Of the various land surveying questions we receive, one of the most common inquiries concerns what property corners are and how they’re determined.
Finding and marking the corners of a property is an important part of land surveying and helps ensure an accurate survey result. Here’s a brief overview of what you should know.
Property corners and why they are important
Any time you have a land surveyor come out to survey your property, they will produce a map that shows you exactly where the boundaries of your property lie. This will include some key identifying physical features to help you get a better sense of the lay of the land.
Surveyors also place physical markers on the corners of your property, which can serve as an aid for future work. Depending on where your property is located, these markers might be obvious and above ground, or you might have to dig slightly down to get at them. But having these markers in place helps you better determine where you can build structures, such as garages, sheds, fences or your own home. It also helps you determine where your responsibility ends when it comes to property maintenance, such as mowing the lawn, snow blowing, shoveling and raking.
Corner markers also make it easier for future surveyors to pick up on existing work so they can save time, and also save their clients a bit of expense on the survey they’ll be performing. When field crews go out to a property, they can find the existing corner markers already in place and orient themselves on any previous survey work done, which allows for easier, smoother and more accurate updates to land surveys.
Finding corner markers
The most common type of physical marker used for corner markers is an iron bar with a plastic cap, usually with a bright color so it’s easily noticeable. When placed in pavement, the bar will be set so it’s even with the pavement. If placed in concrete or stone, there will often be a chiseled cross or a drill hole used to mark the corner. In new subdivisions, corners of a property might be marked by concrete monuments.
When the markers are first set, they will often be indicated by a wooden stake with a colored ribbon (if the area is in dirt) or by brightly colored paint (if on hard surfaces).
Look for these signs first if you are wondering if there’s previously been a survey performed on your plot. In some cases, these markers can be difficult to find, especially if it’s been many years since the land was last surveyed. But it’s worth taking a look before you call a surveyor out to your property.
For more information about property corners and why they’re important, and to get answers to other common land surveyor test questions, we encourage you to get in touch with our team at Mason & Associates today to arrange a consultation. We look forward to working with you soon!