house may not be totally on our property?

The home was built by a cabinet maker (literally) and his sons (builders). They apparently "stepped it off" from the road to place where their new home would be located. 4 years later, here we come to Upstate New York and purchase this home. We review the survey because we are wanting to put in a children's heavy duty wooden swingset and wanted to make sure we placed it correctly. We pull out the survey and there is no house pictured on it. We have inquired with the original surveyor and he stated (to our realtor) that the sellers wanted the cheapest survey and didn't even include a site visit (or so they say). As part of our relocation package, my husband's employer would have paid for a complete new survey anyway. When they were told this, they said they had already started everything. (suspicious)

My husband is not a surveyor (just an engineer!) but he has measured it several times and has even got a compass and the wheeled measuring device. It appears that the property line (or where it should be according to our "survey") should go through the middle of my living room. From reading your messages- I know what you will say.....get a full survey!!! That is exactly what we are doing!!!!! My question is do things like this really happen??? If it is correct that the property goes through the house-what then??? We did have title insurance, and the mortgage company did not catch this...

Thank you all in advance- I appreciate your knowledge!!
Lisa

Until you have the new "FULL SURVEY" there's not much anyone can tell you. However, you're right, the title company should have caught this.

If the full survey does indeed find that you are now sharing your living room with your neighbors, I smell a lawsuit in the air.

[HomeGuru]

Yes, things like that really do happen.

[nextwife]

The title company would NOT necessarily know where the structures sit on the property. I do not know in NY, but in many markets the lender is automatically given survey coverage, but there is "standard exception" language excluding survey coverage on the owners policy UNLESS a current survey SHOWING the location of all improvements is provided for review. Otherwise the title company would have no way to know where the structures lie on the property. They are insuring title to the land in the legal description and often excluding (OP only) survey coverage. Certainly here, for example. no surveys are in the "public record", only plat lines. So if you wish survey coverage on existing homes, you MUST provide a current survey and request they remove the exception.

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

My response:

I don't understand why you just don't back the ol' pick-up truck to the home, and hitch up the trailer hitch, and just move it about 20 feet to the right?

IAAL

[HomeGuru]

Yes, right.