"Get a survey" means different things depending on why you need one. Buying raw land for a future home, financing a commercial parcel, or just confirming your fence line each call for a different type of survey — and paying for the wrong one wastes money without answering the question you actually had.

Boundary Survey — Confirms Where the Property Lines Are

A boundary survey establishes the legal corners and lines of a parcel based on the deed and prior surveys of record. It's the baseline survey most land buyers need before building, fencing, or subdividing, since it confirms exactly what you're buying and where it ends.

Improvement Location Survey — What Mortgage Lenders Usually Require

An Improvement Location Certificate (sometimes called a mortgage survey) is a simplified survey that shows existing structures relative to the boundary lines. It's typically used on parcels with an existing home rather than raw land, and it's not precise enough to rely on for construction or boundary disputes.

Topographic Survey — Shows the Land's Shape and Features

A topographic survey maps elevation changes, contours, wetlands, tree lines, and other physical features of a parcel. Builders, engineers, and septic designers rely on topo surveys to plan a home site, driveway, or septic system layout, especially on sloped or irregular land.

ALTA/NSPS Survey — The Standard for Commercial and Title-Insured Deals

An ALTA/NSPS Land Title Survey is a detailed, standardized survey format used mainly in commercial land transactions, particularly when a lender or title insurer requires one to issue an extended title policy. It combines boundary, improvement, and easement information into a single, title-company-recognized document — the format that came up on 172 Route 15's mixed-zoning parcel, for example, where highway frontage and an existing billboard lease both needed to be clearly documented.

Which One Do You Actually Need?

For most residential land purchases in Sussex or Warren County, a boundary survey (often paired with a topo survey if you're planning construction) is enough. Commercial, highway-frontage, or income-producing parcels — anything a lender or title company will scrutinize closely — usually call for an ALTA survey. When in doubt, ask your attorney or lender which one they'll require before you pay for the wrong survey.