How Much Will My Survey Cost?
Survey costs vary widely depending on the property and the type of work involved. There is no meaningful “one-size-fits-all” price for land surveying.
Even a small, open tract with visible monuments can require extensive research, long-distance control, and careful legal analysis. In many cases, the most critical boundary evidence is located hundreds or even thousands of feet away, regardless of what is visible near the property itself.
Common assumptions that do NOT reliably reduce survey cost include:
The lot is small
The property is clear or flat
There are monuments along one side
A neighbor already has a survey
The corners look obvious
What actually controls the scope — and cost — of a survey includes:
The location and reliability of controlling monuments
The age, quality, and consistency of recorded documents
Gaps, overlaps, or conflicts in the surrounding record
Whether boundary control must be re-established from distant evidence
The level of legal responsibility required for the intended use
Because of these factors, professional land surveys typically represent a significant investment, commonly measured in thousands of dollars, even for properties that appear simple.
In addition, all survey work is subject to a minimum professional scope. Regardless of property size or site conditions, there is a baseline level of research, analysis, fieldwork, and professional liability required to produce a defensible survey performed by a licensed professional.
For these reasons, we do not provide pricing without first completing a Survey Review. The Survey Review allows us to evaluate the controlling evidence, determine the true scope of work, and establish appropriate expectations before discussing cost.
The $300 Survey Review fee covers this professional evaluation and is credited toward your survey if you choose to proceed. The final survey cost will be substantially higher than the review fee and will reflect the actual scope required — not surface appearances.
Scheduling & Timing
Our schedule is based on a rolling work queue, not fixed calendar dates.
Once a retainer is received, your project is placed on our schedule and assigned an estimated work slot based on its scope. Your position in the schedule is secured only when the retainer is received.
Important Scheduling Realities
Work is scheduled in sequence, not by reservation of specific dates.
Projects begin as prior work is completed, which may shift due to field conditions, research complexity, weather, or unforeseen issues.
Whenever possible, we group nearby or similar work to improve efficiency. This allows us to complete more projects, reduce costs, and in some cases complete work significantly sooner than originally expected.
Preliminary research and analysis often require more time than initially anticipated.
For these reasons, we do not commit to specific start or completion dates.
Priority & Time-Sensitive Work
Certain types of work — such as flood certificates or construction-critical services — may be prioritized when circumstances require. These adjustments are made case-by-case and do not change the underlying queue structure.
For time-sensitive projects, it is strongly recommended that your survey be on our schedule well in advance. Waiting until construction or permitting deadlines approach limits flexibility and may result in longer overall delays and higher costs.
Advance Notice, Rush Work, and On-Site Timing
We maintain limited flexibility to move urgent or rush projects forward; however, this may involve additional costs.
In many cases, providing advance notice of a specific on-site date is not possible without reducing scheduling efficiency. If advance notice is required, the work often cannot be grouped with other projects and must instead be allocated as a full-day block, even if the on-site work itself requires only a portion of that time. This affects both scheduling and cost.
Clients who require fixed dates or advance notice should be aware that this may result in longer lead times and higher costs.