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This must be one of the most popular questions about land surveying. A lot of people need their property surveyed for one reason or another, but not a lot of us really believe that it’s worth spending a lot of money on.

First, I’d like to point out that a land survey is actually an investment. And when I say “investment”, I mean it’s one of those things that you need to spend good money on so that you don’t spend even more money in the future.

What do I mean?

Let’s say you’re about to buy a house and lot. A friend told you that you better have it surveyed, but you didn’t because 1.) You want to save money 2.) You thought it’s a waste of money and it’s not necessary 3.) You could get away with it. Fast forward a couple of years later, heavy rain poured out and your property was flooded. You had to move out, find a temporary place to stay and replace all your things because they got ruined by the water.

If only you had it surveyed before buying, you would have known that it was prone to flooding and buy someplace else.

The best thing that you can do when buying a house or property is hire a licensed and credible land surveyor. Why? Because a licensed professional land surveyor is the only one who can do a land survey by law. You don’t want an unlicensed individual doing a survey for you. They don’t stand behind their work. They aren’t recognized by the state or the legal profession.

Another tip is to let the surveyor know what you want ahead of time. This will let them give you a more precise quote so you know what to expect. Through this, you can budget your money or find the funds needed to have the survey done.

It’s also important that you sign a contract before the survey starts. This is to protect you from unexpected payments or hidden charges.

Finally, you should be comfortable with talking to your land surveyor and they should be comfortable talking to you.

You will more than likely have questions along the way, so, if they don’t have time for you after the survey is done, you will be on your own.

Never choose your surveyor based on the cheapest price. You wouldn’t consider choosing your doctor this way would you? Well your surveyor is helping you with your single biggest investment you will probably ever have, your home and land.

So, in summary, you can get a cheap survey, but, more than likely, you will get cheap results. Choose a land surveyor wisely.

For land survey in Pell City,AL and the surrounding area, call us at (205) 291-4795 or send us a message by clicking here and filling out our contact form.

What exactly is property encroachment? Encroachment happens when a certain property steps into the boundary of a neighbouring property.

One of the most common types of encroachment is structural encroachment – this is when a part of a building has stepped over the property line. However, gardening beds as well as fences stepping over the line can be considered an encroachment as well.

Why do encroachments happen? More often than not, an encroachment is an honest mistake. It might be that the previous surveyor miscalculated and thought it was still a part of the neighbors property, or it could also be a misunderstanding between homeowners and contractors.

There are several ways to deal with encroachments. The easiest way is to politely ask your neighbor to remove the encroachment. This is not usually a big problem if it’s only a flower bed or something else that can easily be removed.

If it’s a fence or a part of a structure, you can strike up an agreement and have the other party pay rent for the part of your property that was encroached. Another option is to sell the “encroached” property to the other party so they’re free to use it.

If you would rather use your property, you can go to court and request for an order of removal instead.

This is exactly why land survey is very important if you’re going to buy a property. When it comes to encroachment, the earlier you address the problem, the better. This is because of the Adverse Possession laws.

This law states that if someone openly uses a piece of property for a certain period of time and pays taxes for it, they could claim possession for the property especially when no one complains about it.

Please note though that each state have different property encroachment laws so it’s best

that you talk to a lawyer and a land surveyor in your area.

For any property encroachment problems or questions about it, call Pell City Land Surveying at 205 291-4795 or send us a message through our contact form.

So, how do you go about subdividing land?

The first and most crucial step is to make sure that you are allowed to subdivide your land. For example, if your lot is located in an existing subdivision you may be limited to what you can do by the subdivision covenants and restrictions.

If you are in or near the city limits of a municipality then you may be restricted to what you can do by that cities subdivision regulation. Even if the city doesn’t regulate the subdivision of land, the county may. So, in my opinion, the first call should be to a land surveyor who will be familiar with the local subdivision regulations and what you can and can’t do.

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If subdividing land is permitted, the next step will probably be to have the land surveyed. If you want to divide the land into several parcels of land, you’d have to work with a surveyor to do the measurements as well as stake out the individual lots.

The surveyor will be able to determine the lot size, whether you need to build a street for access, what easements will affect the lots, and other important matters. If the land is not accessible to a common sewer system then the surveyor will also need to conduct soil and percolation testing to determine if the land is suitable for an on-site sewage system.

Once you and your surveyor are done working out a plan of development showing the entire property subdivided into lots, it’s time to plat the property. Again, depending on the local regulations, this may involve meetings with the City or County officials or commissions and possibly the local health department.

After having that approval, the plat should then be filed in the county probate office to inform them that the property is being developed and will be changed from being taxed as acreage to individual lots in the future.

If you’re subdividing a property to sell, each lot should go through a closing process or at least some preparation of deeds for the intended future owners. The plat can be referenced for this process and the surveyor can help with any legal descriptions that are needed.

It is also possible that the new owner will want to know where the property lines are located in order to place a fence or any other improvements on the property. This step should ALWAYS be done before building on the property.

As you can see, when subdividing property, it’s very important that you choose a land surveyor who has experience with these kinds of jobs. The surveyor is important in every step of this process so choose one who has the proper knowledge and experience to make the process go as smoothly as possible.

Otherwise, you might have a problem with neighbours, local authorities, health departments, and future land owners. Other than spending money on a new survey, potential buyers might be turned off knowing that there are problems with the transfer of property and that they might run into additional problems in the future.

For more help in subdividing land in Pell City, AL and the surrounding Shelby County areas, call Pell City Land Surveying today at (205) 291-4795 or send us a message by filling out or contact form.

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Hotels, unlike many other businesses, solely rely on a high turnover of clients to survive. There can be a lot of hotels in one place, so they have to compete hard with each other in order to get more clients.

In order to do this, hotels need to constantly upgrade and renovate their facilities in order to remain competitive. With a new structure and possible new technologies, a hotel or a motel business can entice more clients.

Whenever any renovations or additions are made to the structure of a hotel, this requires funding. Commercial lenders typically require an ALTA land title survey may completed on the property and premises.

What is an ALTA Land Title Survey?

This type of survey is completed based on the Minimum Standard Detail Requirements and Accuracy Standards for ALTA/ ACSM Land Title Surveys. The guidelines for performing this survey are regularly revised by a combination of Title industry and Surveying industry professionals. The newest document is the 2011 revision.

An ALTA title survey is a lot like a boundary or a lot survey except that it’s stricter in terms of the requirements placed on the land surveyor as he or she carries out the survey in both field and office.

One of the biggest problems when upgrading a hotel (or motel) or building a new one is meeting the number of parking spaces required by local zoning codes. These zoning codes change regularly. So much so that about anytime an upgrade is done, the requirements have probably increased.

Other planning and zoning ordinances are also important. Landscaping changes, signage requirements, maybe even the zoning itself has changed. If another use is proposed, say a hotel wants to add a restaurant or bar.

These are changes that would require lots of approvals by the zoning and planning boards of most cities. An ALTA land title survey can be used to identify these new or changed requirements.

Another item that has come up recently in a lot of areas is that flood zones have encroached on areas formerly not expected to flood. This is because of more detailed studies that have been done in the past.

Increased government spending has allowed these studies to be undertaken across the nation. It would be prudent for a commercial lender to question whether a hotel or motel is located within a special flood hazard area.

Knowing that the zoning and planning conditions, as well as other physical conditions change over time, the most prudent step for a commercial lender on a hotel or motel project, or any commercial project for that matter, is to have an ALTA Land Title Survey completed by a licensed professional land surveyor.

For more questions regarding ALTA Land Title Survey, give us a call at (205) 291-4795 or send us a message by clicking here.