The 2026 ALTA/NSPS standards took effect February 23, 2026. Here is every change that matters to buyers, lenders and title companies, what stayed the same, and a printable Table A checklist, from Utah surveyors who have completed 170 ALTA surveys since 2000.
The 2026 ALTA/NSPS Minimum Standard Detail Requirements are mostly a clarification of the 2021 standard, not a new kind of survey. The changes you’ll notice: a new optional Table A Item 20 (an encroachment summary table), a written agreement for imagery under Item 15, technology-neutral field language, possession noted along the whole perimeter, and verbal statements noted on the plat. Custom requests moved to Item 21.
The accuracy standard did not change: Relative Positional Precision is still 2 cm (0.07 ft) plus 50 ppm.
Ranked by how often they affect a real transaction. Two are genuinely new requirements; the rest clarify how surveyors already worked.
A new optional item puts a table on the face of the plat listing observed conditions and potential encroachments (over boundary lines, into easements, rights-of-way and supplied setbacks, and use of a neighbor’s land without a documented easement), each keyed to where it is on the drawing. Custom items move from 20 to Item 21.
What it means: Lenders and title reviewers can find every issue in seconds instead of hunting across a large sheet.
Aerial or satellite imagery can still be used to show non-boundary features, but the surveyor and client must agree in writing on the imagery (its source, date or version, and licensing), its limits must be discussed with the insurer, lender and client, and the survey must say so in a note.
What it means: If you want imagery used on a large tract, say so when you order. It can no longer be a quiet shortcut.
Field requirements now refer to practices generally recognized as acceptable by the surveying profession instead of measurements made “on the ground.” Drones, LiDAR, scanners and GNSS are all allowed when used properly.
What it means: Whatever tools are used, the precision standard below still has to be met.
Relative Positional Precision is now explained in plainer terms: the semi-major axis of the 95% error ellipse between adjacent boundary corners. The maximum is still 2 cm (0.07 ft) plus 50 parts per million.
What it means: No change to how accurate an ALTA survey must be. The standard also says plainly that a precise corner can still be in the wrong place.
Evidence of possession or occupation (fences, walls, hedges, use by neighbors) must be noted along the perimeter regardless of how far it sits from the boundary line, for both your property and the adjoiners.
What it means: Fences that wander off the record line are now documented, not left out because they were “too far away.”
If an owner, neighbor or occupant tells the surveyor something about the title or the boundary (“that fence was moved,” “the ditch company uses that lane”), the survey now notes it.
What it means: Information that used to live only in the field book is now in front of the lender and title officer.
Observed utility evidence is located, including utility poles on or within 10 feet of the property and guy wires on or within 5 feet. Under Item 11, if locate requests go unanswered or are incomplete, the plat must say how that affected the survey.
What it means: Underground lines are still not guaranteed without excavation. Item 11 depends on locates and plans.
The surveyor needs the most recent title commitment (or other title evidence acceptable to the insurer), the record description, and the recorded easements and covenants benefiting or burdening the property. The standard adds guidance for when a current commitment isn’t available.
What it means: Missing documents are the most common cause of a delayed ALTA. Send the full commitment and its exception documents with the order.
Plats must follow any recording form required by statute, local ordinance or now administrative rule, and the certification can be extended to the lender’s successors and assigns when requested.
What it means: Ask for successors-and-assigns language up front if your loan may be sold.
The differences most likely to show up in a lender’s instructions or a title review.
| Topic | 2021 standard | 2026 standard | What to do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard named on the survey | 2021 Minimum Standard Detail Requirements | 2026 Minimum Standard Detail Requirements | Your order, the lender's instructions and the certification should all say "2026." |
| Effective date | February 23, 2021 | February 23, 2026 | Contracts signed on or after Feb 23, 2026 use the 2026 standard. |
| Optional Table A items | Items 1–19, plus Item 20 for custom items | Items 1–20, plus Item 21 for custom items | Lender checklists that list "Item 20" need a second look: it means something different now. |
| Encroachment summary | Not a Table A item | Item 20 summary table on the plat | Order it when a lender or title reviewer wants every issue in one place. |
| Imagery (Item 15) | Allowed for non-boundary features | Allowed only with a written agreement and a note on the survey | Decide on imagery when you order, in writing. |
| Measurement methods | Measurements described as made "on the ground" | Practices generally recognized as acceptable by the profession | Drones and LiDAR are fine. Precision still governs. |
| Relative Positional Precision | 2 cm (0.07 ft) + 50 ppm | 2 cm (0.07 ft) + 50 ppm, definition clarified | Same accuracy. |
| Possession evidence | Noted along the perimeter | Noted along the perimeter regardless of distance from the line | More complete picture of fences and neighbor use. |
| Verbal (parol) statements | Not specifically required | Noted on the plat | What people tell the surveyor is on the record. |
| Certification | Named parties | Named parties, extendable to the lender's successors and assigns | Request it if the loan may be sold. |
It depends on when the survey contract was signed, not when the fieldwork happens. This follows the NSPS transition guidance.
The survey must be done to the 2026 Minimum Standard Detail Requirements, with very limited exceptions.
The surveyor may finish under the 2021 standard if that is clearly discussed with the client, title company and lender and stated in the contract.
An update contracted after Feb 23, 2026 must meet the 2026 standard. The narrow exception for a closing that slipped past the date doesn’t cover unrelated updates.
If you’ve ordered an ALTA survey before, most of the process is the same.
Check the items your lender and title company require before the proposal is finalized. Highlighted rows changed in 2026.
| Select | Item | Table A item | What it adds | Typically ordered when |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monuments | Set or reference monuments at major corners not already marked. | Corners are missing, or the lender wants them set. | |
| 2 | Address | Address from records or posted on site. | Almost always. Little added cost. | |
| 3 | Flood zone | Flood zone classification by graphic plotting from FEMA maps. | Almost always for loans. | |
| 4 | Land area | Gross land area, plus other areas you specify. | Almost always. | |
| 5 | Vertical relief | Contours or spot elevations with datum, benchmark and source. | Redevelopment, design or drainage questions. Adds field time. | |
| 6(a)/(b) | Zoning and setbacks | Zoning, setbacks, height and parking from a zoning report or letter you provide; 6(b) graphically shows setbacks. | When you have a zoning report. The surveyor doesn't interpret zoning. | |
| 7(a)–(c) | Building dimensions, area and height | Exterior footprint dimensions, square footage and height above grade. | Improved commercial property. Lenders often ask for 7(a). | |
| 8 | Substantial features | Parking lots, signs, pools, dumpster enclosures and other features observed. | Improved sites. | |
| 9 | Parking | Number and type of striped parking spaces. | Retail, office and multifamily, where parking affects zoning. | |
| 10 | Party and division walls | Location of designated walls relative to the boundary. | Attached or zero-lot-line buildings. | |
| 11 | Underground utilities | Evidence from plans, reports and locate markings (Blue Stakes and private locators). | Utilities affect value or design. Lacking excavation, exact locations aren't guaranteed. | |
| 12 | Agency requirements | Requirements of a named government agency (for example HUD). | Agency-backed loans with their own survey rules. | |
| 13 | Adjoining owners | Names of adjoining owners from current tax records. | Commonly requested. Little added cost. | |
| 14 | Nearest intersecting street | Distance to the nearest intersecting street. | Commonly requested. | |
| 15 | Imagery | Imagery used for non-boundary features, with written agreement and a note. | Large rural or industrial tracts. | |
| 16 | Recent earthwork or construction | Evidence of recent earth moving, construction or additions. | Active or recently built sites. | |
| 17 | Right-of-way changes | Proposed street right-of-way changes and recent street or sidewalk work. | Property on roads with planned widening. | |
| 18 | Offsite easements | Plottable easements that benefit the property from off-site. | Access or utility easements across a neighbor's land. | |
| 19 | Professional liability insurance | Surveyor carries a negotiated minimum coverage during the contract. | When the lender requires a minimum amount. | |
| 20 | Encroachment summary table | Keyed table of observed conditions and potential encroachments. | New in 2026. Useful on large or complicated sites. | |
| 21 | Additional items | Anything else negotiated, listed as 21(a), 21(b) and so on. | Airport zones, internal tax-parcel lines, lender-specific requests. |
The “typically ordered” column is our general guidance, not a requirement. Your lender’s and title company’s instructions decide the scope. Source: 2026 Minimum Standard Detail Requirements, Table A.
Nearly every delay we see traces back to missing documents or a scope that changed after fieldwork. Settle these four things first.
The full title commitment with its Schedule B exception documents, the record description, any prior survey and a zoning report if you’re ordering Item 6. You can attach them to our quote form.
Get the lender’s and title company’s required items in writing and confirm the Item 20 vs. Item 21 numbering on older checklists.
List the insured, lender and title insurer, and ask now for successors-and-assigns language if the loan may be sold.
Share the draft plat with title and the lender before it’s final. Changes after signing cost time on both sides.
Ludlow Engineering has completed 170 ALTA/NSPS surveys since we began tracking projects in 2000, in 14 Utah counties. In 2026 alone we’ve started eight, from single lots in Salt Lake City and Tooele to multi-section tracts in Juab and Emery counties.
Also: Beaver (2), Iron (2), Carbon (2), Wasatch (1), Tooele (1), Washington (1).
Rural Utah parcels are described from the Public Land Survey System, measured from the Salt Lake Base and Meridian or, in the Uinta Basin, the Uintah Special Meridian. Large-acreage ALTAs start with recovering those corners, which drives fieldwork time.
Central Utah farm and ranch ground is crossed by irrigation ditches and access lanes that aren’t always fully described in recorded documents. The 2026 rules on perimeter possession and verbal statements help put that evidence on the plat for the title officer.
Item 11 relies on locate markings. Blue Stakes of Utah 811 marks member utilities; private lines such as site power, irrigation and service laterals need a private locator. Plan for both.
When an ALTA survey establishes or re-establishes boundary corners, Utah law requires the surveyor to file a map with the county within 90 days (Utah Code § 17-73-504).
Every Ludlow quote is a fixed fee for your property and Table A list, with travel shown separately.
| Survey | Typical range | What moves the price |
|---|---|---|
| ALTA/NSPS, typical commercial lot | $3,000–$8,000 | Number of Table A items, building count, quality of the record documents. |
| ALTA/NSPS, large or rural tract | $8,000+ | Acreage, section-corner recovery, offsite easements, imagery agreement. |
| Item 11 underground utilities | Quoted | Private locator time and the number of utility systems. |
Most ALTA surveys take 3–6 weeks from receipt of the full title commitment. More detail: ALTA survey costs and what lenders expect · our ALTA survey service · drone ALTA surveys · ALTA surveys in Utah County.
This guide summarizes the official documents. For a specific transaction, the official text and your lender’s instructions control.
February 23, 2026. Surveys contracted on or after that date must follow the 2026 Minimum Standard Detail Requirements for ALTA/NSPS Land Title Surveys, which replace the 2021 version.
A new optional Table A Item 20 (an encroachment summary table), a written-agreement requirement for imagery under Item 15, technology-neutral field language, a clearer definition of Relative Positional Precision, possession noted along the whole perimeter, and verbal statements noted on the plat. Custom items moved from Item 20 to Item 21.
Only the wording. The maximum allowable RPP is still 2 cm (0.07 feet) plus 50 parts per million.
Twenty defined optional items, plus Item 21 for any additional items negotiated between the surveyor and client, listed as 21(a), 21(b) and so on.
If ordered, it adds a summary table to the plat listing observed conditions and potential encroachments (boundary, easement and right-of-way, setback, and undocumented use of adjoining land), each referenced to its location on the drawing. It does not express a legal opinion.
If the checklist was written for the 2021 standard, Item 20 meant additional negotiated items. Under 2026 those are Item 21 and Item 20 is the encroachment summary table. Confirm with the lender which they want before the survey is ordered.
According to NSPS guidance, a survey contracted before that date may still be completed to the 2021 standard if that is clearly discussed with the client, title company and lender and stated in the contract. Updates contracted after the date generally must meet the 2026 standard.
No. Item 11 shows utility evidence from plans, reports and locate markings. Without excavation, the exact location of underground features can't be guaranteed, and the plat notes any locates that weren't answered.
Usually not. Each item adds time and cost. Start from your lender's and title company's requirements and add items that answer real questions about the property.
Most ALTA/NSPS surveys we quote fall between $3,000 and $8,000, with large tracts, many Table A items or underground utility work costing more. Most take three to six weeks from receipt of the title commitment.
Related: ALTA surveys in Utah · what a land survey is · survey costs · our project record
Send the property address, your lender’s Table A list and the title commitment. We’ll confirm the 2026 scope and send a fixed-fee quote, usually within one business day.
Ludlow Engineering has surveyed and engineered Utah property for 51 years. Every survey and plan is prepared under a licensed professional, not handed off.
Professional Land SurveyorState of Utah No. 5331527
Directs our boundary, topographic, ALTA and subdivision surveys.
Professional EngineerState of Utah
Stamps our site plans, foundation designs and civil engineering.
Partner & Managing MemberMBA
Managing Member of Ludlow Engineers and Associates
170 ALTA/NSPS survey projects since 2000, in 14 Utah counties.
Most recent: Sep 2026.
Counts come from Ludlow Engineering's project records (2000–present, updated Oct 2026). Client names are never shown.