While a lot of people think about land surveys in the most basic sense, the drawing of the boundaries of a property, in actuality there are lots of varied and different ways of surveying that service a variety of industries. Property surveys certainly are a large section of the business, but additionally, there are surveys and surveyors that service the construction industry, environmentally friendly sector, and many more. The kinds of surveys which are conducted would surprise most people, and some things that you might think are surveys aren't surveys at all. Rather than the standard two-dimensional measuring in one indicate another, today's surveys not only measure the land, but also the air and water above and below us.
The most typical and well-known surveys conducted today are boundary surveys, mortgage surveys, and topographic surveys. An ALTA survey, which is actually a shortened title for ATLA/ACSM, combines elements of all three, with a set of standards help with jointly by the American Land Title Association and the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping. ALTA surveys are most commonly used for commercial properties; by having a universal standard, companies can assure themselves of the amount of thoroughness and be confident when the email address details are guaranteed by an ALTA survey.
Boundary Surveys are exactly what the name describes: a survey to establish the true boundaries of confirmed property. Through previously recorded markers and the establishment of new landmarks, a surveyor will establish the true boundaries of a property and mark the corners and lines of the plot, using markers such as for example iron rods, pipes or concrete monuments in the ground, or nails set in concrete or asphalt. Previously, piles of stones, trees or other, less permanent markers were used, which resulted in confusion once the markers were either destroyed or changed.
Mortgage Surveys are simple surveys that, generally, determine land boundaries and building locations. They're usually required by title companies and lending institutions when they provide financing showing that there are no structures encroaching on the property and that any structures on the house meet current zoning and building codes. Affordable Housing Valuations Clapham is important to ensure that you are receiving an officially licensed mortgage survey performed by a licensed land surveyor, and not a mortgage inspection, that is a substandard survey which does not stick to any set standards and isn't regulated or accepted being an official land survey.
Topographic Surveys are land surveys which locate natural and man-made features. For example, buildings, improvements, fences, elevations, land contours, trees and streams. These are then measured for their elevation on a specific parcel, and presented as contour lines on a plot. Topographical surveys are occasionally required by the government. Engineers and architects also use topographical surveys to aid in the look of improvements or developments on a site.
One of the largest and most rapidly growing segments of land surveys are in the construction industry. Surveys are necessary tools from inception and planning, to actual construction and maintenance afterwards. Most construction surveys fall under the discipline of civil engineering, which may require additional degrees and certifications as a way to conduct. All construction projects start out with the Plot Plan or Site Plan, which sets out the plan for the whole project, including all existing and proposed conditions on confirmed site. As-Built Surveys are conducted several times during a construction project to verify for local and state boards that the task authorized was completed to the specifications set on the plot plan. Foundation Surveys certainly are a kind of as-built survey which collects the positional data on a foundation that is poured and is currently cured. Foundation surveys are done to make sure that the foundation has both been constructed in the correct location and contains been built in the correct manner in line with the plan.
For existing structures, a Deformation Survey determines in case a structure or object is changing shape or moving. By the taking of three-dimensional positions on specific points on an object, then letting a period pass before retaking and measuring the points, a determination of whether a structure is moving can be made.
Although it might seem counter-intuitive, land surveyors are also in charge of performing Hydrographic and Bathymetric Surveys. Hydrographic surveys collect data relating to any body of water, and the data collected can include the water depth, bottom contours, the direction of the current, observing and recording high water marks and water levels, and also location of fixed objects and landmarks for navigational purposes. They are able to also be conducted to gather information for engineering or resource management purposes, such as hydro power plants. Bathymetric surveys deal exclusively underwater, and map the seabed profile.
Geodetic surveys are categorized as both the land and water category, as they map out the shoreline. Thomas Jefferson commissioned a geodetic survey in 1807 as the Survey of the Coast. Progress on the survey moved slowly initially, as they didn't even have the correct instruments to perform the survey until 1815. It still exists today because the National Geodetic Survey and its responsibilities now include the interior lands of america and also its coasts.
Wetlands Delineation and Location Surveys belong in a category all by themselves; they're performed when construction work that's being planned on or near a site containing defined wetlands. Local, state, or federal regulations vary, but wetlands are usually classified as areas which are completely inundated with water more than two weeks through the growing season. Boundaries of wetlands are determined by observing the soil colors, vegetation, erosion patterns or scour marks, hydrology, and morphology of the land in question. Data is then collected on the locations of the placed flags and an idea is drawn to reference the boundary of the wetlands and compare it to the proposed boundaries of the surrounding plots or parcels of land and the construction work proposed within.
While there are many more forms of land surveys, to list all of them and their attributes would result in a very long article. The options presented above are simply just the most common forms of land surveys, and those that everyone is most likely to encounter.