AmeriSurv.com – Reconnaissance: Unwritten Easements and ALTA/ACSM Land Title Surveys
This is an article by Gary Kent found in the The American Surveyor • Vol. 9 No. 5. The idea of always checking Table A item 11b on ALTA/ACSM surveys is a good one. This helps insure that evidence such as utilities that may result in unwritten easements is located in the field.
AmeriSurv.com – Reconnaissance: Unwritten Easements and ALTA/ACSM Land Title Surveys.
Manitoba gets first female land surveyor
Manitoba gets first female land surveyor.
I was surprised to read that Manitoba had no female land surveyors until now. The story gives some details about the careers of surveyors in Canada.
Survey monument found in tsunami debris on Orcas Island
Boat owner finds tsunami debris on Orcas Island. I noticed that a survey marker was among the debris that has washed up. Surprisingly, this is the second story I have read about the plastic survey markers being found on the west coast. Apparently, the plastic markers are common in Japan. The markers are often referred to as “monuments” by surveyors, which indicates their permanent nature. A survey monument is one of the last objects I would have expected to wash up.
Encroaching Swimming Pools
Image by Vic Brincat
I found another news story today about a pool owner involved in a dispute over the location of a pool. The article by Scott Daugherty appeared on the Pilotonline.com website on April 10, 2012, and reports how a homeowner built an above-ground pool in a gas utility easement and is being sued by the gas company who is the dominant tenement (owner of the easement). In this case, the homeowner obtained the required permits from the local agency and assumed that potential issues like easements would be revealed by the permitting process. Many permits require a title report as part of the building plan submittal and that property lines and easements be shown on the plans. However, it is never safe to assume that the permitting agency will notice flaws in a project. The owner is ultimately responsible for locating improvements out of areas encumbered by easements or other interests.
I recently spoke with a manager from a pool construction company who was not aware at the time that I was a Land Surveyor. This representative described how his company relied on fences and walls for boundary location and assumed that there was always a five-foot building setback for any back yard. After listening, I introduced myself and offered a few hints about setbacks and easements. I also offered my services for future pool projects that he may have. There is a real need for public education about land surveying.
In a recent case, I performed a lot line adjustment for homeowners who accidentally built their pool across the corners of three different lots. The property lines were located without the services of a land surveyor, and serious mistakes were made. After the pool was mostly complete, adjoining neighbors noticed the encroaching pool and alerted my client. The problem was eventually solved by adjusting the lot lines around the pool, but this was a painful experience for all of the owners. Luckily the situation could be solved with the cooperation of the adjoining land owners. At first glance the property line location probably looked simple to a contractor or homeowner. In reality the situation was complicated by offset corner monuments, markings in the concrete sidewalks that looked like monuments (but were not) and other factors that made the boundary location a challenge even for a surveyor.
As a Land Surveyor, I would much rather locate property lines in advance of new swimming pool construction than be called to remedy situations that have gone badly wrong. Compared to the cost of a new swimming pool, the cost of a survey is a worthwhile investment.
Can an ALTA/ACSM Land Title Survey be made on a portion of a parcel?
Many ALTA/ACSM Land Title surveys that I perform have title reports that describe an area much larger than the portion the client is interested in. The parcel(s) described in the title report may cover reciprocal parking easements, private roadways, or other portions that are situated well away from the subject area. I am constantly asked to survey only a portion of the area covered by the title report legal description. I generally refuse to survey only these portions, with a few exceptions.
How the standards apply
The 2011 minimum standard detail requirements for ALTA/ACSM Land Title Surveys don’t address this topic directly but do mention the term “portion of such lot or parcel” in section 6 as follows:
V. The remainder of any recorded lot or existing parcel, when the surveyed property is composed of only a portion of such lot or parcel, shall be graphically depicted. Such remainder does not need to be included as part of the actual survey, except to the extent necessary to locate the lines and corners of the surveyed property, and it need not be fully dimensioned or drawn at the same scale as the surveyed property.
In my opinion, this section does not refer to partial surveys, but is intended to allow for portions of outlying parcels that were surveyed as part of a procedure to establish the subject parcel, for example, showing an entire block in order to determine the lines of one subject lot within that block. The standards appear to be quiet on the subject of partial surveys.
Title reports indicate what is insured
The legal description shown on a title report describes exactly what real property is to be covered by the title insurance policy. A Land Title Survey that references a corresponding title report is intended to remove insurance exceptions to the many items that may be discoverable from a survey and are not shown in the public records. This would include all of the parcels shown in the title report legal description. Occasionally a title company will be willing to use a legal description covering a smaller area in order to reduce costs.
Can the table A options apply to only a portion of a parcel?
As a matter of practice, I will occasionally show some of the table A options on only portions of a parcel. Option 5 (vertical relief contours) is an item that I frequently show only on a portion of a survey. I am careful to show the surveyed limits clearly on the plat and indicate that areas outside of these limits did not have some options surveyed. Ground contours probably have little effect on title interests.
Conclusion
ALTA/ACSM Land Title Surveys should cover the entire area indicated on the title report legal description. Some table A options could be exceptions. Managing risk for all parties involved is the prime concern when determining the limits of a survey. Asking for a title report describing fewer parcels or a smaller area is a reasonable way to reduce the surveyed area.
