Property Research Tools

San Diego County, California

Helpful for looking and evaluating land

1. Zillow– active MLS listings
   includes parcel (APN) number, a key field for looking up the property using other tools
   price history, days on market, listing agent contact info
2. SD County zoning property information tool
   basic property info, value, land use (zone), ecology
3. San Diego County SRS
   layers, slope, owner name and address (this is usually hard to find without paying a fee)
4. The National Map Viewer (USGS)– GREAT for topo maps, contours, slope, hillshade, water flow/features
5. Initial study research packet
   from SD Planning & Development services; offers detailed pdf reports with hundreds of data points
   can compare or group multiple parcels in same report
   link is accessible from zoning prop info tool, too
6. Google Earth (for web)– basic level of detail in context with area, good aerial 360 views, rough contours
7. Parcel lookup tool– basic, good overview, not great for deep diving for data
8. County Assessor records
   (deeds and other recorded documents); gives grantee (owner) name
   metadata only (not the actual instruments; must order/purchase the docs)
9. Public Well Records- see what other wells exist near the site you’re evaluating
   – DWR Well Completion Report app (more reliable data; can export table with links to original pdf reports, goes back to 1970s or so)
   – GAMA Groundwater Info Sys (spotty info, cool site)