sits down with Ellen Brideau, a veteran Massachusetts assessor with 20 years in the field and roots in assessment going back to the early 1980s. Ellen shares her perspective on why annual reassessments lead to fairer outcomes, makes a case for broadening the tax base by reconsidering exemptions for nonprofits and institutions, and discusses the importance of good property data and letting assessors inside homes. She also touches on career advice for new professionals entering the field and previews her upcoming conference presentation on identifying and defending against AI-generated property tax appeals. 00:00 - Introduction and Ellen Brideau's background in Massachusetts assessing01:48 - What the public most misunderstands about property taxes03:30 - How Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Hampshire differ on reassessment cycles05:55 - Policy ideas: broadening the tax base and reconsidering exemptions for nonprofits and institutions07:48 - Assessment caps, deed-restricted affordable housing, and full market value in Massachusetts09:22 - Personal lessons from a career in assessment and advice for new professionals12:00 - AI-generated appeals: how Ellen was caught off guard and what she's learning

  5. Aug 14

    83: Brad Elridge | Splitting the Pizza: Community, Exemptions, and the Case for Property Tax

    Join host Will Jarvis as he sits down with Brad Elridge, county appraiser in Lawrence, Kansas, to discuss the case for property tax and how to reframe it as shared community investment. The conversation covers the challenges of vertical equity and valuing properties at both ends of the spectrum, the administrative burden of exemptions and assessment caps, the impact of declining community bonds on public attitudes toward taxation, and lessons from states like California and Florida on what happens when tax policy goes sideways. 00:00 - Introduction and Brad's background spanning private and public sector appraisal04:22 - Rebranding property tax as shared community expenses06:42 - Why property taxes feel more painful than income taxes and the case for monthly payments09:47 - Progressive property taxation, vertical equity, and the challenge of valuing high-end and low-end properties13:43 - The problem with exemptions: administrative burden, unfunded mandates, and policy creep15:42 - Assessment caps, inequity, and lessons from California and Florida20:42 - The need for a property tax policy playbook for policymakers23:36 - Declining community bonds, cultural shifts, and their connection to anti-tax sentiment26:30 - Economic signals, retail sales trends, and navigating uncertain times29:20 - Brad's one-sentence pitch: splitting the pizza as a community

  6. Aug 13

    82: James Cusick | Land Value Tax, Henry George, and the Case Against Speculation

    Join host Will Jarvis as he sits down with James Cusick, a former AT&T Bell Laboratories software engineer and adjunct faculty member at Columbia University, who found his way to property tax policy through the Henry George School in Manhattan. The conversation covers the principles of land value taxation, how a single tax on land could replace all other taxes at the local, city, and even federal level, the role of land value capture in transit-oriented development like New York's High Line and subway system, and the problem of speculative land-holding in cities like New York and Detroit. James also shares insights from Japan's public-private partnership model for rail and real estate development, and introduces the interactive tools he's built to help policymakers and the public explore Georgist economics. 00:00 - Introduction to Assessment Matters and guest James Cusick00:37 - James's background in software engineering at Bell Labs and Columbia University01:33 - Discovering the Henry George School and the concept of land value tax02:42 - Building a land value tax calculator covering all U.S. counties04:38 - How a single land value tax could replace all other taxes, including New York City's $125 billion budget05:53 - The pitch to policymakers: simplification, administrative efficiency, and reducing speculation07:42 - Land value capture examples: NYC subway system, the High Line, and Battery Park City09:33 - The problem of vacant lots and speculative land-holding in cities11:52 - Property tax as a "ticket to ride" for public services and the investment vs. affordability tradeoff15:33 - Henry George's anti-speculation philosophy and its modern relevance17:48 - Japan's public-private partnership model for rail and real estate development20:19 - Where to find the Henry George School's tools: LVT calculator, Global Georgism Viewer, subway land value tool, and AI Henry George avatar

  7. Jul 31

    81: Will Jarvis | The Big Picture: Why Property Taxes Matter for Economic Growth and How AI Is Changing the Office

    Join host Will Jarvis as he delivers a wide-ranging conference presentation covering the macro case for property taxes, the mechanics of AI and large language models, and what these technologies mean for assessment offices. Will draws on his background as a mass appraisal researcher and CEO of ValueBase to explain why property taxes are the most efficient form of taxation for economic growth, how the historical Georgist movement shaped American assessment practices, and why AI tools—from machine learning valuation models to LLMs—are poised to transform day-to-day workflows for assessors while requiring careful validation and human oversight. 00:00 - Introduction to the presentation and Will Jarvis's background in mass appraisal research and founding ValueBase03:24 - The big picture: total factor productivity, slowing economic growth since the 1970s, and why it matters06:35 - Why property taxes are more efficient than income and sales taxes for driving economic growth10:09 - Henry George and the historical roots of American property tax policy12:33 - Tax revolts, vertical and horizontal equity challenges, and the capacity crisis in assessment offices15:25 - Three revolutions in valuation: from the Sommer System ledger method to CAMA to the AI era18:00 - Why AI is happening now: cheaper compute, the Attention Is All You Need breakthrough, and how LLMs actually work24:24 - Sam Altman's Moore's Law for Everything thesis and its connection to property tax27:00 - The emerging core skill: managing AI models with real-world context and validating outputs30:14 - What LLMs are and aren't: not databases, not search engines, and not magic33:09 - Machine learning valuation models: gradient boosted trees, overfitting risks, and the big five property characteristics37:22 - Practical LLM use cases for assessors: drafting correspondence, summarizing, research, and brainstorming39:38 - Key pitfalls: hallucinations, math errors, out-of-date knowledge, and data privacy considerations

  8. Jul 23

    80: Will Jarvis | Community, Service, and the Case for Fair Property Taxes

    Join host Will Jarvis for a special impromptu episode recorded at a conference in Charlottesville, Virginia, where Jay — a Norfolk-based assessor and host of the Conversations in the Mirror podcast — flips the script and interviews Will. Together they explore how property taxes fund local communities, the regressive nature of current assessment models, tax abatements for large commercial properties like stadiums, practical AI tools for entrepreneurs and assessors, and what drove Will to build Valuebase from rural North Carolina into an $8 million-funded company serving assessment offices nationwide. 00:00 - Introduction and how Jay's impromptu interview came together at a Charlottesville conference02:00 - Will's background: growing up in rural eastern North Carolina and attending UNC Chapel Hill03:30 - The founder mindset: balancing arrogance with humility and outworking the competition05:00 - What kept Will going through the hardest startup moments: mission over money06:45 - What Valuebase does: building automated valuation models and tackling regressive property taxes08:30 - How property owners should think about property taxes as community investment10:30 - Property taxes as the foundation of local government revenue (65-75% of city budgets)12:00 - Tax abatements for stadiums and large corporations: who really bears the burden14:00 - Favorite AI tools: Claude, Grok, Gemini, Perplexity, and why specificity matters over AI hype16:00 - Practical AI advice: setting up Claude CoWork for daily workflows17:00 - How Will raised $8 million: podcasting, relationship-building, and asking for advice instead of money19:00 - Rapid-fire reflections: Will's definitions of success, service, and identity as a founder21:30 - The 10-year vision: Valuebase in 80% of U.S. assessment jurisdictions and the Jack Dangermond inspiration

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Assessment Matters presented by Valuebase is a weekly show that delves into the world of real estate valuation and property assessment. Our expert guests share their insights on the latest trends and techniques in the field, and offer practical advice for professionals in the industry. Whether you're a seasoned appraiser or new to the field, you'll find valuable information and inspiration. From understanding mass appraisal methodologies to staying up-to-date on the latest technology, our podcast is a must-listen for anyone interested in the world of real estate valuation.

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