I recently bought a house and the survey company screwed up! Help!?

When I bought the house, I thought a had a good sized back yard. Now, my neighbor is building a fence A FEW FEET from the backside of my house! His survey shows that its his property, so I called the survey company that did my original survey. They came out and re-did my survey. It turns out my neighbor is right! The survey company was wrong by thirty feet--and now I have no back yard! What can I do? Is the survey company responsible? I feel I should be compensated for buying this house under false pretenses.

Since you bought your home based upon representations made either by the seller, the survey company, the real estate agent, etc. I would start with what was represented to you PRIOR to having made the offer. After all, you more than likely were notified correctly what the actual size of the yard was. If that number was correct, you can attempt to negoiate with the survey company, since they made a mistake, to rectify their mistake. What does 30 feet more of property represent in value? A $1000? $10,000? In order to determine that, you will need to know what property is worth, so that you know what your claim is potentially worth. Knowing that number also with help to negoiate a figure you can live with (if they offer say, 3/4 of what you have determine a reasonable value (not some inflated figure you have in your head, but an ACTUAL, REALISTIC number, then you can settle it, minus lawyers fees, court fees, wear and tear on self and others, etc. I would also check with the town to make sure the neighbor is complying with ordinances concerning setbacks from your property lines, so that you may may more room, even if it doesn't belong to you, it may be enough to relieve your sense of lost space. I would contact an attorney, preferably out of your immediate area (to reduce the chances that they would have any affiliation with your survey company, and ask to be sure, even if out of area) and see what your immediate options are. Most likely, time is also an issue in making a claim. Notify the survey company, try and be nice, like say, I know anyone can make a mistake, but I relied on your survey, as well as my mortgage company in placing a value on my home, which is now worth X amount less as a result. What do you plan to do about it? Do you have insurance to cover this? What is the name of the insurance company? Can I have their number? Once you shut down communication, you will be on your own and need a lawyer to get further, so try and do your best to secure info you need without losing your temper. Play a bit dumb but not that dumb, just ask nicely and keep asking till they give you what you want. You don't have to mention getting or having spoke to a lawyer, but maybe something like, I sure hate to have to get a lawyer to sort this out, so maybe you can help so we can work this out without having to resort to legal means. Most companies, given an opportunity to make something right, will. And if they have insurance to cover such errors and ommissions, all the better. Also, check with your state concerning licencing, insurance and requirements for survey companies. What nust they have in order to be doing business in your state and then see if they have all that up to snuff. Sorry to hear about your situation and I hope you are able to resolve it without too much stress or expense.

You need to get back with the lawyer that represented you.

Surveys don't convey property. Deeds do that. There's a description in it. Compare it to the survey. You bought what's in the deed, not the survey.

However, surveyors usually refer to deeds to draw the lines, so what you want to understand is, what does the deed say, what does the survey say, and why are they not the same?

You can't know whether your neighbor is right or not until you examine your deed. It's possible that the survey company screwed up, and it's possible that your seller deeded you land they didn't own, and it's possible that you have title insurance that will remedy the situation.

DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMN.

talk about being screwed!

Get a lawyer! And you want to enact the realtor's E&O insurance. It's called Errors and Omissions. Your realtor is also at fault for not catching this. Mention E&O to your lawyer.

of course they should be responsible .. whoever gave you fals information ..

What size was the lot represented to be by the seller when you bought the house?

It seems odd that you would only find out about this from your neighbor. You didn't buy the house because of the survey, and the surveyor certainly didn't sell you the house. On the MLS listing, what was the lot size?

Get everything together and go see a real estate lawyer to see if you can do anything about this.

If you had the survey done before the purchase, and based your puchase on the survey.

I don't see how this could even be possible, isnce they meausre off of set points.

How do you know they are wrong, has you hired another company to do one and verify.

Your deed also should say how many feet your property line is, and 30 feet should be noticable,

But if you used thier survey prior to purchase as a decision, then yes you have a case.

It depends what your contract with them was. If it was merely a valuation for mortgage purposes then you are probably out of luck. If you paid them to do a full survey and they did not bring the dimensions of the yard to your attention, you have a claim for negligence. Having said that, if it was not explicitly included in the instructions or the report you are in for, at best, a painful legal dispute.

Good luck.

Get a lawyer! They are legally obilgated to be correct!!

Your surveyor is definitely responsible. He is a professional. This kind of mistake should never had happened. You should consult a lawyer. Your chance to win the case is very high.

Did you use a Realtor?, If so-get him involved also. He did misrepresent the property. Get a lawyer asap. Do not let much time go by. You may can make the Realtor buy the house back. You will need proof that the size of the yard was misstated. Proof.

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