Straight-down aerial view of a row of tile-roofed suburban houses whose fenced backyards back onto a dirt path and an open dry-grass slope, with a curving street and parked cars in front.

Who we work with

Surveys for real estate agents, escrow and title officers

The right survey for the transaction: which one the file needs, what to send when you order, and what a signed survey can and cannot tell the parties.

Start a survey request Call (530) 682-7679 Which survey fits?

Surveys in a real estate transaction

The survey a transaction needs depends on who will rely on it. A buyer with a line question needs a boundary survey; on a commercial deal, lenders and title insurers usually ask for an ALTA/NSPS land title survey; and a flood question may call for an elevation certificate.

This page is for listing and buyer's agents, escrow officers, title officers and lenders.

Locating property lines is licensed work in California. Only licensed land surveyors and civil engineers registered before January 1, 1982 may locate or retrace them (Bus. & Prof. Code §8726, §8731). Our team includes licensed civil engineers and a licensed land surveyor. We're based in Chico and work in Butte County and the northern Sacramento Valley first, and elsewhere in California by arrangement.

Situations

Which survey the deal needs

Six common situations and the survey each one calls for.

Boundary survey

A fence or corner question on a residential sale

Order a boundary survey. It locates the lines and corners from the deeds, recorded maps and monuments found in the field, and shows fences, walls and buildings near the lines on a signed and sealed map.

  • Send the preliminary title report: recorded easements are located from their written descriptions, usually those listed in it.
  • Missing corners can be set; each new monument is tagged with the licensee's number (Bus. & Prof. Code §8772).
  • Anyone replacing a fence should build from the surveyed line, not the old fence.
Boundary survey

Rural acreage or a burned lot

Order a boundary survey, so the buyer and the builder work from surveyed corners, not old fence lines.

  • When a survey of a deed-described parcel sets points or lines that no recorded map or record of survey shows, a record of survey must be filed (Bus. & Prof. Code §8762(b)(5)).
  • In the Town of Paradise, the residential building permit checklist asks for a survey by a land surveyor or a civil engineer licensed in land surveying, with found and set property corners shown on an exhibit. See Paradise & the Ridge.
ALTA/NSPS survey

A commercial purchase or refinance with extended title coverage

Order an ALTA/NSPS land title survey. 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.

  • The request should name a "2026 ALTA/NSPS Land Title Survey" and list the Table A items, starting from the lender's written list. Start an ALTA/NSPS request.
Survey, plat and descriptions

A lot line adjustment in escrow

A lot line adjustment moves lines between four or fewer existing adjoining parcels with city or county approval, and is reflected in a recorded deed (Gov. Code §66412(d)). It cannot create a new lot.

  • Most adjustments start with a boundary survey; the package adds signed and sealed legal descriptions (Exhibit A) and plats (Exhibit B) for the deeds.
  • Every owner of record usually signs, and lenders with a deed of trust may need to consent.
  • The city or county sets its own submittal list and review steps, so check them before a closing date depends on the approval.
Elevation certificate

A lender's flood question

Order an elevation certificate when someone needs the building's surveyed elevations. FEMA's form records the flood zone and the lowest floor, lowest equipment and adjacent ground elevations, for comparison with the base flood elevation.

  • Ask the seller and the city or county floodplain administrator for an existing certificate first. A completed certificate does not expire unless a physical change to the building invalidates it, and it stays with the building when the property sells.
  • FEMA does not require one to buy an NFIP flood insurance policy; the buyer's insurance agent can say whether to submit one.
  • A certificate does not change the flood map. Only a Letter of Map Amendment (LOMA) or Letter of Map Revision Based on Fill (LOMR-F) from FEMA can remove the federal requirement for a lender to require flood insurance, and the lender may still require it.
Parcel or final map

A lot that cannot be sold until a map records

A lot that needs a parcel map or final map generally cannot be sold, leased or financed until the map is recorded (Gov. Code §66499.30), though a contract expressly conditioned on the map's approval and recording is allowed.

  • A licensed land surveyor or registered civil engineer prepares the map, and the county surveyor, or in a city the city engineer or city surveyor, checks it before it records.
  • Only moving a line between existing parcels? A lot line adjustment (four or fewer adjoining parcels, no new lot) needs no subdivision map (Gov. Code §66412(d)).

Process

Ordering around a closing date

Dates, documents and parties belong on the order. Fieldwork and filing depend on the site, the records and, when a filing is required, county review.

  1. Put the dates on the order

    Tell us the closing date and any contingency deadline when you order, and who controls access to the property. Send the preliminary title report or title commitment with its exception documents; for an ALTA/NSPS survey, order early, once the commitment is issued.

  2. Name the parties to certify

    For an ALTA/NSPS survey, get the lender's Table A list and the parties to certify in writing. The plat is certified to the named parties, typically the buyer, the lender and the title insurer, and on request to the lender's successors and assigns (2026 standards, Section 7.B).

  3. Send any earlier survey

    A prior survey shows the monuments and evidence an earlier surveyor relied on. An update of an ALTA/NSPS survey is really a new survey, though: under the 2026 standards, the surveyor certifies current conditions. See what changed in the 2026 standards.

  4. Scope in writing, draft to title

    We confirm the scope, the parties and the deliverables in a written contract before work starts (Bus. & Prof. Code §8759). A draft ALTA/NSPS plat commonly goes to the title officer and lender before the licensed land surveyor signs and seals it.

  5. County filing when the law requires it

    If the survey sets corners no recorded map shows, or finds a material discrepancy with one, a record of survey is due within 90 days after the monuments are set or the fieldwork is completed, whichever comes first (Bus. & Prof. Code §8762(b), (c)). The county surveyor examines it before it is filed with the county recorder.

Limits

What the surveyor can and cannot say

A survey shows where the lines are on the ground and what sits near them. The legal, permit and appraisal questions that follow belong to others.

What the signed map shows

A survey is a licensed surveyor's opinion of where the existing lines are, shown with the evidence behind it on a signed and sealed map.

  • Where the record lines and corners fall on the ground, with the monuments found or set
  • Recorded easements that can be located from their written descriptions
  • Fences, walls, buildings and driveways near the lines, so potential encroachments are visible
  • On an ALTA/NSPS survey, the flood zone plotted from the FEMA map (Table A Item 3) and zoning setbacks from a zoning report you supply (Item 6), when those optional items are ordered

What belongs to others

The map gives every party the same evidence. Even the new ALTA/NSPS encroachment table (Table A Item 20) expressly makes no legal opinion and no opinion about ownership.

  • Whether something is legally an encroachment, and any claim of adverse possession or a prescriptive easement: the owners and their attorneys
  • Permits, zoning and whether a parcel was legally created: the city or county, which can issue a certificate of compliance
  • Moving a line: a lot line adjustment approved by the city or county, not a survey
  • What the title policy insures: the title insurer
  • Appraisals: the appraiser

For buyer packets

Two lines for your disclosures and buyer packets

Two short, sourced points that answer common buyer questions about lines and fences.

  • Bus. & Prof. Code §8726, §8731

    Assessor's maps are not surveys

    Assessor's parcel maps and online parcel layers are not surveys, and a fence may not sit on the property line. Locating the lines on the ground takes a boundary survey by a licensed land surveyor or a civil engineer registered before January 1, 1982.

  • Civ. Code §841

    Neighbors share boundaries and monuments

    Adjoining owners share equally in maintaining the boundaries and monuments between them (Civil Code §841). A survey before any fence work puts the new fence on the surveyed line, not an old fence line.

Buyers asking how to find their own lines can start with how to find your property lines and corner pins in California.

Sources & references
  1. 2026 Professional Land Surveyors' Act, Business and Professions Code §§8700–8805 (§8726, §8731, §8759, §8761, §8762, §8772, §8774) (Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists)
  2. Civil Code §841, boundaries, monuments, and dividing fences (California Legislative Information)
  3. Government Code §66412, lot line adjustments (California Legislative Information)
  4. Government Code §66499.30, sale, lease or financing before a map records (California Legislative Information)
  5. 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)
  6. Frequently Asked Questions on ALTA/NSPS Land Title Surveys, including the 2026 Standards (PDF, January 5, 2026 version) (ALTA and NSPS)
  7. Title Insurance consumer guide: standard vs. extended coverage (California Department of Insurance)
  8. NFIP Elevation Certificate and Instructions, FEMA Form FF-206-FY-22-152 (2022 edition) (FEMA)
  9. Residential Building Permit checklist, with the Land Surveyor's Certification for Building Permit (PDF) (Town of Paradise)

Last reviewed .

FAQs for agents, escrow and title officers

Should a seller order a survey before listing?

A seller should consider one when a fence, driveway or outbuilding sits near a line, corners are missing, or the parcel is rural acreage. A boundary survey shows the lines, the corners found or set, recorded easements from the title report and where improvements sit, so a line question comes up before a buyer's contingency period is running. If the survey sets corners that no recorded map shows, a record of survey is filed with the county surveyor and becomes a public record (Bus. & Prof. Code §8762).

Can you meet the buyer's agent on site?

We can coordinate the site visit with the buyer's or listing agent. When you order, tell us who controls access and who would like to be there. On site, the crew can show the corner monuments it finds or sets; the signed map, not the visit, is the record of where the lines are. Monuments that control the lines may sit on neighboring lots, which a licensed land surveyor may enter to look for boundary evidence (Bus. & Prof. Code §8774).

Can you certify the survey to the buyer, lender and title insurer?

Yes, on an ALTA/NSPS land title survey. The plat is certified to the parties the transaction names, typically the buyer, the lender and the title insurer, and on request the certificate can be extended to the lender's successors and assigns (2026 ALTA/NSPS standards, Section 7.B). Get the certified parties and the lender's Table A list in writing and send them with the order. A standalone boundary survey follows California law without that national checklist, so tell us when you order who will rely on it.

The seller has an old survey: is it enough?

Sometimes; it depends on who will rely on it. For an ALTA/NSPS survey, an update is really a new survey: under the 2026 standards, the surveyor certifies current conditions. The standards set no expiration date, so the lender and title insurer decide whether an existing survey is recent enough. For a line question, an older survey or a filed record of survey shows which monuments controlled the lines when it was made, not where today's fences and buildings sit. Send it with the order either way.

Does a survey show easements and encroachments?

A boundary survey shows recorded easements that can be located from their written descriptions, usually those listed in the preliminary title report. The map also shows fences, walls and buildings near the lines, so potential encroachments are visible; whether one is legally an encroachment is for the owners and their attorneys to resolve. An ALTA/NSPS survey also notes whether each survey-related title exception lies within, crosses or does not touch the property.

Further reading

  • Land Surveying

    Boundary Surveying

    Property lines and corners located and monumented, with recorded easements shown.

  • Land Surveying

    ALTA/NSPS Land Title Surveys

    Title and lender surveys to the 2026 ALTA/NSPS standards.

  • Land Surveying

    Legal Descriptions & Easements

    Sealed Exhibits A and B for deeds, easements and lot line adjustments.

  • Land Surveying

    Elevation Certificates

    Surveyed floor and ground elevations on FEMA's form, signed and sealed.

Explore all Land Surveying services

Related projects

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    Olive Ranch Apartments

    Oroville, Butte County, California: property and boundary surveys, plus ALTA surveys and lot line adjustments for multiple phases.

Agents, escrow & title

Have a file that needs a survey?

Send the address or APN, the preliminary title report, the closing date and any prior survey, or call (530) 682-7679. We'll confirm the scope, the parties and the deliverables before work starts.

Start a survey request Start an ALTA/NSPS request