Often we get requests to survey older parcels. The client often wishes to simply know their property lines and or their property area.
While this may seem like a simple curiosity, all property owners should know the importance of having a recent and or clear legal record of their property lines and area.
See below for a typical example of an older legal subdivision plan:
Some of the characteristics may include writing that isn’t easily legible and no property area shown.
So often land sizes are approximated based on BC assessment and or a municipal GIS map.
However an issue is that these alternate sources refer back to the legal plan for an accurate area. See below seen on a typical municipal map:
This brings up the issue that only a land surveyor is qualified to solve by either or both of a thorough examination of the older plan and a detailed on site survey.
Compare to below where we prepared a legal reference plan for a client. Dimensions shown in meters and area show in hectares(ha).
When buying or selling a house often the realtor or the seller will pay to measure the square footage of the house as part of their selling brochure.
So we would recommend for all homeowners to consider :
What is the value of each square feet of land on your property?
Considering land is what appreciates in value over time, would a proper record of what you own and or buy/sell be a good idea?
In British Columbia a British Columbia Land Surveyor (BCLS) is the only qualified and provincially legislated professional to assess your property lines and area.
At Elevate Land Surveying we currently operate with 3 British Columbia Land Surveyors covering the Lower Mainland and the Fraser Valley.
Reach out to us and we would be happy to provide you a free consultation on your property needs.