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Jason Emery
County Surveyor
Mailing Address:
Board of County Commissioners
Boulder County Courthouse
P.O. Box 471
Boulder, CO 80306
Telephone:
303-441-1665
Send an Email
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Boulder County Surveyor
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What is a Professional Land Surveyor?
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Per Colorado Revised Statutes 12-25-202(7): "Professional Land
Surveyor" means an individual who practices professional land
surveying and who is currently registered with the State board after
demonstrating competency to practice, as defined by section 12-25-214.
Registration is earned through years of education and experience and
successful completion of a series of licensing examinations. |
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What is a Land Survey?
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A land survey is performed for the purpose of locating, describing,
monumenting, and mapping the boundaries and corners of a parcel of land. It
may also include mapping of the topography of the parcel, and the location
of buildings or other improvements upon the parcel. |
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What is a Boundary?
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A boundary is any natural or artificial separation marking the border
of two adjacent properties. A natural boundary is one existing in nature
such as a river, while an artificial boundary is one created by written
conveyance such as the Public Land Survey System, Subdivisions or Deeds. |
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How are Boundaries Created?
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Most boundaries are created by written documents (as Warranty or Quit
Claim Deeds) that contact specific descriptions. Property rights may also
be established by unwritten means such as long time physical occupation of
land. A Professional Land Surveyor will research these factors and how
they affect the boundaries of your property. |
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When Should I Have my Land Surveyed?
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You should have your land surveyed:
- Before you purchase it. This will disclose the relationship between
the lines of possession and the deeded property lines.
- A lending institution may require either a Land Survey Plat or an
Improvement Location Certificate of your property when you borrow
money on it.
- Whenever you believe there may be a conflict of use on your
property.
- Prior to dividing a parcel of land for sale.
- The county or city where the property is located may require a Land
Survey prior to the construction of any structure or improvement on
the property.
- When you intend to sell any tract of land.
- When your attorney, architect, real estate broker or municipal
planning or engineering office advises or requires it.
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How Do I Authorize a Land Survey?
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Explain why you want the survey. The surveyor can then advises you as
to what standards and type of survey is required. You should furnish the
Professional Land Surveyor with a description of the property along with
all other information or documents that you have regarding the parcel.
These would include abstracts of title, title reports, previous survey
reports and maps and the location of any corner monuments. The
Professional Land Surveyor may request a retainer and written
authorization to proceed prior to conducting the survey. |
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How Much Will a Survey Cost?
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The Professional Land Surveyor's fees will be based on the anticipated
difficulty and time required to complete the project. Routine survey
projects may be estimated as to cost, but the client should be aware that
in many situations, the Professional Land Surveyor cannot predict the
amount of work that will be required to recover necessary monuments,
restore lost or obliterated corners, research city and county records,
collect field data, complete mathematical calculations, and prepare
descriptions and maps of the property. All of this must be combined and
analyzed to establish the location of property corners and create the
final map. One of the most uncertain and costly part of the survey is the recovery
of various types of monuments. It is important for landowners, contractors
and the general public to be aware that the careless treatment and
destruction of survey monuments adds time and cost to subsequent surveys.
Competitive bidding for the lowest price does not necessarily protect
the interests of the client, the public, or the Professional Land
Surveyor. The competency, reputation, education and experience of several
surveyors should be considered before one is selected to perform the
survey.
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Duties of the Professional Land Surveyor:
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A Professional Land Surveyor renders a highly technical service to the
client. As a licensed professional, the services provided by the surveyor
must comply with several applicable laws, regulations, standards and codes
which have been established by state, county and local governments and
professional societies. The Professional Land Surveyor must conform to
these guidelines and will abide by these high standards of conduct and
practice. |
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What Can a Professional Land Surveyor do for me?
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The Professional Land Surveyor can:
- Review your deed along with other evidence and render a professional
opinion as to the locations and any conflicts of the boundaries of
your land.
- Set monuments at your property corners and mark them so they can be
easily found and identified.
- Keep an accurate record of all services performed and measurements
obtained. · Identify and advise you of any apparent defect in your
land description or evidence of conflict of ownership and/or use.
- Prepare a plat or map of your property indicating boundary
measurements, the monuments found and placed, and the calculated area.
- Provide the client with copies of these maps bearing the
Professional Land Surveyor's signature and seal. Copies of these maps
will also be filed in the County Records where the land is located.
This will ensure that the plat or map is available for public
inspection.
In addition, a Professional Land Surveyor is qualified to:
- Create a property description for all new parcels or any existing
parcels that may have a defect.
- Appear in court as an expert witness concerning real property
ownership, location or use.
- Assist you in the planning and layout of the Lots, Blocks, Streets,
Easements, etc. in a new subdivision.
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Protect your investment:
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In order to protect your investment, it is best to retain a
Professional Land Surveyor prior to the planning of your development and
investment of funds. The Professional Land Surveyor can locate the
boundaries of a property upon which improvements are planned and
constructed and can layout proposed improvements on your property. These
professional services assure that your improvements are positioned
correctly, possibly preventing costly complications. |
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Published as a public service by the Professional Land Surveyors of
Colorado, Inc. Used with permission.
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