How To Handle a Bad Survey When Selling Your Home

What Sellers Should Know About Survey Problems, Encroachments, and Closing Delays

Most home sellers never think about surveys, but when you sell a home in 2026, there is a very good chance the buyer, their lender, or the title company will order a survey during the transaction.

The majority of surveys come back clean, but sometimes they reveal issues like:

• a fence slightly over the property line
• a driveway corner crossing into the neighbor’s lot
• a shed inside a setback
• a deck built too close to the boundary

The problem is that even when the issue seems small it can cause confusion, delays, or even threaten the closing if it isn’t handled properly.

At the Ohio Property Group, we’ve helped sellers navigate more than 2,500 home sales, and, while uncommon, survey problems do come up from time to time. The good news? Most survey issues are solvable if you know how to approach them.

Let’s walk through what surveys are, why problems happen, and how sellers can handle them without blowing up their deal.

What Is a Real Estate Survey?

A real estate survey is when a licensed surveyor confirms the exact boundaries of the property.

They identify the official property lines and lot boundaries including buildings, fences, and driveways. They also detail any encroachments across property lines and structures inside required setbacks. The results are typically delivered as a drawing with notes describing any issues.

Surveys are often ordered when:

• The title company requires it for title insurance
• The lender requires it for the mortgage
• The buyer requests one
• The contract requires it

Most surveys are completed within the first 1–2 weeks of a real estate transaction. Most of the time nothing happens, but occassionally the survey reveals a problem.

The Most Common Survey Problems Sellers Encounter

Survey issues are surprisingly common, especially in older neighborhoods where properties have changed hands many times.

Typical survey issues include:

• Fence over property line
• Driveway slightly crossing the boundary
• Garage or shed inside a setback
• Landscaping or retaining wall encroachments

Many of these issues are minor and have existed for decades. Often, nobody even realizes they exist until a survey is ordered during a home sale.

Why Small Survey Issues Can Cause Big Problems

When a survey reveals an encroachment, everyone involved in the transaction becomes aware of it. Even if the issue is tiny, the buyer may suddenly feel nervous or want it fixed.

That’s when small survey issues can turn into negotiation points or closing delays. Don’t freak out just yet, most of the time all parties accept the encroachment and move on. If your survey has an issue and someone in the transaction is threatening to cancel, keep reading for ways to save the deal.

Why Lenders Often Accept Survey Encroachments

This part confuses many sellers. Title companies frequently allow minor encroachments for lender title insurance, but not for owner’s title insurance.

Here’s why:

Lender’s Title Policy

This protects the bank’s loan. As long as the issue doesn’t affect the property’s resale value or foreclosure ability, lenders typically accept minor encroachments.

Owner’s Title Policy

This protects the buyer’s ownership rights and future resale value. If a known encroachment exists, the title company may exclude that issue from coverage.

The buyer is the one purchasing the home and often paying for the survey, so they are delivered the results. Most buyers shrug the issues off, since they are usually minor and/or decades old. But sometimes… They don’t.

Read on for two real-life surveys handled very different ways: the easy way and the hard way.

A Real Story: When a Survey Problem Was Handled the Right Way

Early in my career, I sold a house next to a beautiful historic Victorian home owned by a local dentist who was beloved by the town. Over the course of 20 years he lovingly rennovated the home including installing a gorgeous black wrought-iron fence along the property line.

When the survey came back for the neighboring property, the fence was discovered to be less than one foot over the boundary.

The lender decided that it needed to be fixed before closing.

Instead of arguing, the neighbor handled it with class. He offered to buy the 1ft strip of land for $500 and cover any legal fees as well as pay for a new survey. Better that than his fence becoming a problem for his neighbor trying to sell and he avoided getting off to a bad start with his new potential neighbors.

It turns out the dentist with the wrought-iron fence had to do this 3 more times because the city kept changing setback ordinances. So, even though he was within his right to install it 20 years ago, changing rules created a new problem, but cool heads prevailed and everyone walked away happy.

Lesson: When people stay calm and cooperative, survey problems are almost always solvable.

A Real Story: When a Tiny Survey Issue Became a Nightmare

Fast forward to a more recent deal. The survey revealed less than one square foot of driveway encroaching on a neighbor’s property.

It wasn’t even the main part of a driveway, it was the small diagonal area that is located at the street where the driveway meets the curb.

To solve it, we prepared a quitclaim deed asking the neighbor to waive rights to the tiny piece of land. This is a really commmon solution to these types of issues. The sellers, who had lived there for a long time and were friendly with their neighbors, went over with the quitclaim deed and some wine to solve this issue.

Instead of cooperating, they said they needed time to think and then the neighbor hired a lawyer. While that was a shock, it wasn’t a problem, you should always seek out a professional before signing anything legally binded. But then, they demanded $10,000 or threatened legal action.

The closing was delayed multiple times and ultimately required a financial settlement. It wasn’t the full $10,000 but it wasn’t a friendly chat and bottle of wine either. All over a tiny piece of driveway nobody had ever used.

Lesson: Emotions can make small survey problems expensive.

Listen to the full podcast episode on Survey Nightmares to get more insight into quitclaim deeds and contentious closings.

How Sellers Can Avoid Survey Problems Before Listing?

If you’re planning to sell your home, there are a few smart steps you can take.

1. Check for an Existing Survey

If you had a survey done when you bought the property:

• contact your bank
• contact the title company
• ask your real estate agent

Having a recent survey can give you peace of mind.

2. Order a Survey If You Suspect a Problem

Consider ordering one if you recently added:

• a new fence
• a driveway extension
• a deck
• a shed
• a home addition

Most mortgage location surveys cost a few hundred dollars for a typical residential lot. Finding issues early lets you fix them before you’re under contract.

3. Fix the Problem Before You Sell

If a survey reveals an encroachment, you may be able to:

• move the structure
• adjust the boundary through a small land purchase
• obtain a quitclaim deed from the neighbor

It’s much easier to solve these problems before buyers and deadlines enter the picture.

What If the Buyer’s Survey Finds a Problem?

Don’t panic. In the vast majority of cases minor encroachments are accepted by all parties and the deal proceeds normally. If the buyer wants it resolved, possible solutions include:

• quitclaim deed from the neighbor
• small land transfer
• minor repair or modification
• negotiated credit

The key is staying calm and working toward a practical solution.

The Bottom Line on Survey Issues

Survey problems sound scary, but they are rarely deal killers. Remember these three lessons:

1. Once a survey reveals an issue, you can’t pretend it didn’t happen.

2. Most survey problems are solvable when people stay rational.

3. Emotions can turn tiny issues into expensive problems.

If you suspect a survey issue before selling, get ahead of it early. That way you stay in control instead of scrambling while the closing clock is ticking.

Need Help Selling Your Home in Ohio?

At Ohio Property Group, we’ve helped more than 2,500 sellers successfully navigate inspections, surveys, appraisals, and negotiations.

If you have questions about survey problems, encroachments, inspections, pricing strategy, or preparing your home for sale, then you should book a free, no-obligation strategy call and we’ll walk you through it.

Ready to get started on your next listing?

1. Select the listing package that fits your needs.
2. Use Promo Code BLOG to save $25 at checkout.
3. Start saving crazy amounts of money.