When a mortgage company notifies you that you are required to get a land survey for a piece of property you are considering buying, they don't always tell you specifically what types of surveys they are going to require. A physical or boundary survey is typically a basis when ordered by a mortgage company during the lending process. The physical survey basically provides peace-of-mind for all parties involved by providing a retracing of the title and confirming the physical evidence of boundaries, the establishment of total acreage and determining if encroachments have occurred in the interim.

However, depending on your property's location and attributes, the mortgage company may also request additional surveys such as an ALTA/ACMS land survey, FEMA Flood Elevation Certificate or an in-shore hydrographic survey if your property is waterfront.

Physical Surveys

A physical survey refers to the process of determining the demarcation of land by firmly identifying its boundaries.  It's typical for large tracts of land to have some of its boundaries in dispute - especially where there are no physical means of marking its boundaries with posts or fencing. Thus, most title companies will request a physical survey to resolve any claims disputes and verify and finalize ownership for deeds of record.  We also provide physical surveys for several banking and lending entities where land is sometimes used as collateral so that the same can be mortgaged for purposes of a loan.