ALTA/NSPS Land Title Survey News
REPORTING AND SHOWING ACCESS
Per the Minimum Standard Detail Requirements for ALTA Surveys in Section 5.B, 6.C.iii and 6.C.iv, the Surveyor has specific responsibilities in reporting and showing how the surveyed property gains access to a dedicated public right-of-way, or to clearly indicate the lack of such access. Even though the standards are pretty specific regarding all information that needs to be shown such as street name, right-of-way width, indication of public or private roadway, improved roadway and width of pavement along with curb cuts, driveways, etc., it can still be difficult to ascertain whether the property is actually accessing the traveled roadway within a dedicated public right-of-way when reviewing a survey. Not all surveyors are clear in the labeling of all this information and it can be confusing to understand. The main concern is whether the property line that adjoins the public right-of-way is contiguous and one in the same with the right-of-way of the road. The boundary line that adjoins should clearly be also indicated as the right-of-way line of the roadway. Another way to gain this comfort is that when a metes and bounds description of the property is the record description, the survey call along the roadway should read something similar to the following: “Thence N. 77 deg. 27’ 33” W. a distance of 237.55 feet along the northern right-of-way line of State Highway 41 to a point.” The bounded by component of the survey call states that the property line is along the road. It is important to learn that the property can access the roadway without the need to utilize lands of others that may be between the property line and the roadway. In instances when surveys are presented where this matter is not clear, it is advisable to ask the surveyor to make a general note on the survey to clarify, such as, “the surveyed property shown hereon has contiguous access to State Route 41, a dedicated public highway as shown hereon.” The title company may be asked to provide an access endorsement to their policy and this clear indication is important. Lastly, if the property does not have direct or contiguous access to the public right-of-way, maybe through a private road or over the lands of others, the reviewer of the survey wants to be sure that the surveyed property has a beneficial right or appurtenant easement to gain access to the public way.
NV5 offers a one-hour seminar on ALTA Survey review that includes a discussion on this issue and many others. The seminar can be provided in person or on- line and in some states qualifying for continuing education credit. Please contact us at 800-787-8397, ext. 15135 or via email at: James.Brown@NV5.com.
ZONING IN THE NEWS
What’s a PD or a PUD?
Occasionally, you’ll see the abbreviation PD or PUD in zoning. PD stands for Planned Development (or Planned Unit Development). When a property has been developed according to an approved site/development plan, sometimes the municipality will go ahead and give it a special zoning designation, such as PD, rather than a more conventional zone, such as C-2. What that indicates is that, typically, that particular property or section of area will be governed by requirements that were approved specifically for that development, rather than by the standard zoning code. When the zoning is researched, we will pull a copy of the plan and its conditions of approval, and use that information for the zoning report. For example, rather than pull the permitted uses, setbacks, parking requirements, etc., from the zoning code, those same or similar requirements will come instead from the approved plan. That information can be used the same way when we compare zoning requirements to the conditions as depicted or noted on a survey. Just keep in mind that occasionally there may be a slight increase in lead-time for PD properties, depending upon their age and the municipalities’ document storage protocols.
Introducing NV5 Real Estate Transaction Services
Bock & Clark, celebrating 50 years of providing service to the real estate industry, is now fully integrated into the NV5 family of companies. We are now known as NV5 Real Estate Transaction Services. The level of service, our product line and commitment to quality remains unchanged. When engaging with us for your due diligence needs, you can trust that we bring those 50 years of industry experience to execute and deliver service beyond your expectations.
All contacts remain the same as we provide the commercial real estate industry with ALTA Surveys, Zoning Reports, and Environmental and Assessment Services, nationwide. Our clients and contacts will notice changes to our materials and website.
Please bookmark our New Website at staging.nv5.com/real-estate-transaction-services. All web traffic to www.bockandclark.com will be redirected to our new site. Our section of the NV5 website will continue to offer online quote requests, showcase our educational materials including our handbook, newsletter, and blog posts, and provide general information about our services the industry has come to rely upon.
We look forward to this next chapter in our company history and appreciate the continued support of our customers. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your NV5 Real Estate Transaction Services contact.
NV5 Real Estate Transactions Services News & Upcoming Events:
NV5 Real Estate Transaction Services is looking forward to participating and sponsoring the Spring Metrolina Paralegal Association Annual Meeting on Friday, April 14th in Charlotte, North Carolina. Jim Brown of NV5 will be presenting to the attendees on ALTA/NSPS Survey and Title review.
- Proud 2023 sponsor of CREW (Commercial Real Estate Women) National
- Proud 2023 sponsor of ACREL (American College of Real Estate Lawyers)