Homes & Residential Properties Title Surveying

Land surveyors play a big role for home and residential property owners, especially in terms of working with real estate agents. Lenders and financial institutions do not always require a survey in connection with a closing, but it is still an important consideration for any home buyer in the greater New York City area. In general, a home or residential title survey can identify some common issues. Some of these issues include:

• Homes built over lot lines or built in the wrong lot entirely.
• Fences or retaining walls that are not built on lot lines. This creates situations where ownership can be challenged. It also can lead to the removal of fences or retaining walls.
• Driveways that are not entirely within the property lines, which causes issues if the driveway location or "sharing" rights are later contested.
• Homes, swimming pools, or other home improvements built on top of a utility easement. This means that the utility company may have the right to ask the homeowner to remove an improvement or dig under the house.
• Potential easements in rural or suburban areas. This often takes the form of access paths that can establish a property right that might encumber your own property.

When you invest in a survey, it gives you and the real estate professional handling the sale the proper information that is needed to take action and address any issues. Or to even break the contract. So, choosing the right survey may determine whether or not the owner gets the survey coverage on the title insurance policy, which is a protection against future boundary disputes or any of the issues presented above.

For more information about our property-boundary title surveys for homes and residential properties across the greater New York City area, then please reach out to us today. Get a quote for the survey you are looking to have completed.

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Our staff has years of experience and will do everything in their power to make sure this operation goes smoothly.

Types of Home & Residential Surveys Available

When it comes to buying and selling a home, there is no one survey to use. In fact, there are a few different ones that come in handy for these types of jobs. Let's take a look at some of those surveys and how they correspond to homes and residential properties.

Property-Boundary Survey

At the very minimum there is the property-boundary survey, which is a requirement in most real estate instances. These surveys are required to extend any previous survey coverage on the owner's final title policy. Since the surveyor physically located the property corners, boundary surveys have a very low margin of error. This is great and adds to the confidence of the survey. Property boundary surveys offer great detail and include the following features:

• lot lines
• improvements (driveways, fences, retaining walls, etc.)
• overhangs
• encroachments
• easements and setbacks
• any other features that may restrict the use of the property

Due to the accuracy of a property-boundary survey, they can disclose any major defect regarding lot lines and the overall location of improvements, including driveways, fences, and retaining walls. This survey is a valuable tool for creating a path towards a resolution for any survey or sale.

A standard residential home sale contract contains language that allows the buyer to object to issues that may arise from the title commitment or the survey. But with a property boundary survey in your back pocket, it is not likely to be contested. This gives the buyer justification to request the survey related issues be addressed.

FEMA Flood Elevation Survey

FEMA requires homeowners to purchase flood insurance policies if the home is located within certain flood zones. This is to ensure the safety of the home, the people living there, and the area in general. And it is to help with insurance purposes in the case there is a flood, since there is documentation that this home is in a high-risk flood area. To complete this certificate, our surveyors do a flood elevation certificate, which includes the following details:

• flood zone designations.
• elevation above mean sea level taken at building corners.
• building first floor and lowest floor.
• location of the building (latitude and longitude).
• sidewalks.

Mortgage Survey

The overall goal of a mortgage survey is to satisfy the lender with useful information in order to effectively determine the ultimate value of the property. In general, a mortgage survey acts as a certification for the lender that the property is of proper value and can bear the amount of money lent. Mortgage surveying is an important part of the home buying process, so it is crucial that you trust the right team for the job. Learn more about mortgage surveying and its benefits.