PRECISION FOR THE FUTUREWhat an ALTA/NSPS Land Title Survey is
An ALTA/NSPS Land Title Survey is a boundary survey performed to a national standard jointly adopted by the American Land Title Association (ALTA) and the National Society of Professional Surveyors (NSPS). It is the survey commercial lenders and title insurers rely on: it ties the boundary to the title commitment, shows easements and encroachments, and lets the title company remove or limit its general survey exceptions.
The governing document is the Minimum Standard Detail Requirements for ALTA/NSPS Land Title Surveys. The current edition, adopted by ALTA and NSPS in October 2025, took effect on February 23, 2026 and supersedes the 2021 edition. It is organized in eight sections: Purpose, Request for Survey, Surveying Standards and Standards of Care, Records Research, Fieldwork, Plat or Map, Certification, and Deliverables. The allowable Relative Positional Precision is unchanged at 2 cm (0.07 ft) plus 50 parts per million.
What Table A is, and who chooses the items
The core standard sets what every ALTA/NSPS survey must include: research, fieldwork, the boundary, title commitment items, visible evidence of possible encroachments, and the contents of the plat. Table A lists optional responsibilities on top of that minimum.
The client, usually advised by the lender, the title insurer and counsel, selects the items, and the surveyor agrees to them before the work starts. The selected item numbers then appear in the surveyor’s certification on the plat, so a reviewer can see exactly what was included. Several items carry a blank or a choice the client must fill in (a contour interval, an insurance amount, a zoning report to rely on), and those details need to be settled up front too.
Every Table A item, and what it means for the plat
Wording abridged from the 2026 Table A form. The wording and fee of any of Items 1–20 can be negotiated, and additional items are added as 21(a), 21(b) and so on.
| Item | What the client is asking for | What it means on the plat |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monuments placed (or a reference monument or witness) at all major corners, unless already marked. | Monument symbols and notes stating set or found, with descriptions. |
| 2 | Address(es) disclosed in documents or observed during fieldwork. | Address shown on the parcel or in the notes, with its source. |
| 3 | Flood zone classification from the FIRM (or state or local equivalent), by scaled map location and graphic plotting only. | Flood note with zone, map panel and effective date; zone lines plotted if the parcel is split. |
| 4 | Gross land area (and other areas if the client specifies). | Area in square feet and acres, consistent with the boundary closure. |
| 5 | Vertical relief: source, contour interval, datum and originating benchmark. | Contours or spot elevations, benchmark description and a datum note. |
| 6(a) | Zoning classification, setbacks, height, floor area and parking requirements from a zoning report or letter provided by the client. | Zoning table that cites the report’s date and source. |
| 6(b) | Setback requirements from that report drawn graphically, where no interpretation is needed. | Setback lines drawn and labelled. |
| 7(a) | Exterior dimensions of all buildings at ground level. | Dimensioned building outlines. |
| 7(b)(1) | Square footage of each building’s exterior footprint at ground level. | Footprint area labelled on each building. |
| 7(b)(2) | Square footage of other areas the client specifies. | Additional area labels or a table. |
| 7(c) | Measured height of all buildings above grade, at a location the client specifies (or the point of measurement identified). | Height labels with the measurement location noted. |
| 8 | Substantial features observed during fieldwork (parking lots, billboards, signs, pools, landscaped areas and similar). | Features drawn and labelled to the legend. |
| 9 | Number and type of clearly identifiable parking spaces, and striping of surface spaces. | Striping drawn and a parking count by type (regular, accessible, other marked types). |
| 10 | As designated by the client, the relationship and location of certain division or party walls to adjoining properties. | Wall locations dimensioned to the boundary. |
| 11(a) | Underground utilities from plans and/or reports provided by the client. | Utility lines from plans, with a source note. |
| 11(b) | Underground utilities from markings coordinated under a private utility locate request. | Marked utilities drawn, with the locate ticket referenced. |
| 12 | Governmental agency survey requirements the client specifies (for example HUD). | Whatever additional content the agency requires. |
| 13 | Names of adjoining owners from current tax records. | Adjoiner names on the neighbouring parcels. |
| 14 | Distance to the nearest intersecting street. | A dimension to the intersection. |
| 15 | Features may be shown from imagery, if the source, date and licensing are agreed in writing and the implications discussed with the insurer, lender and client (rewritten in 2026). | An imagery note with source, date, precision and qualifications. |
| 16 | Evidence of recent earth moving, building construction or additions observed during fieldwork. | A note, with affected areas shown. |
| 17 | Proposed right-of-way changes, if made available by the controlling jurisdiction, and evidence of recent street or sidewalk work observed during fieldwork. | Proposed lines and a note. |
| 18 | Plottable offsite (appurtenant) easements disclosed in documents, applied to the selected items (except Item 1). | Offsite easements drawn with recording references. |
| 19 | Professional liability insurance in a stated minimum amount for the contract term. | Normally nothing on the plat; a certificate is furnished on request. |
| 20 | New in 2026: a table summarizing observed conditions and potential encroachments, without legal opinion. | An encroachment table: across boundary lines (both directions), into rights-of-way and easements, setback encroachments where setbacks were provided, and access or use between parcels without a documented easement. |
| 21 | Blank, for items the client and surveyor negotiate (an engineering design survey, for example). | As agreed. |
What changed from the 2021 edition
- Item 20 is now the encroachment summary table; the blank negotiated item moved to 21.
- Item 15 was rewritten: imagery may be used for features other than the boundary only on written agreement, with source, date and precision noted on the survey.
- Items 2, 8, 16 and 17 now refer to what was observed while conducting the fieldwork, and Item 18 reads “offsite (i.e., appurtenant) easements”.
- Outside Table A: the surveyor now researches adjoiner deeds, utility locate markings must be shown, and the certification in Section 7 has new wording.
What the selections change at the drafting table
Each item turns into specific content on the drawing, and most of the review comments on ALTA plats trace back to one of these:
- Certification block: the exact item numbers selected, in the standard’s wording, addressed to the parties the client names.
- Notes and tables: flood zone note with the map panel and date; zoning table with its source; parking counts; land area; utility source note.
- Title commitment: every Schedule B exception addressed, with plottable easements drawn and labelled with their recording reference, and non-plottable ones noted as such.
- Building data: dimensions, footprint area and height where items 7(a)–7(c) are selected, shown consistently with how they were measured.
- Line work and symbols: utilities, monuments, encroachments and substantial features drawn to a legend that matches the field codes.
Lenders and title reviewers read the certification first and then look for each selected item on the drawing. A clean plat makes every selected item easy to find.
What to send your drafting team
- Field data: point file or raw file, with your code list.
- The title commitment and copies of the recorded documents it lists.
- The client’s Table A selections, with every blank filled in.
- Record plats, deeds and prior surveys used for the boundary.
- Zoning report or letter, if 6(a)/6(b) are selected.
- Utility locate tickets, plans and markings, if 11(a)/11(b) are selected.
- Your CAD template, sheet size, title block and certification wording.