Conducting a thorough title search and accurate survey is a crucial element of purchasing raw land for subdivision development. These steps can prevent costly mistakes and legal battles that could derail your project.
A comprehensive title search will uncover liens, easements, and encumbrances. Only with this information in hand can the true value and limitations of a piece of land be understood. An accurate survey will define boundaries, identify encroachments, and highlight discrepancies between legal descriptions and physical realities.
Neglecting these critical steps can lead to disastrous consequences. For example, a legal dispute centered on alleged fraudulent title issues derailed a 544-lot residential project in Brookwood, Alabama. The development was never completed due to the ongoing title issues.
A proper title search and ALTA survey can:
1. Prevent Boundary Disputes: Inaccurate surveys or poorly defined property lines can lead to encroachments and legal disputes with neighboring properties.
2. Uncover Undisclosed Liens: Hidden liens on the property can prevent the transfer of clear title, potentially halting development or sales.
3. Reveal Fraudulent Deeds: Forged signatures or illegal deeds contained in the property's history can invalidate ownership claims, jeopardizing the entire development.
4. Identify Easements and Encroachments: A survey that maps out easements and encroachments can illustrate their potential impact on development plans.
5. Dictate Breaks in the Chain of Title: Missing documents or errors in the ownership history can create uncertainty about the developer's right to the property.
6. Expose Foreclosure Issues: Defective foreclosure proceedings in the property's past can lead to unexpected ownership claims.
7. Ensure Entitlement Compliance: An ALTA survey certifies zoning regulations that impact the property's use and development density.
Investing in a thorough title search and professional survey may seem costly upfront, but it's a small price to pay compared to the potential financial and legal ramifications of proceeding without them. As the saying goes, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" – especially in the high-stakes world of land development.
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