Deed History & Jr/Sr Rights
I only practice as a LS in Indiana. I am not up on other states' requirements in regards to title record searches and am looking for input from the forum.
In Indiana, we are required to pull the current deeds of record for subject and adjoining parcels. We are also required to discuss our theory of location in a Surveyor's Report. This could include the consideration of junior and senior rights.
In a recent discussion with other surveyors, I was a little surprised that none in the group felt that we HAD to go back in the record to nail down Jr/Sr rights. Though many thought that is could be a good idea when (economically) feasible.
As an example, I had a survey where a field had a "mathematical overlap" with an adjoiner. This was most likely the result of their descriptions coming from two different corners. No surprise. There was no real obvious line of occupation (hence the request for survey). In this particular instance, my first thought was to investigate Jr/Sr rights. I chased both parcels' deeds back to the unindexed portion of the county deed records (1920's) - so for me, the trail went cold here. In my experience, I don't get great results ordering title searches or abstracting services for issues like this.
1. What do other states say in regards to deed search?
2. What is your practice here?
3. Do you do your own research in house or order title work?
4. Is there a secret to getting good title abstracting services other than those that come with normal ALTA-B2 docs?
Depends on the nature of the project, but I typically do as much research as I can from my desk first.
One of the title companies in my area has as a portal you can log into and search their deed database which is pretty cool. I like starting with this because I'm not waiting on a title officer to respond to an email, but occasionally I do have to email them and request a deed or deeds, and fortunately out here the responses are usually pretty fast.
My employer also pays for a subscription to a third party GIS and database that attempts to display and make available for download all of the recorded plats, surveys, and corner records in the state. This service is a fantastic resource.
If the record for a parcel is a mess or I need to know where easements are then I order a title report which usually takes 3-5 days to get.
Occasionally I'll call or email a recorder's office and request stuff, but that's somewhat uncommon.
I've dug around recorder's offices in person a handful of times, but fortunately I can usually get the information I need other ways first.
1. What do other states say in regards to deed search?
Mass. regulations don't spell out a specific standard for research. They basically say "do what you need to do to get it right".
2. What is your practice here?
It varies depending on the survey. A modern (since 1950) subdivision usually requires only the current deeds and a quick search for possible easements. The First Parish Church of Concord required grantor/grantee searches from the 1790's to the present day. I spent three days in the registry. A lot of people gifted land to the church, which was often then sold, and I had to figure out what part of town these lots were in and if they affected my survey of the church grounds proper. I just wrapped up a survey for a little house lot where the senior deed of the abutter dated 1878 was determinative in positioning the boundary.
3. Do you do your own research in house or order title work?
Do our own. Only use other's title research for ALTA surveys - usually get that after we've done our own.
4. Is there a secret to getting good title abstracting services other than those that come with normal ALTA-B2 docs?
Unable to comply with this request for information.
I practice in a Colonial state, many things here in the original 13 states are different than those in the PLSS, and they even differ from state to state. Most counties in NJ have an online service for printing deeds that have been digitized but they only generally go back to the early 1980's. Before the 80's would require a trip to the county courthouse and, in those cases, I generally pay a title searcher to find what I need. Deeds in the colonies can go back as far as 250 years and the historic ones are usually found in a basement vault.
I have never run into a situation where the documents detailing junior and senior rights did not exist but when it comes to a situation where I am going to spend more than an hour or two of billable time searching online, I hand it off to a title searcher and typically get a two to three day turnaround. My time is better spent working on other things than having to physically go to the courthouse and spend a day or more searching grantee/grantor indexes.
We (at least in NJ) don't file surveys or write survey reports but I will write one to describe how some problems were presented and how they were addressed by my resolution where conflicts exist.
I'm spoiled in NC, all one hundred counties have a GIS and online registry. Some of the poorer counties have only a partial online index back to some arbitrary date, usually around the 1980s or 90s, but most allow me to research as far back as I desire for free. It's kinda lame that in 2024 there are registries that haven't scanned all their records. If not for the sake of PLSs and attorneys, at least scan them to protect against a fire. <div>
1. NC officially requires an examination of the current deeds of the subject parcel and adjoiners.
2. Unofficially, I know a fair amount of NC PLSs that take it back to creation regardless of the time involved or need to do so. I do it mostly as a CYA endeavor as it's rarely necessary. I thank the PLSs working in the 1960s on through the 70s for having the gumption to set corners and solve problems that all the deed research in the world wouldn't help.
3. I do my own research and am not aware of any NC PLSs that farm it out. From this forum, I'm beginning to think that we don't have the same quality of title researches as can be found elsewhere. I'm not sure I've performed an ALTA in NC that didn't require a great deal of additional deed research. The packets I receive feel more like an effort to reach some minimum requirement and not a thoroughly researched set of documents. I'd be embarrassed to send someone a pdf of a deed with some nonsensical file name like 1009737#$%773.pdf. how about "1 Brown to Smith 1952 5.1ac DB-125 Pg-10".
4. No idea.
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3. Do you do your own research in house or order title work?
There is a great quote (paraphrasing) by Don Wilson, maybe in "Boundary Retracement" or "Interpreting Land Records", to the extent that title (and its associated research) is about "what" and boundary is about "where". So, research performed for title purposed may not always give surveyors the information they need to perform their tasks.
Our state operates under the 40 year rule. Research for title is required to be done backwards 40 years plus one. Meaning 40 years then to the next newest deed. That seldom identifies junior/senior issues.
However, I do have a good relationship with a title company, we trade information consistently and they will send me deeds on parcels back to creation, or I do it myself, but it has to be done.
I truly enjoy doing the research myself. We have great indexes for all named subdivisions/additions/town plats. We also have great indexes for Township/Range/Section as Kansas is a PLSS state. We can go from present day to day one of deed filing rather quickly in most instances.
1. What do other states say in regards to deed search?
Maryland Minimun standards state in section 09.13.06.03
C. Research and Investigation.
(1) The surveyor shall be provided by the party requesting the survey with copies of public records and private records, if any, in sufficient scope and depth that a surveyor of ordinary prudence and skill may consider in identifying with reasonable certainty the following:
(a) The location of the property's record boundaries, so long as the information exists in the public records and is properly indexed; and
(b) Conflicting record property boundary line locations which may differently locate the property's boundaries.
2. What is your practice here?
On most boundary surveys we pull current deeds of the subjec tract and all adjoiners for any descriptions and plot those up in a mosaic. This would also include record plats for subdivisions. If there are discrepencies or no metes and bounds we run those deed back to a description which in some cases is the deed that created the parcel, so we do some junior senior investigation at the onset automatically.
Maryland is pretty forward and comprehensive with access to land record data. One GIS interface covers the entire state, all 23 counties and the City of Baltimore. Access is controlled by a login but is free. Instrument searchs by book/page go back to the 1960's for most counties. you can research index books and pull any deed back to the creation of the counties with a little more work. Its all there ! On the last deed plot I prepared the beginning point referenced a deed back in 1774. I am sure it was there if I needed it.
3. Do you do your own research in house or order title work?
Even thought we should be provided information we always do our own research in house unless otherwise provided by an attorney. And I still review and research beyond that if necessary.
4. Is there a secret to getting good title abstracting services other than those that come with normal ALTA-B2 docs?
Good question. Might contact the company you see the most supplying data for ALTA documents.
