Recently purchased some farm land along with wood lot . It hasn’t been surveyed in who knows how long . Since I’m gonna be renting out the tillable ground , I was thinking of having a survey done . No buildings to worry about as far as property lines . Anyone have experience dealing with a surveyor and what to look for and make sure what’s done ?
Find the one who originally did it since they already have the field notes if you can. you could also go to the county and get the official survey and then go buy a metal detector. Most surveys have now had their markers replaced with steel pins. If they are the old style Metes and Bound survey and the markers are no longer there, then the funds for a surveyor are justified. Metes and Bound use descriptions like “400’ north to the large boulder under the red oak tree with a double blaze. then east to the fourth fence post to the second fence.”
We hired Spicer out of Saginaw. Very well known and respected but I don't know where all he will go. Any surveyor will do what you ask.
I was recently quoted 4500$ to survey a 30 acre rectangular lot in Maine. Seemed pretty hefty to me for the work involved… does that seem reasonable? There is only one steel pin to work with.
Totally reasonable. They’ll spend about 1/3 in the field, 1/3 researching the records and 1/3 giving a final written description. it would take us about 3 days with GPS to fully survey a field that size and draw it up with an accurate description.
Is this just to get the acreage of the tillable ground? You can use Google maps and Google earth to get acreage, both for free as far as I know. There's also an app called Geo Measure that a guy at work uses.
I try to steer the youngsters into this field. Good pay, change of scenery, get to work outdoors, valuable to community. #career
Survey tech isn’t bad. Construction layout is another thing. If you go for your license, it can be a 10 year process. it’s the career field that taught me age discrimination starts at 40.
Wishlist , we had troubles for the couple decades at our old home every time a property next to us changed hands. Marker originally was a corner of the switchback at top of our property. Road morphed and stake is long gone. All the newer surveyors automatically went to the power pole which was put in after the road was platted. Down the canyon at the bottom of our property was an old tree with a marker there thankfully, the good surveyors knew to start there instead of the newer power pole that put our property off 10'. Our markers were old heavy rebar staked in the ground. At first we had to get the (I don't know the documents name) of how the lot boundries were created back then from out county assessor if that helps.
Also, surveys are required here for land purchases, check your purchase paperwork unless it's not required in MI.
you went from a metes and bounds legal description to a cadastral survey. Your old survey of land marks was destroyed when that road marker was removed. people don’t realize it takes a district court order to change a legal description and record. Not just something a records clerk can change on a whim. Why it’s so critical to find the surveyor that has the original field notes to go with the county legal descriptions. there have been people killed over this type of stuff. Man Kills Four Neighbors, Himself Over Land Dispute
Thank you FJ, now Wishlist knows the lingo to find the documents he might need. Egaads on the killer. Just today I saw a clip, a man in Delaware had to sign title of some land over to neighbor that had built a goat run over the property line and used the squatting law.
Does it by chance run along a section line? That solves some potential problems. My place is tucked in the corner. Resolved an issue that also included wow! Glad my place is in the corner of a section that was recently surveyed by the county. By statute here, a county must survey a certain percentage each year. New markers are up. Just in time for the 1200 acres on the north side to have been transferred to a granddaughter.
I’m not going to say I’m an expert, but in 2011, I graduated from a land survey/ civil engineering AAS program working towards my land survey BS. At age 46 I’d have just started working towards 1000+ hours of survey experience to get the licensure…. I went back to trucking when those WITH a 4-year degree were already competing and taking jobs from those FOR a 2-year degree. Being in my mid -40’s wasn’t helping either. it’s a fascinating occupation though to say the least. To survey a 2500 acre piece of property through a city and return to your point of beginning and drop your sighting marker within 1/4” of the original. the county auditor is really where you want to go and get these answers. They like donuts I hear. ETA… If someone lost land on squatters rights, they kind of deserve it. Takes over 7 years of PAID taxes on that land to gain the rights.
Sharing what you know, expert or not is what makes FHC such a cool place because of members like you!!!!!
Well no place else I’ve ever felt comfortable showing pictures of myself or my name either. it’s a pretty cool and nice community here. And I will use the word community…
Yea and no . On 3 sides it has tillable ground that is the neighbors . Over the years who knows how those lines have changed . I did use google maps to see if it would “ match “ the acreage on the deed but it’s short about 3 acres . I know that’s just a “ rough “ idea .
My survey for a 1/3 acre was just under $3,500 1.5 years ago. Used the surveyor in my town as he has a lot of the background already. I didn't need a survey to buy my house/land. Everyone "assumed" the fences bounded the property - they didn't. Only two pins were still there; one at the northeast corner and one partway down the east side. The other 3 corner pins were gone. Oh, and the property description never included the south side. It started at a point on the northwest side (no pin so had to figure it out from the pin at the corner of the closest intersection), to an intersection between two properties on my north side, to the northeast pin (present), to the southeast pin x amount of feet (no pin). That intersection of 2 properties in the middle of the north side was undefined. one of those properties didn't even have a description of their south side (and the measurements were way off too). There was actually a no-man's-land between my property and theirs that technically no one owned if one just went by measurements. Once it was all figured out, the one north side neighbor and I came to legal agreement on the property line. I actually got a few extra feet thru that section because I've been maintaining the drainage area and they weren't interested in doing that. Then it was registered with the state. Then registered with the town, then all the pins were set. That local surveyor had been working on town properties for many decades, so had a lot of the background paperwork and deeds going back to the early 1800 for this area of my town. He still put in a massive amount of work because of all the inconsistencies in this particular block where the houses and apartment buildings have been here for 60 years and no one has requested a survey even when changing hands.
