What is Zaio
Zaio is an acronym for ‘Zone Appraisal and Imaging Operations’. Zaio Corp. is the North American leader in developing and maintaining a site-verified database of photos, valuations and property information of virtually every residential property for entire cities, using a proprietary “GeoScore™” property rating system. Zaio works with networks of local appraiser experts to photograph and appraise entire cities, one building at a time from the street. Zaio is a public corporation that trades under the symbol "ZAO" on the Canadian National Stock Exchange (CNSX) in Canada. Additional information is available for US investors under the symbol "ZAOFF".
Overview of Zaio’s Business
Zaio licenses its technology and proprietary process to large appraisal organizations that manage appraisers across various cities in the country. These appraisal networks may be Appraisal Management Companies or large national appraisal firms that are currently completing appraisal assignments under the traditional approach of researching one property at a time after an appraisal is ordered. The Zaio process allows local appraisers to apply their research comprehensively to appraise every home in a specific geography called a Zone. The target size of each Zone is 10,000 properties. Zaio’s data and software allows local appraisers to take a logical approach to organizing, evaluating, analyzing and reporting values for their specific real estate appraisal market in a very meaningful way.

The comprehensive nature of Zaio’s appraisal approach represents the future for property appraisal because it solves many critical issues facing the collateral risk industry today. 95% of mortgage fraud schemes require an inflated or deflated property appraisal. Zaio’s Whole Market approach and valuation research ensures the correct placement of every home within the value range of its particular competitive market, and the database also delivers independent, unbiased reporting because the appraiser is not necessarily engaged during a specific transaction where pressures and duress may exist.

Photographs and property information are merged together in the database before a qualified local appraiser begins physically GeoScoring™ every property for key attributes like location, view, site, condition, parking, basement and extras. The GeoScoring™ process rates these subjective elements with numbers on a scale of 1 to 10 rather than just relying on terms like “good”, “fair” or ”average” which currently have no relative basis for observation. The appraiser then sorts every home into Market Groups which define all the homes that compete for the same buyer/and seller having the same geographic location, type of property, style and house size. The appraiser then begins researching local sales and/or listings within each market group. By comparing each property’s GeoScore™ the appraiser can accurately analyze and understand the validity of each sale or listing. For example; a homes that sells toward the upper end of the value range should have a higher GeoScore™ than other homes that sold, or are listed lower. Because market conditions are continually changing the local appraiser reviews sales and listings as they happen such that property values for the Whole Market can be accurately adjusted and tracked on an ongoing basis. Every appraisal report is validated with a qualified appraiser’s signature. Because the appraisal research has been completed in advance, customers can receive unbiased information in real time and can accurately track the value of homes within a particular portfolio.

For the United States, Zaio has licensed its technology to Zone Data Systems LLC (ZDS). ZDS is owned and operated by 243 individual appraisal firms with complete coverage in 32 of the top 40 Metro areas, and ZDS continues to expand rapidly. Zaio and ZDS are currently GeoScoring™ America to create a complete and comprehensive database of every property in the 250 largest cities.

This national database can be accessed by lenders and resellers for a fee, through a custom integrated Web-service or the ZDS Order Management System. Zaio Corporation earns revenue on a profit sharing basis from the sale of appraisal reports and other valuation products distributed by its Licensee.
What are Zaio’s Target Market Segments ?
The database is ideally suited for the task of cleaning-up and stabilizing distress market conditions in the United States. The current over-supply of default and foreclosures properties in the United States requires valuation transparency and a system that can accurately track a property’s value throughout REO sales cycle or loan modification program.
Working in conjunction with its Licensee, other key markets include:
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