When showing homes to buyers, one of the most dreaded questions in the industry often arises, “where’s the property line?” What seems like a relatively straight forward question, often gets a less than a straight forward answer.
When looking at a new subdivision, that has recently been surveyed, finding the survey pins in the four corners of a parcel can be child’s play. When looking at a 1970’s rambler, even one with decent fencing, the answer isn’t so clear. Say 25 or 30 years ago, two neighbors who were very friendly verbally agreed to place a DIY fence 5 feet into one of their properties. Fast forward to today and new owners who know nothing about his verbal agreement go to replace the broken and rotten fence. While mapping out the new fence posts, the property line now comes into question and relations sour.
If property lines are not clear, and their actual location is important to you – you need to get a survey. Have your agent discuss getting title insurance that performs a survey to insure against physical encroachments and know where the lines are. Get a survey and don’t rely on fences or garden beds. And most importantly, don’t relay on your agent to tell you they “think the boundary is over there”.
Olympia Real Estate Blog 