ALTA/NSPS survey
Also called: ALTA survey, ALTA land title survey, ALTA/ACSM survey
A boundary survey done to a national standard set by the American Land Title Association and NSPS, adding title research, easements, encroachments, improvements and zoning. Required by most commercial lenders and title insurers. Costs $2,000–$6,000 or more.
Where a residential boundary survey answers “where are the corners,” an ALTA survey answers everything a title insurer or lender might ask about a commercial parcel: the boundary, all recorded easements and whether they’re actually used, encroachments in either direction, buildings and their setbacks, parking counts, utilities, flood zone, zoning classification, and a certification to the specific parties in the transaction. The buyer selects optional “Table A” items that add scope and cost.
Because of that scope, an ALTA survey takes weeks and starts around $2,000 for a simple site, rising to five figures for large or complex ones. Residential buyers almost never need one; if a lender on a house asks for an “ALTA,” clarify — they usually mean a standard boundary or mortgage survey.
The current standard is the 2021 Minimum Standard Detail Requirements, published by NSPS.