Property Lines

Surveys measure and define the legal boundaries of a plot of land. They are often required to right wrongs or to clarify boundaries that may have changed through time via landscaping, acts of nature, construction of fences or other encroachments from neighboring properties.

If an issue is discovered, the buyer should write into the purchase agreement that the purchase is contingent upon receiving acceptable, satisfactory and verifiable data about the property boundaries. This should be in the form of a professional survey or title company interpretation thereof. The buyer would then have the opportunity to review the results before the contingency is removed.

Lenders often require surveys as part of their requirements.

Deeds to a property are recorded and a city or county’s recording office should have historical information on all prior owners of the property. The recorded deeds will include the boundary lines of the property as outlined by the property descriptions.

When listing a property, a real estate agent will generally visually inspect the property in an effort to determine if any discrepancies exist, then recommend the appropriate steps to remedy any issues.