A SURVEYOR CAN EASEYOUR WORRY IN FIVESIMPLE WAYS
HOW CAN A PROFESSIONAL LANDSURVEYOR HELP THE HOME BUYINGPROCESS?
Review and Interpret Your Deed.
Review and interpret your deed.Professionally licensed landsurveyors are experts in theirchosen field and by reviewing thedeed for your property theyshould be able to tell you the exactlimits of the property as
spelled out in the legal description. If they can’t, theremay be a problem which definitely requires theirservice..
Look for any existing propertycorners through research.
A surveyor can researchyour property through the localCounty Surveyor’s office and lookfor any surveys that have beenrecorded for or near yourproperty in the past . If propertycorners have been set in the past
You found the perfect piece of property to buy—right size, right colorhouse, beautiful landscaping and so on for the right price. You are inlove with it. Where do you sign? Whoa there! Have you thought aboutwhere the property boundaries are? Are there fences? Are they in thecorrect location? What about the neighbor’s deck? Are there anyeasements or other hidden boundary issues that may arise after youbuy your piece of paradise? You’re the seller you say? You’re pretty sure the fence line waspushed back to accommodate for a chicken coop built in 1983 andnow you’re wondering if it is going to affect the price of yourproperty? Or WORSE – what if you accidentally sell land that isn’tactually yours?
Purchasing or selling a home is the biggest financial transaction mostpeople will make in their lives. If you care about the answers to any ofthese questions, it’s imperative that you have land surveyed beforeyou purchase or sell your property. By obtaining a survey, you areable to find the exact boundaries of your property, which can helpsettle any potential disputes with neighbors. Your real estate agent or broker works very hard for you. They areskilled professionals that are able to tell you what buyers areexpecting, and what will be most appealing when you're selling yourhome. It’s also important to know that they can’t tell you where thelegal boundaries are. They are working with the same informationyou have. So, be informed!
The best time to hire the services of a land surveyor is beforecompleting the transfer of title process. In fact, making the purchasecontingent on completion of a survey prior to closing (if one hasn’tbeen done in the past 10 years) that identifies any possible problemswith the deed gives you the assurance that the boundary as stated inthe deed of sale is true and has no problems.
they can look for them, let you know whether they stillexist, and if so, show you what they look like and theirlocation. This is a very important step towardKNOWING what you’re buying!
Identify problems before youbuy.
It is also important for you todetermine whether neighborshave encroached upon theproperty. You can never be surewhether your lot boundaries arein harmony with all evidence ofoccupation. Your neighbors
garage, driveway, deck, fence, their recent addition(that one they never bothered to get a building permitfor) or favorite tree actually may be on your land. Youneed to hire a surveyor to tell you whether there areencroachments and, if so, how extensive. You canalso make your purchase contingent upon the removalof those encroachments, which places THAT headachesquarely on the shoulders of the seller. If you're theseller, it's better to have this worked out before you sellyour property.
Peace of mind.
Nothing can be more stressful thandiscovering problems that haveanything to do with the above itemsAFTER your purchase!
How do I find a licensed surveyor? Go to www.plso.org/findasurveyorand search by service, city, countyor company.
