2021 ALTA/NSPS LAND TITLE SURVEY STANDARDS
The National Society of Professional Surveyors (NSPS) and American Land Title Association (ALTA) have adopted new standards for land title surveys, taking effect tomorrow: February 23rd, 2021. These changes were approved unanimously by the members of the joint ALTA/NSPS Committee and are primarily minor clarifications and edits – see the list below for high-level summary of the major edits:
Section 3.D. – Clarifies that the subject property of the Land Title Survey is now expressed throughout the Standards as either “the surveyed property” or “the property to be surveyed.”
Section 3.E.i. – The definition of Relative Positional Precision has been modified such that it now applies only to “the monument or witness marking any boundary corner of the surveyed property relative to the position of the monument or witness marking an immediately adjacent boundary corner of the surveyed property”
Section 5.C.ii. – Modified to reference Section 5.E.iv. with respect to which utility poles need to be located.
Sections 5.E.ii., iii. and iv. – Utility locate markings should be located and shown as evidence of easements and utilities, including a note as to the source of the markings (with a note if unknown).
Section 6.C.ii. – Now calls for limiting the summary only to rights of way, easements and other survey-related matters.
Section 6.C.ii.(e) – Clarifies that surveyors may provide objective information on rights of way, easements, or survey-related matters (i.e., whether they are on or touch the surveyed property), or, if so inclined, surveyor can opine on the “effect” of such matters, but that such opinions will be based on the description contained in the document. This prevents surveyors from being put in the position of opining on the legal effect of an easement.
Section 6.C.vi. – Include the tax parcel number for adjoining properties, except where the adjoiner is a platted land.
Section 6.C.viii. – If the surveyor becomes aware of a recorded easement not identified in the title evidence provided (typically a title commitment), the surveyor must now advise the title company of the easement and if no evidence of a release is provided, that easement must be shown or its existence otherwise explained on the face of the plat or map.
Table A introduction – Any negotiated changes to the wording of an item (and any additional negotiated items) must be explained with a note.
Table A items 6(a) and (b) – These items have been modified in order to clarify that zoning information specific to the surveyed property must be provided to the surveyor.
Table A item 10(b) – This item, which addressed whether certain walls are plumb, has been eliminated, leaving what had been item 10(a) as simply item 10.
Table A item 11 – This item has been significantly simplified with the aim of trying to better manage clients’ expectations relating to the ability of a surveyor to show underground utilities. There are now two choices that a client can select from (11a being markings based on plans/reports provided to the surveyor and 11b being markings coordinated pursuant to a private utility locate request). Note that a choice relating to 811 locate requests has been eliminated.
Table A item 18 – The wetlands item has been deleted; it continues to be confusing to most clients and is unrelated to any title issue. Of course, wetlands could be addressed with an additional Table A item negotiated as item 20.
Table A item 19 – By selecting this item, offsite easements (which are typically included as easement parcels in Schedule A of the title commitment) will be surveyed as if they are fee parcels (except that they will not be monumented).
There are also many other minor revisions not included in this summary. For detail on edits and copies of the new 2021 standards and a redline copy of all changes, please visit the NSPS website here.