How Surveyors and Courts Determine Property Lines in Massachusetts (Part I of a Multi-Part Series)
If you’ve ever looked at your property line and thought, “Wait, does that fence belong to me or my neighbor?” — you’re not alone. Boundary and property line disputes are surprisingly common in Massachusetts, especially where deeds and plans often date back to the 1800s.
I’ve handled many of these cases and most follow a common fact pattern. A property owner discovers that a fence, shed, pool, or even a house may sit over the property line, or neighbors are mistaken as to where the property line is located. Sometimes entire subdivisions or neighborhoods are infected with survey errors which have been passed down from owner to owner for decades. The end result is often a big legal mess, with neighbors upset with each other and unable to agree on where the property line actually sits.
These disputes often boil down to conflicting surveys, ancient deeds, old stone bounds and monuments, and a legal set of rules called the “hierarchy of priorities” that Massachusetts courts and surveyors use to decide who owns what. It can get very complicated, very fast. With that said, here’s what every Massachusetts homeowner and real estate professional should know about Massachusetts boundary line disputes and surveying law.
Overview of Massachusetts Surveying Law
When a boundary dispute arises, one of the first questions homeowners ask is: “How does a surveyor actually determine where the property line is?” Contrary to popular belief, a professional boundary survey is not simply a matter of measuring distances with modern GPS equipment. Determining a property line in Massachusetts requires historical research, legal interpretation of deeds, and field investigation that may reach back more than a century.
Boundary Line Determination: What Does The Surveyor Do Exactly?
A licensed Massachusetts Professional Land Surveyor (PLS)…