who oversees land surveys?

How hard is it to move iron stakes or rocks? Chances are if the guy moved the fence he also moved or removed any old markers-- it happens all the time.

Michelle

whoboy, I just love a good boundary dispute. We have them here in KY on a regular basis. There is so much wooded land that nobody really cares about where the boundaries are most of the time. About the only time someone cares is just like this instance. When someone starts cutting timber. Our old surveys were grossly inaccurate many times. I deal with this all the time, some real dandies pop up now and then. The best thing you can do is hire a surveyor, do so asap. He should be able to use the deed calls from your deed along with those of your neighbors deeds and locate the lines. Stones were often used as corner markers as they dont rust or rot and the deer dont eat them. I have however found they can roll pretty good, sometimes uphill if the timber looks right. Hire a state licensed surveyor, hire him/her soon, find out for sure what you indeed do or do not own. I find it highly unlikely any licensed surveyor would have falsely moved a corner. His license is at stake and thats his living. Often what is done when there are boundary overlaps or old deed corners cannot be found is the surveyor will get all parties concerned to establish a new corner as an "agreed" corner or boundary line. If the neighbor took timber that he knew was not his, shame on him if you can prove that he took it and that he knew it was not his. You are intitled to treble damages for timber theft in this state. Thats 3 times the value of what was taken. You do have to prove it was indeed your timber, and you have to prove that they took it knowingly to collect those damages. Good luck and I do hope you get this issue resolved quickly and easily, not usually the case but sometimes it works that way.

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"Nothing so needs reforming as other peoples habits." Mark Twain

I'm just wondering if the fence was actually moved after the first survey. Maybe where you thought the line was, it actually was not. Surveyors tie all kinds of ribbons while they are shooting and alot of them are just reference points, not the actual property line. Did you maybe see some of these ribbons and think maybe it was the property line? I think the best bet would be to get the original surveyor out to see if he remembers where the corners are. And, asking a surveyor to certify where the lines are means he may simply come out and confirm corners. No special equipment is really needed to flag lines from an existing survey as long as you can confirm the corners.

I'm still confused how somebody could move a fence six acres worth with you not knowing.

Why make it so complicated. Think how you were damaged followed by who damaged you. The simple answer is timber removed by the new neighbor. When you have gathered doccuments and retained a lawyer, let the process work. If the new neighbor was misled by the deed description from his seller or a land surveyor, he will quickly produce that information if he iintends to do the right thing. If not, file suit.

When all the dust settles, what do you want? I would require full compensation for the timber and my clear title confirmed for the 6 acres in question. A friendly settlement with your neighbor could be good, providing your lawyer finds it acceptable...Glen

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The more a man travels, acquires wisdom and learns about life, the more likely he is to marry a Country Girl.

I work for a surveying firm up in Maine. It baffles the mind at times at how many people really do not know where their lines are. People actually build houses on someone elses property!

The advice I would offer first is to find a reputable surveyor in your area and have your land surveyed. If there is a conflict he/ she will be able to let you know and probally can point you in the right direction to a lawyer if needed. Good luck to you.

I disagree. Its the present owner's responsibility to know where the property line is not where he thinks it is. The current owner is the one who would have a beef with the previous owner. But unless the current owner could prove that the previous owner knew for sure that the fence was not the property line there's not much of a chance he'd win a legal case, caveat emptor.

A couple of words of advice never buy land without a survey, a personal check of the property lines and survey markers and a real estate attorney. The survey doesn't need to be a new one as long as it matches the current deed. Take a copy of the older survey and the current deed to a surveyor and they should be able to tell you (for much less money than a survey) if things match up correctly.

I've ran into this twice. My F-i-L bought a place for a rental property and didn't check the property lines until he was going to sell it. He discovered that the property was much larger than he thought and the neighbor had been mowing most of it for him for years. He also discovered that the LP tank was in the neighbor's yard.

When I bought my current property everybody involved told me I was wasting my money getting the place surveyed. I discovered two things; 1) that most of my neighbor's 'backyard', which was kept nicely mowed and everything was really mine. 2) another neighbor's had a large part of his pig pen on my (or soon to be my) property. Without a survey and checking the property lines myself I might have cheated myself out of that land.

My point was why not try the easiest and simplest option first. If the markers are 1) not where they should be or 2) not there at all THEN you move up to the next step.

If a friend with little mechanical ability called you and said his car wouldn't start would you tell him the first thing he should do is call a tow truck and have it hauled to a shop? Or would you suggest a few simple things he could do himself to find and maybe fix the problem?

Again I want to point out that SOMETIME the simplest solution is the best. Why go out and spend a lot of money hiring serveyors and lawyers and everything else when with a survey plat, bit of walking and a compass and a few minutes talking with the neighbor could solve the problem?

In answer to your original question: Kentucky Board of Engineers and Land Surveyors > kyboels.ky.gov or 1-800-573-2680

The OP states that the fence and survey markers have been moved...

Michelle

Oops, even after you telling me I had to read it twice to see that. I saw the part about the fence being moved but not the markers.