Title: Digging into property easements—anyone else find online tools confusing?
Yeah, those GIS maps are more like “ballpark suggestions” than actual boundaries half the time. I’ve run into the same headache—designing a driveway or septic field, then realizing the digital line is off by a good chunk compared to what’s flagged on-site. It’s wild how much it can drift.
I’ve tried getting CAD files from surveyors to overlay on my own site plans. Sometimes it works out, but honestly, it depends on the surveyor and how they export their data. Some send clean shapefiles or DWGs that drop right in, others give you PDFs or weirdly scaled images that are just as frustrating as the county’s GIS. If you can get a .dwg with real coordinates, you’re golden... but that’s not always standard.
One trick I’ve used: ask for the coordinate system they’re using and double-check everything lines up before you start designing. It’s a pain, but catching those mismatches early saves a lot of headaches (and rework) later. Still waiting for the day when counties and surveyors all play nice together—maybe in another decade or two?
Yeah, those GIS maps are more like “ballpark suggestions” than actual boundaries half the time.
Totally agree—when we started our build, I thought the county GIS would be “close enough” for planning. Turns out, our property line was off by almost 15 feet compared to the survey. Had to scrap my first draft of the house layout. I wish I’d known how unreliable those online maps could be before getting too far in.
Has anyone actually had luck getting accurate easement info from those online maps? I’ve seen them miss utility lines or drainage easements entirely. Makes me wonder—are there any online tools that are actually reliable, or is a survey always the only safe bet?
Title: Digging into property easements—anyone else find online tools confusing?
Honestly, I wouldn’t trust those online maps for anything more than a rough idea. When we built our place, the county’s map totally missed a sewer easement that ran right through where we wanted to put the driveway. Ended up paying for a survey anyway, but at least it saved us from a way bigger headache down the road. If you’re just curious, the maps are fine, but if you’re planning anything serious, I’d bite the bullet and get a pro survey.
I get where you’re coming from, but I wouldn’t write off those online tools entirely. They’ve gotten a lot better in the last few years—some counties are updating their GIS data pretty regularly now. I’ve caught a couple of minor easements on digital maps that weren’t flagged in the paperwork. Still, nothing beats a proper survey if you’re breaking ground, but for early planning or just scoping out a property, those maps can be a decent starting point. Just don’t treat them as gospel, I guess.
