Boundary survey
A licensed surveyor's map showing exact property lines, structures, and any encroachments. Some lenders require one, and some buyers order one to know exactly where the lines fall.
Every term like this one lights up in the step you're on.
Free to set up. No credit card.Part 1 of 4
Why a seller cares
A survey draws the lines and shows what crosses them: a shed, a fence, a driveway. Some lenders want one, and what it finds can become a title objection you are asked to clear.
Part 2 of 4
A simple example
The buyer orders a survey. It shows your neighbor's fence eighteen inches onto your lot, and your shed six inches over the rear line.
| What the survey finds | What tends to follow |
|---|---|
| The neighbor's fence on your side | Often nothing, or a written agreement for the file |
| Your shed over the rear line | Move it, or an agreement with that neighbor, before closing |
| Clean lines | The survey goes in the file and the title policy is issued without exception |
A survey turns guesses about the line into a drawing the title company reads.
Part 3 of 4
What people get wrong
That the old survey from your purchase still answers the question. Fences, sheds and neighbors change; the lender wants a current one.
Part 4 of 4 · where to read next
Where it appears in the sale
What a definition is, and what it isn't
Keighbor is a software company, not a law firm, brokerage, or tax adviser. This is general information, not legal, tax, financial, or real estate advice about your sale. Your situation may differ. Before acting on a contract, disclosure, title, tax, or pricing question, ask an appropriately licensed professional in your state.
Written and researched by Keighbor Research · drawn from the reference glossary · how we research and check what we publish
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