PREPARING AND GRADING YOUR LOT: LAND SURVEY
As discussed in the article “Choosing a Lot for Your New Home,” there are multiple factors that go into the buying decision. However, once you’ve purchased your lot, you need to know the location of the property lines, easements, and elevation. A land survey conducted by yourself or the previous owner will convey this information.
Property Lines
Property lines or boundary lines are the legal boundaries of your lot; they define where you can and cannot build a home, shed, or fence. You can find property line information on your property deed or plat map at your town’s accessor’s office or county recorder. Some deeds will describe the lot’s exact location as it exists on the plat map and it may include precise measurements. In Brunswick County, North Carolina, the county offers a free, online Geographic Information System (GIS) to find maps and information about geographic locations including easements, parcel dimensions, soils, and wetlands.
Easements:
An easement gives a person or third-party provider the right to access your property for a specific purpose, for example, local utility companies hold easements to access power or cables lines. This type of easement is an easement in gross. Another type of easement is an easement appurtenant, which involves two parcels of land. One parcel bears a burden while the other reaps a benefit, for example, your lot’s backyard faces the beach and for your neighbor to access the beach they must walk through your yard. This type of easement could affect the way you had originally purposed the lot to be used and should be taken into consideration when looking at land buying options.
Elevation:
An elevation survey determines a property's lowest point of elevation, flood zones, and building characteristics. Not every property needs an elevation survey and its certificate. You can look up your property on FEMA's flood maps to help determine whether your property is in a high-risk flood zone and if you may need an elevation certificate.
The certificate shows how your property's elevation compares to the base flood elevation on a flood map. Structures that sit at the base flood elevation are considered to have a one percent chance of flooding each year. In addition, you will probably need a new elevation certificate if you make significant changes to your property, for example, converting a garage into livable space.
