In NC I have been seeing that the title company is putting a item in schedule B II that " Title to that portion of the land , if any, lying within the railroad right of way extending up to one hundred feet on each side of the tracks or two hundred feet in total width .
Apparently the Railroad was granted 200 foot R/W during the original land grants to the Railroad . All the deeds i have seen indicate 100' and also the Railmaps show 100' feet . Is this some sort of an land grab by the Railroad.
Any NC surveyors no what the deal is.
The 200' (400') right of way applies only to federal land-grant railroads, not railroads constructed across private lands after patent (unless they acquired a 400' width by deed). There was a statutory process for the railroad companies to follow for mapping and registering their railroad routes in order to claim the statutory width. The title companies may be adding the notation to any and all schedules just to avoid the research it takes to find out the answer (it's not hard to research if you know where to look). It's usually pretty easy to get the exception removed as well.
Be careful with the RR maps, however, as it was common for them to fence the 100' line even when they had rights to the 200' line. We've got a number of subdivisions constructed right up to the 100' line (with title insurance), where the RR clearly has claim to the 200' line. Created a real big mess. What did the title industry do? Just insert a 200' exception for the RR in the policies as they're renewed. Most buyers don't know what that means until the RR comes knocking on their door.
JBS
"Just insert a 200' exception for the RR in the policies as they're renewed."
LOL! Gotta love it!
In about 1853 the railroad was granted the r/w, 200' in most places, by the legislature. If you search the register of deeds office you will find it recorded. I have seen the one for Davidson County.
So if they do not provide a document to reference the 200' R/W . What to do ? are they not supposed to provide the title documents .
What do I say " may effect property but no deed reference provided to surveyor"
Or do I just not respond to it .
They should provide you the document. Maby you will just flat have to demand it. I can't believe an attorney does not know or could find it. They are not doing their job and want to pass the libility to you.
> So if they do not provide a document to reference the 200' R/W . What to do ? are they not supposed to provide the title documents .
> What do I say " may effect property but no deed reference provided to surveyor"
> Or do I just not respond to it .
According to the ALTA requirements, yes. They are supposed to provide you with the documents. In the case of statutory-grant railroads, however, it's not something you'll find in the county deed records, so I don't know of a title company that knows where to even look to find them. The documents are, however, part of the survey records found in the patent records and the federal register.
I've been hired (and paid well) for doing this kind of research. There's nothing that prevents a surveyor from developing an expertise in researching the documents. It has a great value to the owners and their attorneys. I've found few attorneys and even fewer title companies who know what to look for or where.
Copying the document is cheap. Finding the document costs money. Someone needs to be paid for the work. Why not you? You'll make a lot more money on the ALTA if you can provided the information that will either confirm or deny the exception. I don't see it as a liability. I see it as an opportunity.
JBS
Not sure about this...
"They are supposed to provide you with the documents."
They only have to provide documents for those things that they want shown on the map. I once added an easement that I was aware of that was not in the title report. The title co. asked me to remove it. I protested, and they told me that they were aware of it but did not want it shown. I told them I would not remove it unless they wrote me a letter acknowledging it and that they were asking mo to not show it. Got the letter by FedEx, removed it from the map, and all was well. They would not explain why they didn't want it shown. We surveyors forget sometimes that they are in the insurance business, and are willing to take risks...
Not sure about this...
They provide you with the documents and you locate and plot the boundaries and easements etc. with notations as to deed book and page, but where does it say in the 7 page ALTA spec sheet that you must list the affect of all of the Schedule B, Part II items? Have I missed something? I see no mention of the "exception items" in the written instructions. We show the geometry, but the impact on the land is determined by members of the legal profession and judicial system.
Not sure about this...
I agree , that's the way I have proceeded .
