5 Reasons You May Need To Do A Land Survey

Anyone who owns or uses a property is likely to have some questions about the location's dimensions, features, and topography. That's where land surveying comes into the picture. It's a good idea to understand when a surveyor's services are required, so let's take a look at 5 situations where that's likely the case.

Taking Ownership of a Property

This is among the most well-known reasons for doing land surveying work. Simply put, you're going to want to know where the boundaries are.

A survey involves pulling records from the county register. The surveyor will then use equipment to determine where the spots on the map from the county record are, and they'll put down flags at each location. If there are issues that need to be reconciled, such as inaccurate mappings or ambiguous data, they'll make an effort to sort them out.

Preparing a Subdivision

Subdividing a property, especially if you aim to sell or transfer a portion of it to another part, is a job that needs to be done with great accuracy. No one can start engineering or construction work on the subdivisions until the lay of the land is known. Likewise, net titles will have to be established, and that means entering more items into the county register.

Identifying Hazards

Especially for insurance purposes, it's wise to know what the hazards are on a property. The most obvious example of this for insurance purposes is to identify if any part of the plot is in a flood zone. You don't want to be in a situation where the property isn't insurable, and land surveying work can help you determine whether there might be trouble.

Property Line Disputes

Some folks are never happy with their neighbors, and doing a survey is a good way to settle disputes. Your neighbor might, for example, believe that you've built a structure too close to the property line. A survey will help to determine where the line is and how structures at the site relate to it.

If you're on the wrong side of the dispute after a survey has been completed, you can then use the data to arrive at a usage agreement or compensation. Likewise, the data gathered can be used to back up legal arguments.

Radical Changes

Big events can change a piece of land significantly. For example, a lakefront may change dramatically due to heavy rains or prolonged droughts.