Land Surveying
ALTA/NSPS Land Title Surveys
A survey your lender and title insurer can rely on, tying the title commitment to the boundaries, easements and improvements on the ground.
What is an ALTA/NSPS land title survey?
An ALTA/NSPS land title survey is a boundary survey made to national standards set by the American Land Title Association and National Society of Professional Surveyors, showing property lines, improvements, access and recorded easements for a title insurer and lender.
Often called an ALTA survey, it lets the title insurer cover survey matters on a commercial purchase or refinance, except those the plat shows. The surveyor works from the title commitment or preliminary title report: the insurer's offer to issue a policy subject to listed exceptions.
It retraces the same lines as a boundary survey, then adds the title-document review, easement plotting and certification lenders rely on.
Deliverables
What's included in an ALTA/NSPS survey
A required core plus optional Table A items. A typical ALTA/NSPS survey includes:
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Signed ALTA/NSPS plat
Captioned "ALTA/NSPS Land Title Survey," sealed and certified to the named parties.
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Boundary & record data
Record dimensions, measured ones where they differ, data to check the boundary closes, and monuments found or set.
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Title exception summary
Each easement and survey-related title exception, noted as lying within, crossing or not touching the property.
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Improvements & access
All buildings; walls, fences and other improvements within five feet of either side of the boundary; driveways and abutting streets.
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Utility evidence
Manholes, meters, poles and locate marks; Item 11 adds approximate buried lines from plans or a private locate.
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Encroachment table
Optional Item 20, new in 2026, lists potential encroachments and undocumented access or use.
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Table A items
Flood zone, land area, zoning setbacks, parking and other items you select.
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California filings
A record of survey or corner record, filed with the county surveyor when required.
When do you need an ALTA survey?
Order it early, once the title commitment is issued.
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Buying or refinancing with a loan
The lender's and title insurer's requirements usually drive the Table A list and certified parties.
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Extended-coverage title insurance
Insurers typically require a survey before covering off-record matters.
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Due diligence before closing
Easements, access problems and encroachments surface while you can still negotiate. See feasibility studies.
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Assembling several parcels
Gaps and overlaps between parcels are identified and disclosed to the insurer.
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Planning to build after closing
Add a design-grade topographic survey, negotiated as custom Table A Item 21.
An ALTA/NSPS survey maps the property as titled; it cannot create, move or combine parcels. That takes a parcel or subdivision map, or a lot line adjustment or merger, under California's Subdivision Map Act.
Process
How an ALTA/NSPS survey works
Five steps from the lender's list to the signed plat.
Confirm scope and parties
We collect the lender's Table A list, the parties to certify and the closing date. The written request should specify a "2026 ALTA/NSPS Land Title Survey."
Gather title and records
You or the title officer supply the title commitment and easement documents. We research recorded maps, adjoining deeds and county surveyor records.
Survey the property
Crews, typically using GNSS (satellite positioning) receivers and total stations, locate monuments, buildings, improvements near the lines, access, utility evidence and possession.
Draft, review and certify
The licensee resolves the boundary, plots each plottable easement, summarizes every survey-related exception and explains any new legal description. A draft commonly goes to the title officer and lender before signing.
File if state law requires
When a California trigger applies, a record of survey or corner record goes to the county surveyor by the state's filing deadline.
California rules
California requirements for ALTA/NSPS surveys
How the national standards and California law fit together:
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Bus. & Prof. Code §8731, §6731
Who may do boundary work in California
Because an ALTA/NSPS survey retraces property lines, only a licensed land surveyor, or a civil engineer registered before January 1, 1982, may do it in California (§8731; §6731). Civil engineers licensed later also need a land surveyor license.
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2026 ALTA/NSPS Standards §3.A, §3.B, §8
2026 standards apply; stricter state law controls
The 2026 standards took effect February 23, 2026, replacing all earlier editions. Where California law or local rules are stricter, they control (Section 3.B), and any filing state law requires must still be made (Section 8).
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Bus. & Prof. Code §8762
When a record of survey is required
A record of survey is required when the field survey finds material evidence or physical changes not shown on any recorded map, finds a material discrepancy with recorded maps, finds evidence that could lead to materially different line positions, or establishes or sets points or lines no recorded map shows (§8762(b)). It is due within 90 days after boundary monuments are set or fieldwork ends, whichever is first (§8762(c)).
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Bus. & Prof. Code §8765(d), §8772
Corner records and tagged monuments
A survey that retraces a recorded map and finds enough monuments and no material discrepancy needs no record of survey; a corner record is filed for property corners set, reset or found to differ in character from prior records (§8765(d)). Monuments set under Table A Item 1 carry the L.S. or R.C.E. number (§8772).
Requirements vary by county and city: county surveyors set their own filing checklists and fees. Table A Item 6 setbacks come from a zoning report you supply.
Sources & references
- 2026 Minimum Standard Detail Requirements for ALTA/NSPS Land Title Surveys (PDF, v. 11.25.2025) (American Land Title Association and National Society of Professional Surveyors)
- Frequently Asked Questions on ALTA/NSPS Land Title Surveys, including the 2026 Standards (PDF, January 5, 2026 version) (ALTA and NSPS)
- Business and Professions Code §8731, who may practice land surveying (California Legislative Information)
- Business and Professions Code §8762, record of survey filing (California Legislative Information)
- Title Insurance consumer guide: standard vs. extended coverage (California Department of Insurance)
Last reviewed .
ALTA/NSPS survey FAQs
How is an ALTA survey different from a boundary survey?
An ALTA/NSPS survey is a boundary survey plus a review of the title commitment's survey-related items. The surveyor plots each plottable easement, states whether each survey-related exception lies within or crosses the property, and shows buildings, access, utility evidence and potential encroachments. The plat is certified to the buyer, lender and title insurer. A standalone boundary survey follows California law without that national checklist.
Is an ALTA survey required to buy commercial property in California?
An ALTA/NSPS survey is usually required by a lender or title insurer, not by a permit agency. In California, an extended-coverage title policy generally also insures against off-record matters such as unrecorded easements, encroachments and boundary conflicts, so the insurer will typically require a survey.
Who can prepare an ALTA/NSPS survey in California?
An ALTA/NSPS survey in California must be prepared by, or under the responsible charge of, a licensed land surveyor or a civil engineer registered before January 1, 1982, because it retraces property lines (Business and Professions Code §6731, §8731). The plat identifies the surveyor and is signed, sealed and dated (§8761).
Which Table A items should I order?
Table A items are the optional add-ons to an ALTA/NSPS survey; start with the lender's written list. Options include monuments (Item 1), flood zone (3), land area (4), zoning setbacks (6), building dimensions (7), parking (9) and underground utilities (11). Item 3 plots the FEMA flood zone; it does not measure elevations.
Can an existing ALTA survey be updated or recertified?
An update of an ALTA/NSPS survey is really a new survey, according to the ALTA/NSPS FAQ: the surveyor certifies current conditions under the 2026 standards, which apply to work contracted on or after February 23, 2026. A prior survey can reduce research and fieldwork. The standards set no expiration date; the lender and title insurer decide whether a survey is recent enough.
What affects the cost and schedule of an ALTA/NSPS survey?
The cost and schedule of an ALTA/NSPS survey depend on the property's size and parcel count, how well the record matches the ground, the number of title exceptions, the density of improvements, site access and the Table A items selected. Share the title commitment with its exception documents, the lender's Table A list and your closing date; the proposal then sets scope and timing.