Like all of you I get asked this question regularly. A response I've been giving lately, which seems to be working, goes something like this (after the routine of learning generally where the property is and it's extent):
[INDENT]Oh, not much. Perhaps a couple of hours of work at my . But I doubt that digging up corners is what you really want. You look like a man who would already know where your corners were if they were there. It's really common for a majority of these monuments to have been destroyed by the time houses and fences have been put up after the original survey and more get lost as time goes by. We very likely wouldn't find anything and you will have nothing to show for your money except a story to tell your friends and neighbors about the useless surveyor you met who took your money and ran. Even if we did happen to find something we couldn't guarantee you that it was your corner without doing a lot more work.
What you really want is for me to determine where your boundaries are. And putting a boundary together is like reconstructing a dinosaur skeleton. They find a verterbrae here, a finger bone there, a piece of a femur and a fragment of a skull, and they put the whole thing back together from projections, calculations, and plaster of paris. That's what we would have to do to determine your boundaries. We would have to search every corner in the neighborhood until we found enough bits to put the puzzle together. Then we would have to measure their locations and do a mess of calculations. We would compare our findings with those of other surveyors who may have recorded surveys in this area to make sure we agree, or at least know that we don't. That's a bunch of work, and only a portion of it goes on here on the ground. There is a lot of office time that goes into it. It can run into a number of days - and while I'd do it for free Mrs. Mayer and her Yellow Labrador Jane require that I get paid for it.
If you have more than a passing interest in pursuing this I can write up a quote. If we get lucky and find your corners straightaway I'll stop and charge you only for the time we have in it. [/INDENT]
I did this a couple of times during the recession but now flat out refuse the request, just tell them that I am not interested. Even with disclaimers in the contract, people assume a point found by a surveyor to be a property corner. On top of this, people should just not be given an option to learn anything about their property boundaries at such a cheap cost as a couple hours of time. We're selling out by doing so. What they really need is a boundary survey and they shouldn't be given the option of anything less.
roger_LS, post: 416923, member: 11550 wrote: ... What they really need is a boundary survey and they shouldn't be given the option of anything less.
I'm really telling them that if they just want corners dug up they should do it themselves.
I've gotten so tired of talking to people on the phone lately, I don't know what it is, but my tolerance for entertaining folks who start the conversation with this kind of crap is currently low. My experience has also been that the conversion rate to actual jobs from those that start from this angle is extremely low, so I usually try to get off the phone as soon as possible. But I do also feel strongly that we as surveyors shouldn't be offering this service under any terms. It brings down the survey economy, it brings down the professional status of surveyors and it's really not a service to client.
Well, when work calls, that you don't like... You have choices.
1.) Price it what its worth. (overpriced, in clients mind) you are bad guy.
2.) But if you are just too backed up, then it's easier for client to tolerate.
3.) Offer to let them borrow a metal detector.if they are friends. Along with a 1 minute lesson. They will have fun, and they get what they pay for...
Nate The Surveyor, post: 416932, member: 291 wrote: Well, when work calls, that you don't like... You have choices.
1.) Price it what its worth. (overpriced, in clients mind) you are bad guy.
2.) But if you are just too backed up, then it's easier for client to tolerate.
3.) Offer to let them borrow a metal detector.if they are friends. Along with a 1 minute lesson. They will have fun, and they get what they pay for...
When work calls that I don't want I just tell them to call roger_LS
Reminds me of the time a Realtor called me and asked me to "just locate the corners"
I started an explanation similar to Mark's, when the Realtor interrupted me and said, "listen, I don't want a survey, I just want the corners located"
I calmly declined....
There's several ways to fix your car.
New motor.. 5k
Rebuild existing motor. 3k
Of course, i could come by, and pee on your engine..... Thatlll fix it. My body fluids have special "properties"... (no pun intended). $250...
Sounds like need 2, # 3 surveys... (think McDonalds kiosk)
2 # 3 coming up!
What they think: "How could it take more than a few minutes, cost about 2 bits?"
What I think: "5 hours of time, only to discover a dormant conflict and overlap, you can't afford it"
I don't just dig up or find corners. I survey property.
Expert, cheap, or correct - pick 2.
Choice 1 - expert & cheap = find someone else
Choice 2 - cheap and correct = get OUT!
Choice 3 - expert and correct = Bingo! You won a Surveyor.
Luckily we don't get many of those type of calls, but as soon as i tell them the price and time frame they tend to not call back. I agree, that this should be done as a boundary survey. I never will do this for a random person or company. Actually for the most part we're so busy that I hardly take on any small surveys any more.The only people I will pull out my metal detector to find existing corners are personal friends/family or good client's personal property who know the value of quality work and continuously hire us for projects. Also I will only do this if there are records showing the corners were previously set or recovered.
Mark Mayer, post: 416862, member: 424 wrote: Like all of you I get asked this question regularly. A response I've been giving lately, which seems to be working, goes something like this (after the routine of learning generally where the property is and it's extent):
[INDENT]Oh, not much. Perhaps a couple of hours of work at my . But I doubt that digging up corners is what you really want. You look like a man who would already know where your corners were if they were there. It's really common for a majority of these monuments to have been destroyed by the time houses and fences have been put up after the original survey and more get lost as time goes by. We very likely wouldn't find anything and you will have nothing to show for your money except a story to tell your friends and neighbors about the useless surveyor you met who took your money and ran. Even if we did happen to find something we couldn't guarantee you that it was your corner without doing a lot more work.
What you really want is for me to determine where your boundaries are. And putting a boundary together is like reconstructing a dinosaur skeleton. They find a verterbrae here, a finger bone there, a piece of a femur and a fragment of a skull, and they put the whole thing back together from projections, calculations, and plaster of paris. That's what we would have to do to determine your boundaries. We would have to search every corner in the neighborhood until we found enough bits to put the puzzle together. Then we would have to measure their locations and do a mess of calculations. We would compare our findings with those of other surveyors who may have recorded surveys in this area to make sure we agree, or at least know that we don't. That's a bunch of work, and only a portion of it goes on here on the ground. There is a lot of office time that goes into it. It can run into a number of days - and while I'd do it for free Mrs. Mayer and her Yellow Labrador Jane require that I get paid for it.
If you have more than a passing interest in pursuing this I can write up a quote. If we get lucky and find your corners straightaway I'll stop and charge you only for the time we have in it. [/INDENT]
I actually don't get many of these. But I handle them same way a plumber or gas company when they get calls about leaks. Site visit within hour round trip is $300 up front, includes up to hour on site. If they hang up I haven't lost time. If they go ahead, I explain things while on site and sometimes results in a proposal and further work. Sometimes I find a capped rod recent and they have a map to go with it and they don't want anything further (even though I can't tell them all is correct). Still, gives me a chance to make a quick inspection and advise them about risk management options while getting compensated for my expertise. Does not of course apply to large acreage or commercial situations. But residential properties I think of as similar to the little old lady calling about a leaking faucet; site visit to inspect and make a quick temporary fix/assessment, followed by a proposal to fix it permanent next week if they so choose.
Duane Frymire, post: 417117, member: 110 wrote: I actually don't get many of these. But I handle them same way a plumber or gas company when they get calls about leaks. Site visit within hour round trip is $300 up front, includes up to hour on site. .
As an engineering consultancy we have tried something similar for small "scoping" jobs but last time I did one, which was maybe 5 years ago, I did the one-hour look-see and on the spot advice and then came the up front payment bit with the response: "sorry I don't have the cash with me, you can come back tomorrow and get it". *crickets*. Have not done one since.
The problem with just digging up corners are if the ones you dig are not correct (either not their corner or have been pulled and reset by a neighbor etc) then you are still liable. If that owner places a fence based on what you showed him and it isn't right they will come after you.
I only charge $75 to dig up corners.
I make it up by charging $1,925 to put them back. 😮
mattsib79, post: 417654, member: 1138 wrote: The problem with just digging up corners are if the ones you dig are not correct (either not their corner or have been pulled and reset by a neighbor etc) then you are still liable. If that owner places a fence based on what you showed him and it isn't right they will come after you.
Exactly! Which is why Idaho considers field located monuments such as this 'land surveying' and pretty much eliminates 'digging up corners' without conducting a property land survey. We get this call a few times a year and i simply tell them to get a metal detector and start poking around. On a few occassions this has led to us completing an actual survey, usually as a result of the land owner digging up multiple monuments at their property corners.
I don't understand why a property owner asking how much to come dig up my corners is a problem. To me essentially they are asking how much to find and mark their boundaries. Price depends on a number of things. Lot size, known problem surveying areas, and so on. I've found that a brief professional explanation of what may be involved to "dig up" verify or set the corners educates the owner of the importance of marking the correct corners. And is usually appreciated by the owner.
We find or set property corners and stake property lines all the time. Makes for good filler work, not much profit, but it is a service people need and I am glad to provide.
If we start denying service to people because they don't know how to properly ask for what they want or because it's not a high profit job, where will that leave us.
Ron Lang, post: 417712, member: 6445 wrote: I don't understand why a property owner asking how much to come dig up my corners is a problem. To me essentially they are asking how much to find and mark their boundaries. Price depends on a number of things. Lot size, known problem surveying areas, and so on.
We are on the same page... this far. The PROBLEM is all they WANT is swing the shonstedt, flag that marker. No survey analysis.
No instrument. No confidence that it has not been moved. No double checks, to see if it is THEIR marker, but maybe it is the ad-joiner's marker..... so on and so forth....
Nate The Surveyor, post: 417713, member: 291 wrote: We are on the same page... this far. The PROBLEM is all they WANT is swing the shonstedt, flag that marker. No survey analysis.
No instrument. No confidence that it has not been moved. No double checks, to see if it is THEIR marker, but maybe it is the ad-joiner's marker..... so on and so forth....
That's when you give them the fee to do the job correctly. I can't imagine any licensed surveyor willing to simply pull out the shonstedt and shovel and go to town and call it a day for a couple hundred bucks.
