Because I live in the country and have done some surveying,
I am often being asked about property boundaries. The
questions are varied: "How much does a surveyor cost?" "Can
I do it myself?" "What equipment do I need?" "What do my
property corners look like?" "What are the laws concerning
surveying and property boundaries?" "Where are my property
records?" People ask these questions, not from a desire to
fence and post their land, but because of pride of
ownership, the desire for knowledge, or — sometimes
— to protect themselves from the threat of
encroachment.
Take my friend up the road. For years, he had lived
peacefully on his 20-acre farm. Then a smooth operator
bought the property next door, and subdivision plans began
looming on his boundaries. My friend ended up paying a
surveyor $1,500 — just to ensure that the new
neighbor's ambitions wouldn't include any of his
farm.
A thin line separates the smooth operators of this world
from those of you who prefer to live and let live —
the boundary line of your property. Your right to build or
farm, your right to live on land the way you see fit, even
your family dog's right to roam at will — all stop at
that line. This article will tell you everything you need
to know to find it, on the ground . If the thought
of doing your own home property survey scares you, don't worry. You
don't have to be a genius to find your property boundaries
— just a detective.
Knowing how to find your own property markers can save you
time, expense, and trouble. But be aware that there's a big
difference between finding established lines and
setting new ones (or adjusting incorrect old
ones). Only a licensed surveyor is legally qualified to set
or move lines.
You've heard it said that the job isn't over till the
paperwork is done? In this job, the paperwork comes first.
Don't set foot outside until you have in hand every
document that could help. First on the list is the portion
of your property deed called the legal description
: the description in words of your property lines. And
before you can understand how to decode that description,
you must learn which of the two common surveying methods
applies to your property. One is the metes and bounds
method; the other is the public land survey system.
Metes and bounds is the most common surveying
method and the one used almost exclusively in the East.
Metes and bounds defines property by its boundary lines,
each line consisting of direction (or bearing) and distance
(or length). Here is an example:
Beginning at a point 247 feet due east of Henly Fork,
thence N47W, 210 feet, thence N43E, 204 feet to an Oak,
thence S47E, 210 feet to a post, thence S43W, 204 feet to
the point of beginning. Containing 0.98 acres, more or
less.
Notice that each leg consists of both direction and
distance. With a compass and a tape measure, you could walk
around the perimeter.
The public land survey system evolved in response
to helter-skelter settlement in colonial times. In the
1700s, nobody knew how much land anyone owned, or where it
was. In northern Georgia, for instance, entrepreneurs sold
over 29 million acres in a three-county area that contained
only 9 million!
Thomas Jefferson solved the problem. During his presidency,
the federal government sent a small army of surveyors
across the Appalachians with instructions to split the
frontier into squares, placing boundary markers every mile.
Thus, the public land survey system consists of a
checkerboard of square-mile lots, called sections
. Each one of these sections contains 640 acres and a
boundary marker at each corner.
To encourage people to fill up the sections, the government
created homestead allotments. The basic allotment was 160
acres — a quarter section. The surveyors marked these
boundaries, too, and called them quarter corners.
Now, all this won't help you unless you know how to read a
public land description (Figure 1). It sounds hard until you
get the hang of it. Each quarter of a section bears the
name of its compass location: NE, NW, SE, SW-e.g., "the SW
1/4 of section 3." Want less than 160 acres? Chop the SW
1/4 into quarters again. Each quarter-quarter is 40 acres.
One of them could be named the NE 1/4 of the SW 1/4 (shaded
in Figure 1). And so on down. (On occasion, adjacent quarters
will be combined to yield a "half," e.g., "the south 1/2 of
section 27.")
Thus, a public land description will not list boundary
lines. Jefferson designed the system so that all
boundary lines run north-south and east-west — along
the quarters as well as the sections. Since section
boundaries are exactly one mile long, subunit borders will
be exact fractions of a mile.
Preparing for the Search
There are even better information sources than your deed.
The best (and sometimes most elusive) document you can lay
your hands on is the surveyor's map, or plat (Figure 2). The plat translates that legal confusion of numbers and
terms on the deed into pictures. It may also show
references to natural landmarks, or triangulation data
which may locate a particular point.
Plat-chasing is a major pastime among surveyors. Your plat,
if one exists, may accompany your deed. Or it may languish
in city or county records (clerks' or surveyors' offices
would be the best places to search) or reside with a
previous owner. Plats of neighboring land are helpful, too.
They may show the location of a common boundary.
If you live in a subdivision or built-up area, you may be
wondering why your deed's legal description reads only "Lot
22, Rock Creek Estates" or "Tract A, First Addition." But
these, too, are metes and bounds surveys. The surveyors
created several lots at once, so they drew one map of the
whole thing. Deed descriptions merely refer to the master
plat, which you will find in the public records.
You should also keep an eye peeled for early versions of
your property description, surveyor's notes, and
descriptions of roads that border your land. Why? First, to
ensure that your deed doesn't contain mistakes; second, to
find out all you can about boundary markers — the key
to property lines.
You are now nearly ready to step into the
surveyor's shoes. First, though, you'll have to gather your
equipment. You'll need a compass, long measuring tape,
plumb bob, level, hatchet, some ribbon, and stakes. You'll
also need a willing assistant. Now check your
instruments. Do they read in the same numbers as the
survey? If not, you will have to translate.
Most people will have on hand the type of compass that uses
the directional measurement known as azimuth .
Being ornery as a rule, surveyors use another system,
called bearings. To learn how to translate one to
the other, see the end of the article section "Converting Azimuths to
Bearings."
On to distances. We measure lengths in feet and inches,
don't we? Well, the surveyor uses either feet and
tenths of a foot (be very alert for this!) or a
venerable system called chains . Don't panic at
this. A chain measures 66 feet. Why 66 feet? Because it's
convenient for land computations. Ten square chains equal
one acre — which means to compute acreage rapidly,
all you have to do is find the number of square chains,
then move the decimal point once to the left. Also, one
mile stretches exactly 80 chains.
A hundredth of a chain — about eight inches —
is called a link . Old-timers also used a
quarter-chain measure (16-1/2 feet), calling it a rod,
pole, or perch.
I find that if I'm faced with a description written in
bearings and chains when my equipment reads in azimuths and
feet, my brain reels at the prospect of translating and
tramping about at the same time. It's far better to
translate all the degrees and distances on paper before you
set out.
Finally, the Fieldwork
Now you can begin your scavenger hunt.
Step one: Always start from a known point. It must be
something you can absolutely match with the written record.
It may be a marker on your boundary, if someone has already
made a positive ID of it. More likely, it will be a road
crossing, a section corner, or even a neighbor's marker
(garnered from that plat you unearthed in the public
records). Don't trust ditch lines or fence
corners, unless the record mentions them.
Step two: Measure off the course, direction, and distance
exactly as the deed says. Flag the line with your ribbons
as you go. Make sure that your flags all line up straight
and in the right direction. (Your assistant can be a great
help here.) Watch out for any iron or steel objects or
anything carrying electric current while you walk —
they can attract the compass needle and throw your readings
off. If you come to a large obstruction, you can measure a
line exactly parallel to your boundary line for a
short distance until you get by the obstacle (Figure 3).
Surveys always measure distance on a horizontal plane,
not along the ground slope. Unless you have a
calculator that's well versed in trigonometry (for equating
slope distance to horizontal), you, too, must measure on
the level. To do so, whenever you're traversing hilly land,
you and your assistant need to hold your tape (or a
measured length of string) along your directional line and
exactly level (use your level to determine this). Then, let
your plumb bob hang vertically down from the tape (or
string) end to determine where on the ground that
horizontally measured distance falls (Figure 4). Repeat as
needed to accurately measure across rises and dips.
Step three: Once you've traveled the full distance in one
direction, search for the boundary marker. This is always
my favorite part. Will you know it when you see it? If
you're lucky, your plat or deed will mention how the
surveyor marked corners. If not, you're in for some
Sherlock Holmes-style detective work.
You are looking for some object artificially placed in a
certain spot (Figure 5). What kind of object? If your
documents omit mention of the markers, look for a date of
survey, a clue to the type of marker used. Nowadays,
surveyors use well-anchored pipes or steel rods, capped
with brass, aluminum, or plastic, embossed with the
surveyor's registration number. But years ago, they used
anything handy. That included railroad spikes, wooden
stakes, even broken glass (usually from a convenient
whiskey bottle).
If you know you're seeking a buried pin, you can
use your compass as a metal detector (Figure 6). Stand so the
compass needle is pointing due north, then turn the compass
vertical — so the needle points up. Keep facing north
and move the compass back and forth over the approximate
pin location, holding it about a half-inch to an inch off
the ground. If the needle spins downward and points to the
ground — dig.
The public land surveyors often spent months or years on
the frontier, and couldn't afford to carry around a load of
markers. Thus the identity of their monuments varied
widely. In the prairie, they filled pits with charcoal. In
the mountains, where they spent most of their time hacking
brush, they simply left an etched stone buried at the
section corner. They would use witness trees in
their notes to relocate the marker through triangulation.
Remember, markers don't last forever. Wooden stakes may
last less than 10 years. A "10 inch pine" in ancient notes
may be a 20-inch pine today — or a rotting stump.
Step four: Proceed to the next point. Don't give up if your
search has so far proven fruitless. The next corner may lie
in plain sight. And that's a bonus, because the more
corners you find, the greater your chances of finding the
remaining ones. You'll know what you're looking for and be
able to zero in on it from two sides.
One possible monkey wrench that may be throwing you oft:
Your deed bearings may not be written in terms of
magnetic north (a compass actually points to a
"false North Pole"). They may be written in true
north (referring to the real North Pole) or even in
grid north (referring to an artificial regional
standard that uses parallel "north-south" lines). Then too,
even magnetic north shifts some over time. So if your
bearing readings seem to be causing you trouble, take a
compass reading between two known points of your
deed or plat, and compare that to the recorded bearing. If
there's a significant difference, adjust all your bearing
readings as needed to compensate.
Step five: Preserve the markers you find, but DO NOT MOVE
THEM. They are considered legal boundaries only as long as
they remain exactly where they are. You cannot move them to
where you think they ought to be. Only a licensed surveyor
can do that. The difference between you and a surveyor
(besides $400 a day) is that only that person can establish
property lines and testify in court on their whereabouts.
If there are serious legal problems with your boundary, you
will need a surveyor.
Do-it-yourself surveying can stave off disputes with
your neighbors.
The Home Property Survey: Know Your Land
So what have you accomplished? A lot. If you found some
corners, you may have staved of a boundary war with your
neighbor. Show him or her what you've found, so you'll
agree. Then paint a few trees or pile rocks around the spot
so it doesn't go to weeds. Don't force your grandkids to go
through the same search.
Even if you didn't turn up any corners, your time hasn't
been wasted. You've probably dug up some useful old
records, and that's half of what you'd pay a real surveyor
for.
CONVERTING AN AZIMUTH TO A BEARING
The normal hand compass is marked off in azimuths
. An azimuth is a direction — from 0 degrees to 360 degrees
— measured clockwise from due north. Thus, north is
0 degrees, east is 90 degrees, south is 180 degrees, and west is
270 degrees.
Bearings start with the same 360 degree circle, but
it is divided into quadrants of 90 degrees each. On either
side of due north are the NE and NW quadrants. Likewise on
the south: SE and SW. Every direction reads as an angle to
the east or west from north or south.
Sound confusing? Let's look at an example:
AZIMUTH
This angle, roughly southwest, has an azimuth
reading of 230 degrees.
BEARING
180 degrees is due south, so 230 degrees is due south
plus 50 degrees to the west. Thus 230 degrees becomes "an angle
from due south of 50 degrees to the west" — or, in
surveyor's shorthand, S50W.
Got it? Let's try another one. What's the bearing
equivalent of azimuth 25 degrees? If you said, "It's N25E" (an
angle from due north of 25 degrees to the east), you're ready
to get out and start walking your boundary lines!
AREA COMPUTATION
If your property has a simple rectangular shape, you don't
need to read this. But what about those of you with
odd-shaped lots with five or ten separate sides? Before you
throw in the towel, try this method for computing your
acreage.
First, make a scale drawing of your property on grid paper
(Step 1). It doesn't have to be entirely accurate, but it
should be large enough so you can write plenty of figures
inside. Write the direction (in bearings) and distance
along every boundary line.
Second, draw lines running north-south and/or east-west
through every angle point. You need be concerned only with
lines in the interior, and once they meet another inside
line, you need draw no further.
Your polygon is now divided into rectangles and right
triangles (Step 2). To figure out the area of the
triangles, all you need is a math book or calculator with
sine and cosine functions. Remember them from high school
trigonometry? In a right triangle, the sine equals the
length of the side opposite an angle divided by the length
of the hypotenuse (which, you'll notice, is always a
boundary line with a known length). A cosine equals the
adjacent side divided by the hypotenuse.
You already know one angle of each triangle —
remember, the bearing is the angle from the north-south
line you drew. So if you look up the sine or cosine
(whichever is appropriate) of that angle, you can use that
and the length of the boundary line to solve for the
remaining sides of the triangle.
For example, take the shaded triangle from Step 2 —
one that has a hypotenuse of 917 feet running S13E (Step
3). The sine of 13 degrees is .225.
Since .225 = opposite side/ 917, then the opposite side =
206. Now you can use the cosine of 13 degrees, .974, to solve
for the angle's adjacent side: .974 = adjacent side/917 ...
or 893 feet. The area for a triangle is 1/2 base times
height, in this case 1/2 X 206 X 893 = 91,979 square feet.
As you work, write every calculated distance on the
appropriate grid line, and record the area of each
sub-figure inside that shape. When you add all those areas
up at the end, you'll have your square footage. Divide that
by 43,560 and you'll know your acreage.
Thousands of articles. Infinite inspiration. Browse all Homesteading and Livestock articles.
Originally Published: September/October 1986
At MOTHER EARTH NEWS for 50 years and counting, we are dedicated to conserving our planet's natural resources while helping you conserve your financial resources. You'll find tips for slashing heating bills, growing fresh, natural produce at home, and more. That's why we want you to save money and trees by subscribing through our earth-friendly automatic renewal savings plan. By paying with a credit card, you save an additional $5 and get 6 issues of MOTHER EARTH NEWS for only $12.95 (USA only). 
Reading through these comments it's amazing the number of people who closed a transaction WITHOUT a survey. Although in my opinion you people get what you deserve, in my experience you people are ALWAYS the ones crying loudest. Ya'll never heard about "caveat emptor"? lol
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have witnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
i need help and cant find it.. my neighbor is cooking meth the cops and one judge that i know off are all friends my neighbor had his friend survey his land n took half my land i cant find a lawyer to help us. then he had his cop friend sight my wife with 4 tickets saying she physically and verbally threatened him we have wittnesses but that dont seem to help no one in my neighborhood like kris bloom bc of all the issues he causes and now he is verbally abusing my kids if anyone cant help me plz i am begging you call me or text me or e mail me at batchelder1981@gmail.com 716 353 0564 my name is jennifer
I assume people complaining about prices, have never worked in the profession. If none of your boundaries have monuments at there location, it can take 4-8 hours in the field to determine the locations. There's also research time which can take 1-2 hours, paper work and filing w/ the Register of Deeds also takes 2-3 hours. So in one job if every monument is missing could take 8-15 hours to complete. If all your monuments are at the boundary locations, then the job should be about an hour. It's like taking your car to a mechanic and saying "my car's broken fix it".
We just purchased an acre (completely level/flat ground) in central Oregon. There is snow right now, but have checked with 2 different surveying companies to get an idea of cost to find our boundary markers. 1 in the same county and the other in another county further away. Both gave an estimate of $1200 to locate and flag the corners. I wouldn't mind $500 or so, but I think that is a bit pricey! No development has been on our street, so maybe we'll be lucky and locate the original rebar with a metal detector. We're looking to put up a fence, but no structures right away. I suppose the property owners next to us would do a survey if they don't agree with the fence line and if we need to move the fence, we move it. BBLB1983
Oh boy, glad I read into this a bit. The title alone had my dander on end. But I am good now. IT is a good read, but the title is so misleading. People never ever try to "Survey" your own land, for one reason law suits. Your person at home DIY survey will not hold up and will just create strife between you and your neighbor. Luckily this article is purely about locating your established lines. A few words of caution, understand how bearing bases work and how they are determined before running out with your compass and tape measure. Secondly, when using a tape measure over long distances know the formulas for calculating sag and slope distance over the horizontal distance. This alone could cause you to either overshoot your corner or come up very short of your corner. Although as the author wrote, you do not have to be a genius to be a surveyor, but it helps, it does help.
Oh boy, glad I read into this a bit. The title alone had my dander on end. But I am good now. IT is a good read, but the title is so misleading. People never ever try to "Survey" your own land, for one reason law suits. Your person at home DIY survey will not hold up and will just create strife between you and your neighbor. Luckily this article is purely about locating your established lines. A few words of caution, understand how bearing bases work and how they are determined before running out with your compass and tape measure. Secondly, when using a tape measure over long distances know the formulas for calculating sag and slope distance over the horizontal distance. This alone could cause you to either overshoot your corner or come up very short of your corner. Although as the author wrote, you do not have to be a genius to be a surveyor, but it helps, it does help.
I live on an old 1896 land grant that became an inholding in 1962 when the USFS initially took my easement road to my property. The USFS has repeatedly surveyed (3 times in the last 20 years) moved my boundaries and taken my land. The deed stipulates that I own the property on the waters of two creeks. The old hand written deeds indicate the boundaries run along ridges. I can't afford a new survey and would like to know if I could do this myself if not get a rough estimate of the extent of my property.
I've got big problems! I own 20 ac in the boonies, a guy is buying the land across the street under land contract. He came over onto my side of the street, tore down my no trespassing signs, and hired a surveyor to do a survey using boundaries he requested, taking a big chunk of my land. His land contract wasn't even listed as a information source on the survey. His contract states "the existing road" he claimed so many feet down the road, then a line due S, the surveyor drew a line that way and listed it as an old road, there is an old overgrown trail near there that met the road 10-15 yards E of where he marked it. My land is in 2 deeds, 1 describes the line as "the existing road", and other says "Remington ln the existing road". To make things worse, I called the survey licencing board, and talked to their investigator, who said he's known that surveyor for over 30 yrs, and he's a honest guy, talk to him. I understand the guy lied to that surveyor, and put the surveyor bind. I've called the local surveyors, and get "no problem, your line it that road", then they find that survey talk to the surveyor then they can't help me, and won't do a survey, "good ole boys network won't get him in trouble". I know all the corners, and have a copy of the county plat showing the correct boundaries, but have this idiot claiming my land. Any advice? Thank you Steve
I have a brother with some land in the Mojave Dessert. His 10 acre plot is out among a checkerboard of BLM and private square miles. He has been having great difficulty locating this land as maps are giving a rough idea, but apparently there was some miscalculation in the original mapping and meridian systems. He is quite frustrated in having been sold this land without any marker or any help from those he has tried to get information from. Any ideas on how he can avoid paying the $5000 asking price on having his plot boundaries discovered? None of the nearby plots appear to have been surveyed.
I am a land surveyor and even though it is legal to survey your own property I would not recommend doing so. There are a few nuances in this article that are legally incorrect. Surveyors cannot move property boundaries legally. What a boundary is is a question of law, where a boundary is is a question of fact. Although you may be able to go out onto your property and find something marking the corners of your property, without the right equipment you will never be able to run a perfect line along your property line. Also, there are many things you have to take into consideration when surveying such as evidence of possession and things like adverse possession. If you want to know where your property lines are and anything related to the boundary of your property, call your local surveyor and pay the $300-$500 and have your property surveyed. It will save you from potential legal trouble down the road which will cost you thousands of dollars.
I own property inside the city, the city has a 50 foot right of way from center line of street 25 feet each way, so can anyone tell me where my property starts, does my property start where the cities r/w stops?
It's good to know that it's possible to do your own property surveying. It's still a good idea however to hire a professional to follow up your work. If there are any disputes, the word of a professional trumps anything you do on your own. http://www.wittlandsurveying.com/services
I think this is a nicely written article. I finally know what all the numbers mean on the plat of the property that I just purchased. Obviously, if you're building a new structure close to a property line, then you'll want to pay for a professional survey. But, if you just want to map out your property to get an idea of where your property lines are, then this is a great way to do it.(plus,it's a lot of fun to me). As an added note, I paid for a survey through my lender(it was for the loan, so I didn't have any say in the company used or the type of survey). When I received the survey, it says it's only accurate to 5'+- because a marker could not be located.(so basically, the survey is worthless for putting up a fence or something within 5' of the line). I did some checking on the plat, and the 1/4 section boundary pipe is in the corner of my front yard. I feel like the surveyor was too lazy to look for it. His website says he's been surveying for 30+ years, so I think he should have found it if an uneducated homeowner like myself can.
I think that I am in line with those that are afraid of encroachment. The last thing I want is for someone to buffer my property too closely. My neighbor is building next to me and I am not quite sure where the property lines are exactly. Where can I learn more about land surveying? http://www.wittlandsurveying.com/services
I have a 10 acre ranch in Manteca Ca. Our land is square parcel. I need a surveyor in San Joaquin County California who can charge me a fee to fix/ find my boundaries. Please contact me @ Khan304@comcast.net or Call 510 676 9372. Regards Mohammad Khan
thank you this was a great help
As a licensed surveyor in California I need to caution any unlicensed person doing what they think is surveying could ultimately make matters worse. Do you really think that if you found a property corner and then told your neighbor that it is the corner, that they would beleive you? The reason we are licensed is to protect the public from disasters such as DIY surveying. Do yourself and everyone a favor. Call a professional when it comes to property rights. Would you attempt brain surgery just because you found a DIY instruction from a non-doctor? B. Bilbo PLS California
You're going to get a lot of people in a lot of disputes because you have made a very complex job into a simple peep and measure affair. The "art" of surveying encompasses much much more than sighting and measuring, especially in the eastern part of the country where the the public land survey was not used. Please urge your readers to be very careful of "homemade"surveying.The urge to save money is something all of us want to do, but some things require some practical experience and specialized education to accomplish. Douglas T. Casey Certified Land Surveyor Virginia
As a Professional Land Surveyor in California I'd have to say this was well written. For the homeowner, it a good primer into the world of Land Surveying. Unfortunately there is much more to surveying than measuring. Regarding measuring: The methods use by the author might work well for flatter land, where it's easier to measure horizontally, but anywhere where there are obstructions and hills may not yield measurement within 20 feet or more. Many of the "old-timers" measurements where off by feet, and they were experienced using the older equipment. A lot of time was spent learning to use a Solar Compass, transit and metal chain or tape. Generally a new hire will take a good 6 months to be proficient and accurate with modern survey equipment. Unless Surveyors are hiring dump people, that should be a clue as to the difficultly of measuring. Plus, the solar compass was used sometime after 1850’s and that means the majority of property (mostly out west) is base on “True North” and not magnetic. The act of measuring can be quite difficult and that’s why many surveyors use Total Stations that can cost up to $35,000. GPS equipment can range from $20,000 to $80,000 depending on the type of equipment. Anyway, in addition to the cost and difficulties of measuring there are other legal issues that require professional judgment. Surveyors have to know common law (court cases) Roman law, English common law, and local and state laws to property retrace or re-establish boundary lines. A surveyor has to know the legal weight given to words found in a deed, and that only comes with training and education. Many times there are conflicting calls in a deed such as “North 88 degrees 34’ 24” West 2,300 feet along said Wilson Tract to a 1” pipe; said pipe being at the northwest corner of said Tract and North 45 Degrees 00’ 00” East 404.89 feet from the southwest corner of Lot 2 of the Parcel Map filed in Book 12, Page 45 of Parcel Maps, thence……………….”
I am a land surveyor alot of this article is really great. There are some things that one should know about land surveying. The compose reading of today is not the same as 50 or 100 years ago. ALSO the adjoined has a description that most times does not match your description. Bearing are usually different and sometime distances are also different. In my opinion a home owner can retrace the boundary to an accuracy far less than a professional land surveyor. A professional land surveyor may have to survey all the adjoining parcel to establish your boundaries. And there maybe gaps and/or gores between adjoining parcels. If one chooses to retrace their boundary make sure one gets all the surround deed descriptions. If one feels there is a problem seek a professional land surveyor. A suggestion is get three quotes for your survey and you get what you pay for. If your property is important to one make sure you weigh it $1500 for a twenty acre parcel is a good price.