Field notes
Practical guides on land surveys: what they cost, when you need one, and how to buy them well.
Jul 25, 2026 · 8 min read
Who owns the tree on the property line, and who is responsible for it?
The trunk decides. If it straddles the boundary the tree is owned in common and neither neighbor may remove it alone. Here is what each of you can legally do, why "I thought it was on my side" is a weak defense, and why several states triple the bill.
Read the guide →Jul 24, 2026 · 8 min read
Can My Neighbor Build a Fence on the Property Line or on My Property?
On their own land, yes, and they do not need to ask you. Straddling the line is a different matter and normally needs your agreement. Here is what you can demand, why an innocent encroachment is not always ordered removed, and how long you have before staying quiet starts to cost you land.
Read the guide →Jul 24, 2026 · 8 min read
Who Owns the Fence Between Two Properties?
Ownership follows the boundary line, not which side of the house the fence is on. Here is how US states treat a fence built on the line, who pays for repairs, and why the answer depends on a measurement almost nobody has actually made.
Read the guide →Jul 24, 2026 · 7 min read
Who Pays for a Survey in a Property Line Dispute?
The party who orders the survey pays for it, and that is usually whoever needs to prove the line. Here is when the cost gets split, when a court shifts it to the loser, and why you order the survey before you hire a lawyer.
Read the guide →Jun 18, 2026 · 7 min read
How to Find Property Pins
Corner pins are usually within a foot of where your plat says they are. Here is how to look for them, what you can and cannot do with what you find, and when the search stops being DIY.
Read the guide →Jul 24, 2026 · 7 min read
Can you build on an easement?
You can usually landscape or fence an easement, rarely build a permanent structure on one, and you own the land the whole time. Here is what the recorded document actually lets you do, and what it costs to get it wrong.
Read the guide →Jun 24, 2026 · 6 min read
Property Survey vs Boundary Survey
Every boundary survey is a property survey; not every property survey is a boundary survey. Here is the clean way to tell which document your situation needs.
Read the guide →Jun 28, 2026 · 9 min read
ALTA Survey Requirements in 2026
Everything a deal team needs to scope an ALTA/NSPS Land Title Survey: what the 2021 standard requires by default, what Table A items cost, and how to keep the survey off the critical path.
Read the guide →Jul 1, 2026 · 6 min read
Boundary Survey Cost: What Actually Sets the Number
Two identical-looking lots can quote $500 apart. These are the seven factors that actually move a boundary survey quote, and what you can do about each.
Read the guide →Jul 14, 2026 · 8 min read
How to find property lines: 5 methods, from DIY to a licensed survey
You can find your property lines in an afternoon with a plat, a tape and a metal detector. Whether the line you find will survive a permit review, a neighbor or a judge is a different question. Here is what each method is really worth.
Read the guide →Jul 14, 2026 · 8 min read
Do you need a survey to buy a house?
No state makes you buy a survey to close on a home. Your lender and your title insurer are a different story, and the exception they write into your policy is the part most buyers never read.
Read the guide →Jul 14, 2026 · 7 min read
How to verify a land surveyor is licensed
An unlicensed survey is not a cheap survey. It is a worthless piece of paper that no permit office, title company or court will accept. Checking takes about four minutes.
Read the guide →Jul 16, 2026 · 8 min read
How long does a property survey take? Land survey timeline by type
Most of a survey is not the crew in your yard. That part takes an afternoon. The 5 to 10 business days come from the records research before it and the drafting after it.
Read the guide →Jul 16, 2026 · 8 min read
Plat of survey vs survey plat: what each one is and how to read it
A plat is a map of record. A survey is a professional opinion about your specific parcel today. People use the words interchangeably and it costs them money at the permit desk.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 7 min read
Do I Need a Survey to Build a Fence?
A fence on the wrong side of the line is the most expensive mistake in residential construction. Here is when you need a survey before you build, what kind, and what it costs.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 7 min read
What Is an Encroachment Survey?
An encroachment survey shows exactly where a fence, building or driveway crosses a property line or easement. Here is what the survey and its report contain, and what it costs.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 7 min read
How Much Does It Cost to Survey Property Lines?
A typical residential lot runs $450 to $950 to survey. Here is what sets the price, what pushes it past $1,500, and how to get three real quotes without overpaying.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 6 min read
Do I Need a Survey to Refinance?
Most residential refinances do not require a new survey. Here is when your lender or title company will ask for one anyway, and how to satisfy them without paying twice.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 6 min read
Plot Plan vs Survey
A plot plan shows what you plan to build; a survey establishes where your lines actually are. Confusing the two gets permits rejected and fences built in the wrong place.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 7 min read
Who Pays for a Survey When Buying a House?
In most US home sales the buyer pays for the survey, because the buyer and the lender are the ones who need it. But it is negotiable, and a smart seller move can save the buyer the whole fee.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 8 min read
How to Read a Plat of Survey
A plat of survey packs your entire parcel into one sealed drawing. Once you know what the bearings, distances and monument symbols mean, you can read your own boundaries, easements and setbacks off it.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 7 min read
Property Survey vs Mortgage Survey
A mortgage survey satisfies your lender. A property (boundary) survey establishes your lines. They are not the same document, and buying the wrong one is a common, expensive mistake.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 8 min read
How Much Does an ALTA Survey Cost?
An ALTA/NSPS survey is the gold-standard commercial title survey, and its price reflects that. Here is what drives the number from $2,500 to well past $10,000, and how to keep it in check.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 7 min read
What Does a Land Surveyor Do?
A land surveyor measures, marks and legally defines where one piece of land stops and the next begins. Here is what that involves, when you need one, and what only a licensed surveyor can do.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 7 min read
How Long Is a Property Survey Good For?
A property survey does not legally expire, but its usefulness for a sale, loan or permit does age. Here is how long lenders, title companies and building departments actually accept one, and when you need a fresh survey.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 7 min read
How Accurate Is a Property Survey?
A professional boundary survey measures to a fraction of an inch, but accuracy is about more than the equipment. Here is how precise a survey really is, why two surveys can disagree, and when a survey can be wrong.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 8 min read
Property Survey Cost by State
A residential property survey costs roughly $400 to $1,000 in most US states, but where you live moves the number. Here are 2026 boundary survey ranges by state and the local factors behind them.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 7 min read
How Much Does a Topographic Survey Cost?
A topographic survey typically costs $900 to $3,500 for a residential lot, and large sites price per acre. Here is what moves the number, contour intervals, drone versus ground methods, and how to get an accurate quote.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 7 min read
What Is a Corner Monument?
A corner monument is the physical marker a surveyor sets at each property corner. Here is what one looks like, how to find yours safely, why the cap and license number matter, and what to do if a monument is missing.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 6 min read
Do I Need a Survey for a Home Equity Loan?
Most home equity loans and HELOCs do not require a new survey, and lenders often skip the title and survey steps that a purchase demands. Here is when a survey is still requested and how to avoid a delay.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 8 min read
Land Survey Cost Per Acre
Per-acre survey pricing is not a flat rate. It drops steeply with parcel size and climbs with trees, terrain and bad records. Here is what acreage really costs to survey and how to get an accurate quote.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 8 min read
How to Get a Copy of Your Property Survey
A copy of your property survey is usually free and already sitting in one of five places. Here is the search order that works, what to do when nothing turns up, and when you need a new survey instead.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 8 min read
What Is an Easement Survey?
An easement survey maps the recorded rights other parties hold across your land, and where they physically run. Here is what it covers, what it costs, and how it differs from a boundary survey.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 9 min read
How to Dispute a Property Line
A property line dispute is won with evidence, and the first piece of evidence is a boundary survey. Here is the practical order of steps, from the survey through mediation to court.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 8 min read
Do You Need a Survey to Build a Pool?
A pool has to clear your property lines, easements, setbacks and often your septic system, and most permit offices want a survey or surveyed site plan to prove it. Here is what you need and why.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 8 min read
What Is a Right of Way Survey?
A right of way survey maps the road, utility and access corridors that cross or bound a property. Here is what the survey covers, how it differs from an easement survey, and when a project needs one.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 7 min read
What Is a Mortgage Inspection?
A mortgage inspection is a cheap drawing made for your lender, not a boundary determination. Here is exactly what it does and does not tell you, and when accepting one instead of a survey costs you money.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 8 min read
How to Read a Survey Legal Description
A legal description is walking directions around your parcel, written in a 200-year-old notation. Here is how to decode every part of one and what to do when it does not match the ground.
Read the guide →Jul 19, 2026 · 8 min read
Adverse Possession vs Boundary Survey
A survey tells you where the record line is. Adverse possession asks whether the law has already moved ownership away from it. Here is why you usually need both answers, in that order.
Read the guide →Aug 1, 2026 · 9 min read
Property line dispute letter: what to send your neighbor, and what to do first
Most people write the letter first and order the survey later. That is backwards, and it is why so many of these letters make the situation worse. Here is the order that works, what belongs in the letter, and the two sentences that can cost you land.
Read the guide →