Property Survey: Boundary Surveys, Costs and When to Order

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A listing photo shows the house, the yard and maybe a fence, but it does not show where the lot actually ends. That question belongs to a property survey. A survey measures the parcel against its recorded legal description and shows how the house, garage, driveway, fences and other improvements sit in relation to the boundary lines, easements and setbacks. For buyers, the survey is often the only document that reveals a neighbor’s shed sitting partly on the lot, a driveway that crosses a utility easement, or an addition built closer to the line than expected. This guide explains the main survey types, what each one shows, how surveys connect to title insurance, and when buyers on the Colorado Front Range usually order one. It is general consumer information, not legal advice. Contract terms, title practices and survey standards vary, so confirm the details of your own purchase with your title company, a licensed surveyor or a real estate attorney.

Part of our Home Inspections Explained guide — start there for the full picture →

What a Property Survey Is and What It Shows

A property survey is a professional measurement of a parcel of land, performed by a licensed land surveyor, that locates the boundaries described in the deed and plat and maps what is on the ground in relation to them. The result is a drawing, often called a plat or map of survey, usually accompanied by notes and a certification from the surveyor.

Depending on the type of survey and what the client asks for, a survey can show:

• Boundary lines and corners. The surveyor researches recorded documents, searches for existing monuments such as iron pins or caps, and may set new monuments where corners are missing.
• Improvements. The house, attached and detached garages, sheds, decks, patios, driveways, walls and fences, with their distance from the lines.
• Easements of record. Utility, drainage and access strips that appear on the plat or in recorded documents. Our guide to the easement types common on residential lots covers what those strips mean for owners.
• Encroachments. Anything that crosses a line, in either direction, such as a neighbor’s fence on the lot or a patio that extends onto the neighbor’s side. See the related guide on encroachment for how buyers and owners usually work through those problems.
• Setbacks and other limits. Some surveys note building setback lines from the plat or zoning, which helps show whether a structure sits closer to a line than allowed.

A survey does not evaluate whether the house is well built, and it does not tell anyone whether a roof leaks or a furnace works. It answers a different question: where the property is, and whether what is built there fits inside it.

Types of Property Surveys Buyers Run Into

“Survey” is used loosely in real estate conversations. Several different products go by that name. Knowing which one the contract calls for, and which one the title company will accept, prevents surprises late in the deal.

Boundary survey

A boundary survey establishes the property lines and corners. The surveyor reviews the deed, the subdivision plat and adjoining parcels’ records, then goes into the field to locate or set monuments. A boundary survey is the usual choice when an owner plans a new fence, an addition or a detached structure near a line, or when a neighbor disputes where the line is. It is also the type that best supports a conversation about an encroachment, because it is built to establish the line itself rather than just locate improvements.

ALTA/NSPS land title survey

An ALTA/NSPS survey follows detailed national standards developed by the American Land Title Association and the National Society of Professional Surveyors. It is common in commercial transactions and on larger or unusual residential properties, because it is designed to give a title insurer what it needs to remove certain survey-related exceptions. It typically covers boundaries, improvements, easements of record, visible evidence of possible unrecorded easements, access to public roads and other optional items the client selects. It is also the most involved and generally the most expensive option, so it is rarely ordered for a typical single-family resale.

Topographic survey

A topographic survey maps elevations and contours, along with features such as trees, slopes and drainage paths. Buyers rarely need one for a standard purchase, but architects, engineers and builders use them when designing additions, grading changes, retaining walls or new construction. On hillside lots in the foothills west of Denver, Boulder and Colorado Springs, a topographic survey can help explain how water moves across the property and toward the house.

Improvement Location Certificate (ILC) in Colorado

In Colorado residential closings, the document many buyers actually receive is an Improvement Location Certificate, usually called an ILC. An ILC is prepared by a licensed surveyor and shows the approximate location of the house and other improvements relative to the recorded lot lines. It is typically less involved than a boundary survey: the surveyor generally does not set new corner monuments, and an ILC commonly carries a statement that it is not a land survey plat or improvement survey plat and should not be relied on to establish fence, building or other future improvement lines.

That distinction matters. An ILC can flag a problem, such as a garage that appears to sit over a setback line or a fence that appears to wander off the lot, but it is generally not the tool for settling exactly where a line is. When an ILC raises a question, buyers often move to a full boundary survey. Title companies in Colorado often use an ILC when deciding whether to offer expanded coverage on survey-related matters, though practices differ by company and transaction, so ask the title company what it will accept.

Older survey copies from the seller

Some sellers hand buyers an existing survey from their own purchase years ago. An old survey can be useful background, but it only shows conditions at the time it was drawn. A fence replaced last summer, a shed added in 2019 or a driveway widened after the previous sale will not appear. Buyers should treat an old survey as a starting point and ask the title company whether it will accept it, often with a seller affidavit stating nothing has changed, or whether a new survey or ILC is needed.

How Surveys Connect to Title Insurance

Title insurance and surveys are closely linked. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) explains that title insurance can protect a buyer if someone later sues and says they have a claim against the home from before the purchase, and that most lenders require a lender’s title insurance policy, while an owner’s policy is often optional. Our guide to title insurance covers the lender’s and owner’s policies in more detail.

What the CFPB pages do not dwell on, but buyers see in practice, is that title commitments usually list standard exceptions related to survey matters. These often exclude coverage for problems that an accurate survey or inspection of the property would have revealed, such as encroachments, boundary line disputes, overlaps, shortages in area and easements that are not recorded. In plain terms, if nobody looked at where the improvements sit, the policy may not cover a problem that looking would have found.

Depending on the state, the title company and the policy form, a buyer may be able to request expanded coverage that removes or narrows some of those survey exceptions. Doing so usually requires the title company to review a current survey or ILC, and it may involve an additional charge. Rules and forms vary, so the practical step is simple: read the exceptions section of the title commitment, then ask the title company what it would take to remove the survey-related ones and what that would cost.

The CFPB notes that title service fees appear on page 2 of the Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, and that services listed in Section C can be shopped. Survey or ILC charges, when the buyer pays them, often show up in the same part of the closing paperwork. The closing costs guide explains how to read those sections.

Fences, Additions and Other Things Surveys Catch

Most survey surprises on residential lots are ordinary, not dramatic. They tend to fall into a handful of patterns that appear again and again in older Front Range neighborhoods and newer subdivisions alike.

• Fences built “close enough.” Many fences were placed by eye, by a previous owner or by a neighbor, without a survey. A fence a foot or two off the line is common. That can matter when the buyer plans a replacement, because the new fence usually belongs on the correct line, not on the old fence’s footprint. The fence repair guide covers the practical side of replacing or repairing fencing.
• Sheds and detached structures. Prefabricated sheds and older outbuildings are often set close to rear and side lines, sometimes inside a utility easement or setback. A detached garage built decades ago may also predate current setback rules.
• Additions and decks. A bedroom addition, enclosed porch or large deck can push the footprint toward a setback line. Whether a permit was issued is a separate question from where the structure sits, and buyers sometimes need to check both.
• Driveways and parking pads. Shared driveways, widened driveways and gravel pads beside garages can cross a line or depend on an access arrangement that is not written down.
• Retaining walls and landscaping. Walls built to hold back a slope sometimes straddle a line, which raises questions about who maintains them.

None of these automatically kills a purchase. Many are resolved with a conversation, a written agreement or a decision to move a fence later. The point is to learn about them before closing, while the contract still gives the buyer options.

What a Home Inspection Does and Does Not Cover Here

Buyers sometimes assume the home inspector will flag boundary problems. Generally, that is not part of the job. The ASHI Standard of Practice for home inspections lists fences and boundary walls among items the inspector is not required to inspect, and states that inspectors are not required to perform surveying services or to confirm or evaluate surveying services performed by others. It also excludes compliance with codes, regulations, laws and ordinances.

What the ASHI standard does include is vegetation, grading, surface drainage and retaining walls that are likely to adversely affect the building, along with driveways, walkways and patios. So an inspector may point out a retaining wall that is leaning or a driveway that slopes water toward the foundation, but determining whether the wall sits on the neighbor’s land is a surveyor’s question. The two reports complement each other. The home inspection basics hub explains what a standard inspection covers, and the broader guide to hiring a home inspector walks through choosing one.

When Buyers Should Order a Property Survey

Whether a buyer needs a full survey, an ILC or nothing beyond what the title company already requires depends on the property and the buyer’s plans. Situations where a full boundary survey is often worth discussing include:

• The title commitment lists survey exceptions the buyer wants removed, and the title company says it needs a survey to do so.
• An ILC or older survey shows something that looks off: an improvement near or over a line, a fence that does not match the lot shape, or an unexplained easement.
• The buyer plans to build a fence, addition, garage, pool or retaining wall near a line soon after closing.
• The lot is large, irregular, rural or on a hillside, or the legal description is old and uses metes and bounds rather than a subdivision lot and block.
• There is a shared driveway, a private road, or access that crosses another parcel.
• The home is a foreclosure, estate sale or as-is listing where the seller knows little about the property’s history.

For a typical suburban lot in a platted subdivision with no planned projects, many Colorado buyers rely on an ILC. That is a reasonable choice for many purchases, as long as the buyer understands what an ILC is designed to show and what it is not.

Timing a Survey Within Contract Deadlines

Survey timing matters because purchase contracts are built around deadlines. Colorado’s standard residential contract forms, approved by the Colorado Real Estate Commission, have included separate dates for receiving a new ILC or survey and for objecting to what it shows. Forms are revised from time to time, so buyers should confirm with their agent which dates apply in their own contract and who is responsible for ordering and paying.

A few practical points help:

1. Order early. Surveyors can be booked out, especially in busy spring and summer markets. Weather and snow cover can also slow fieldwork on the Front Range in winter.
2. Line it up with the inspection. The inspection period and the survey period often overlap. Reviewing both reports together gives a fuller picture. The home inspection contingency guide explains how inspection objection deadlines usually work.
3. Leave room to object. If the survey shows a problem, the buyer may need time to ask the seller to fix it, negotiate, or walk away under the contract terms. An attorney can help with that conversation.

The guide to the steps to buying a house places the survey within the full purchase timeline.

What a Property Survey Costs

Survey pricing varies widely, and published averages are often out of date or based on other markets. Factors that commonly affect the price include:

• Survey type. An ILC is generally less expensive than a boundary survey, and an ALTA/NSPS survey is generally the most expensive.
• Lot size and shape. Large or irregular parcels take more fieldwork.
• Terrain and vegetation. Steep slopes, dense brush and snow cover add time.
• Records. A clean modern subdivision plat is easier to work from than an old metes-and-bounds description with missing monuments.

The most reliable way to learn the cost is to request quotes from licensed surveyors who work in the county where the property sits, and to confirm what deliverables are included, such as monument setting, a recorded plat or a digital file. Who pays is usually set by the contract and local custom, so check both before assuming the seller or buyer covers it.

Reading the Survey Once It Arrives

Survey drawings can look intimidating, but buyers can review the main points without technical training:

• Check that the address, legal description and lot number match the contract and the title commitment.
• Look for dashed lines labeled as easements, and compare them with the easements listed in the title commitment.
• Look at the distances from the house and garage to each line, and note anything labeled as an encroachment or “over” a line.
• Read the notes and certification block. They explain what the surveyor did and did not do.
• Ask the surveyor, the title company or an attorney to explain anything unclear before the objection deadline passes.

References

• What is owner’s title insurance? — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
• What is lender’s title insurance? — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
• What are title service fees? — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
• ASHI Standard of Practice for Home Inspections — American Society of Home Inspectors

Juggling survey, title and inspection dates on a Front Range purchase? Contact us here and we can help connect you with a local inspector who can work within your contract deadlines.