My grandmother has owned her property since the early 40s. When they purchased the land it had been recently divided and surveyed my grandmother planted a hedge at the end of which was a stone monument marking the line. The monument has since fallen over the bank. Other surveys were done one in the 1950s and another in the 1970s all came within about a foot of the monument which was still there. Recently the house next door was sold and another survey was done which put the property line through the center of her house, it does sit fairly close to the original line.

The son of the former owner rushed her to a lawyer and gave her an easment preventing anyone from disturbing what is there as long as the house stands even if it is sold. Shortly after grandma had a stroke and remembers very little of this so I n. Am just finding out.

Fast forward to this summer when the state began surveying tidelands they measured and dug up the actual corner stake of the property which is also the corner stake of state tidelands. The neighbor property has secondary tidelands, grandma doesn't. This is the original corner.

One more thing occurred which may figure in. In the 80s the county reconfigured all the land that was long thin lots divided into pieces by a paved road into wider lots where the road was the boundary and rewrote the legal decsriptions.

I am wondering how to research this and what I should be looking for. A change in the legal description or something else? My grandmother has the original map, and one from 1975. We have the back monument and the front post but not the monument on the front bank. The most recent surveyor says the last one made an error yet two other surveys show the same thing.

I should probably get a lawyer but both my grandmother and I are of modest means and I really need to try to do at least some of the research myself first. I am just not sure where to start and what I need. On top of this the new neighbor is almost relentless in wanting to cut down the hedge, I am fairly sure the reason is she doesn't want the original line marked she knows there is a problem and is wanting to make it hard to prove. She was after all down on the beach arguing with the state surveyor over the stake they dug up. Yes she is that type of person.

So please tell me where to start, what should I be looking for?

What exactly do you want to accomplish? Are you trying to locate the current legal property line for any reason other than preventing the neighbor from removing the hedge? The purpose will dictate whether you're going to need an attorney.

Also... when your grandmother purchased the property did she buy title insurance, or at least have a title search performed? If so then your best bet is to go to the company who issued the insurance and make a claim. If there is no title insurance you can still go to a title agency and have them issue a determination of the location of the property line. It will cost you but it will probably cost less than an attorney.

I am trying to figure out how 4 surveys could be different. My Grandmother is in ill health there is a possibility that I will have to sell her property at some point to get her care. The house is cut in half by this new line and the spetic system is completely over it.

I need to know where the correct property line is so I can proceed from there. My grandparents paid $1000 cash for this property over 70 years ago if they had title insurance I doubt at this point my grandmother would remember or have anything on it. Both parties just always knew and agreed where it was located. They would have surveys done when building something close to the line to make sure they weren't over it.

Surveys are only as good as the people performing them. It's possible that surveyors can make mistakes and those mistakes don't get caught for years.

In any case, the information you've given us here is very detailed and complex. Since you're thinking about possibly selling the property in the not to distant future it would be a good idea to get an attorney or title company involved now. You don't want to sell the property and then find out at the last minute that the title is not clear. It's better to have the issue resolved now.

Try getting free consultations with a few attorneys. Also try speaking to a few title agencies to get an idea of what they would charge. A title agency might only hit you with a one-time fee, whereas an attorney may bill you by the hour.

...
I should probably get a lawyer but both my grandmother and I are of modest means and I really need to try to do at least some of the research myself first. ...

So please tell me where to start, what should I be looking for?


...
In any case, the information you've given us here is very detailed and complex. ...

As Lisa says, you have a complex problem here, one with respect to which even legal professionals such as ourselves would have difficulty understanding without first looking at the pertinent documents, maps, etc. So what I suggest you do is consult with an attorney to find out exactly what research should be done. Explain your modest circumstances and that you want to try to do at least some of the research yourself, but ask the attorney to tell you what you need to look for, and where.

Your grandmother does appear to have (in addition to you) two things going for her:

the easement she got from the neighbor in the '70s, and
the doctrine of adverse possession which, in many cases, will make ancient survey errors unimportant.