Have you heard of the survey plan document? A survey plan is a document that holds an accurate description of your landed property, in terms of size, shape, measurement, location, description of physical monuments or markers that have been placed to mark the limits of the land, topographic features, dimensions, and distances to the boundary of houses, sheds, fences, utilities and any features of importance to the landowner.
So call it the map of your property and you are right! Every time there did be a search on your property, the survey plan document is one of the essentials you need to provide for verification. More so, the survey plan is highly valued by lawyers, courts, banks, realtors, and government agencies because they are created by specially trained, tested and licensed professionals and approval agencies such as the land bureau for geographical verification of the property.
Aside from its efficacy in a boundary dispute, you should consult a survey plan prior to house purchase to reveal hidden title deficiencies, highlight building encroachments and demonstrate authentic property dimensions that do not necessarily correspond with (and override) the unverified descriptions included in the deed.
Responsible for the issues related to the survey plan is usually a surveyor. In Nigeria, survey practice is regulated by The Surveyor Council Of Nigeria. Therefore, it’s important to ensure that this surveyor is a registered member of The Surveyor Council Of Nigeria.
Typically in Nigeria, the top section of the land survey plan display the name of the previous/current landowner and the location of the land. Depending on the history of the land, the name of the original land-owning family or community from whom the original transfer/purchase is made is also shown.
A good survey plan must include the other following features:
- Size of the surveyed land
- Address of the surveyed land or description
- Beacon numbers
- A registered seal
- Signature of the surveyor and date it was drawn up
- Survey planned number
- Stamp showing that the land is free from Government acquisition or not.
Do not forget that before you secure any property, carry out your due diligence by requesting a survey plan from the seller; agents, or real estate company.