You’ve probably heard me talk about your core team – the experts you need to engage to help ensure success on your property development journey.
There are six key players: an Accountant, a Solicitor, a Town Planner, a Civil Engineer, an Architect and a Surveyor.
Most of you probably have a solid idea of what the first five experts are all about, but beyond measuring up a block of land, you might be a little less confident on our final expert, yet they’re no less important than the rest of the team.
I think a surveyor might well be one of the most underappreciated consultants we actually have out there.
Let’s fix that today by taking a look at everything surveying, starting with what the hell a surveyor actually does!
Registered Surveyors interpret and navigate legal aspects of land ownership. From the smallest plot to multi-million-dollar developments, our land is organised, and legal ownership parameters determined through, the expertise of Registered Surveyors.
Surveyors are most commonly used for:
- Cadastral surveys/identification surveys
A cadastral survey plan is basically a property boundary survey. They’re generally used to accurately establish land ownership boundaries and usage, and to subdivide land and buildings into parcels for ownership under a land title. They’re also conducted when someone needs to re-establish the boundaries of properties to determine the physical extent of ownership before someone builds a new fence or a new home, or to facilitate the transfer of the property title.
You might have seen coloured pegs in a front garden: these are the markers a Surveyor uses to define a property’s boundaries. Boundaries that are misunderstood or inaccurately measured can lead to significant project delays and costs if disputes occur.
Your solicitor will normally get an identification survey as a matter of course when you are purchasing a property. A Surveyor measures the site involved to determine the location of buildings on or adjacent to the land and any fences present. They will check for the existence of easements (for drainage, etc.), covenants and restrictions on land use, and whether or not the subject land complies with the terms of these conditions. They’ll also check for any unapproved extensions or additions to buildings. The Surveyor pays special attention to any encroachments by, or on, the land, or on any easements. In the instance of a residence, the Surveyor will report on the distances of the walls or eaves and gutters from the side boundary of the land.
- Subdividing Land
A Surveyor is qualified to tell you whether or not it’s possible to subdivide your land and the costs involved. They can help you work out the best possible layout to balance the number of lots with council restrictions, shapes, sizes, topography, traffic flow, road and servicing cost, etc. Your Surveyor can prepare the submission and apply to council for approval, and is the only professional legally permitted to mark boundaries of new subdivisions in accordance with the Surveying Act. They can also lodge the plan at the Land Titles Office on your behalf.
For larger subdivisions, your Surveyor is an expert in the design and preparation of engineering plans for road and drainage construction. They will measure the levels of the land and the positions of the nearby drainage and services to make the design possible.
Your Surveyor can also apply to have water, sewer, power, telephone and gas provided to the new subdivision.
- Developing a Strata Title or Community Title
A surveyor can prepare a plan for a strata title or community title scheme for townhouses, apartments, retirement villages, shopping centres and industrial complexes. It may be possible to convert an existing building of multiple units into a Strata Title Scheme if the local council says that’s okay.
- Flood surveys
Before buying property it’s important to check for flood risk. Unless your property is obviously in a high position, it can be difficult for an inexperienced buyer to figure out whether or not the property is flood prone. Surveyors are experts.
They can investigate records and enquire from authorities as to the flood risk for a particular property. Observations can be made on the ground to determine the specific extent of the risk. Advice can be obtained on precautions required for new building or the likely depth of flooding which can be expected on existing buildings or land.
Before you buy!
I strongly recommend you engage a Surveyor as part of your due diligence process before you buy a property. A survey can help protect you against problems only they can detect. These could include problems that may make the property more difficult to sell in the future or create anxiety with neighbours or public authorities before you even move in. Most importantly, a survey can confirm if you’re buying the property that you’ve been shown and whether or not the property has any defects which may devalue it.
A Surveyor can help you to maximise the value of your property now and in the future through flexible and proactive titling arrangements across an asset’s lifecycle. They’ll also have established relationships with consultants, government agencies and local authorities which means they can work closely with all the key stakeholders to deliver the best outcomes for your project.
Just because there’s a fence running from A to B down the side of a property doesn’t mean you can safely assume that’s where your boundary is. And let’s face it, if you’re short 100mm on your frontage, that could mean the difference between whether you can get five or six lots on your subdivision.
Any discrepancies can have a knock-on effect on your development plans, and a massive impact on your yield.
So I can’t stress this enough: get your Surveyor on board from the start!
There are six key players: an Accountant, a Solicitor, a Town Planner, a Civil Engineer, an Architect and a Surveyor.
Most of you probably have a solid idea of what the first five experts are all about, but beyond measuring up a block of land, you might be a little less confident on our final expert, yet they’re no less important than the rest of the team.
I think a surveyor might well be one of the most underappreciated consultants we actually have out there.
Let’s fix that today by taking a look at everything surveying, starting with what the hell a surveyor actually does!
Registered Surveyors interpret and navigate legal aspects of land ownership. From the smallest plot to multi-million-dollar developments, our land is organised, and legal ownership parameters determined through, the expertise of Registered Surveyors.
Surveyors are most commonly used for:
- Cadastral surveys/identification surveys
A cadastral survey plan is basically a property boundary survey. They’re generally used to accurately establish land ownership boundaries and usage, and to subdivide land and buildings into parcels for ownership under a land title. They’re also conducted when someone needs to re-establish the boundaries of properties to determine the physical extent of ownership before someone builds a new fence or a new home, or to facilitate the transfer of the property title.
You might have seen coloured pegs in a front garden: these are the markers a Surveyor uses to define a property’s boundaries. Boundaries that are misunderstood or inaccurately measured can lead to significant project delays and costs if disputes occur.
Your solicitor will normally get an identification survey as a matter of course when you are purchasing a property. A Surveyor measures the site involved to determine the location of buildings on or adjacent to the land and any fences present. They will check for the existence of easements (for drainage, etc.), covenants and restrictions on land use, and whether or not the subject land complies with the terms of these conditions. They’ll also check for any unapproved extensions or additions to buildings. The Surveyor pays special attention to any encroachments by, or on, the land, or on any easements. In the instance of a residence, the Surveyor will report on the distances of the walls or eaves and gutters from the side boundary of the land.
- Subdividing Land
A Surveyor is qualified to tell you whether or not it’s possible to subdivide your land and the costs involved. They can help you work out the best possible layout to balance the number of lots with council restrictions, shapes, sizes, topography, traffic flow, road and servicing cost, etc. Your Surveyor can prepare the submission and apply to council for approval, and is the only professional legally permitted to mark boundaries of new subdivisions in accordance with the Surveying Act. They can also lodge the plan at the Land Titles Office on your behalf.
For larger subdivisions, your Surveyor is an expert in the design and preparation of engineering plans for road and drainage construction. They will measure the levels of the land and the positions of the nearby drainage and services to make the design possible.
Your Surveyor can also apply to have water, sewer, power, telephone and gas provided to the new subdivision.
- Developing a Strata Title or Community Title
A surveyor can prepare a plan for a strata title or community title scheme for townhouses, apartments, retirement villages, shopping centres and industrial complexes. It may be possible to convert an existing building of multiple units into a Strata Title Scheme if the local council says that’s okay.
- Flood surveys
Before buying property it’s important to check for flood risk. Unless your property is obviously in a high position, it can be difficult for an inexperienced buyer to figure out whether or not the property is flood prone. Surveyors are experts.
They can investigate records and enquire from authorities as to the flood risk for a particular property. Observations can be made on the ground to determine the specific extent of the risk. Advice can be obtained on precautions required for new building or the likely depth of flooding which can be expected on existing buildings or land.Before you buy!
I strongly recommend you engage a Surveyor as part of your due diligence process before you buy a property. A survey can help protect you against problems only they can detect. These could include problems that may make the property more difficult to sell in the future or create anxiety with neighbours or public authorities before you even move in. Most importantly, a survey can confirm if you’re buying the property that you’ve been shown and whether or not the property has any defects which may devalue it.
A Surveyor can help you to maximise the value of your property now and in the future through flexible and proactive titling arrangements across an asset’s lifecycle. They’ll also have established relationships with consultants, government agencies and local authorities which means they can work closely with all the key stakeholders to deliver the best outcomes for your project.
Just because there’s a fence running from A to B down the side of a property doesn’t mean you can safely assume that’s where your boundary is. And let’s face it, if you’re short 100mm on your frontage, that could mean the difference between whether you can get five or six lots on your subdivision.
Any discrepancies can have a knock-on effect on your development plans, and a massive impact on your yield.
So I can’t stress this enough: get your Surveyor on board from the start!
