In Grenada, the person who decides where a piece of land actually begins and ends on the ground is a licensed land surveyor. The deed describes the land and the survey plan draws it, but it is the surveyor who finds the old marks, measures the lines and certifies the plan that a buyer, a bank, the planning authority and the Deeds and Land Registry will all rely on. Hiring the wrong person, or skipping the survey to save money, is behind a large share of the boundary arguments that reach lawyers and courts.
This page explains what a survey involves in Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique, when you need one, how to choose and brief a surveyor, what the fieldwork looks like, how the plan gets checked by the Lands and Surveys Division, and what affects the time and the bill. Rules on licensing and plan approval are set by law and administered by government; confirm current requirements with the Lands and Surveys Division or with the surveyor you instruct.
When a survey is needed
A new survey is almost always needed when land is being divided, when part of a larger parcel is being sold, or when the existing description is too vague to identify the land with confidence. Many older Grenadian deeds describe land by reference to neighbours, roads and estate names rather than by measured lines, and a plot carved out of a family holding decades ago may never have been surveyed at all.
Even when a plan exists, a check survey is sensible before a purchase. The surveyor compares the recorded plan with what is on the ground: whether the boundary marks are still there, whether fences and walls follow the lines, and whether any building, driveway, cistern or septic tank crosses onto the neighbouring parcel. Banks lending on land usually want an approved plan, and a planning application to the Physical Planning Unit is built on the survey plan, so most owners need one sooner or later.
A survey is also the first step in resolving a boundary disagreement. Before anyone argues about whose mango tree it is, a licensed surveyor should establish where the recorded line runs.
Choosing a surveyor
Check the licence. Only a land surveyor licensed to practise in Grenada can certify a cadastral survey plan for official use. Ask for the licence and confirm with the Lands and Surveys Division if in doubt. A draughtsman or engineer may produce useful drawings, but they cannot replace a licensed boundary survey.
Look for local knowledge. Surveyors who have worked for years in a parish know the old estate lines, which marks have been disturbed, and which neighbours have earlier plans. That knowledge saves fieldwork, particularly on former estate land in St Andrew, St David and St Patrick.
Ask about workload. Good surveyors are busy, and fieldwork depends on weather. Ask when they can start, how long the field and office work will take, and how long plan approval usually adds.
Agree the scope in writing. State whether you want a check survey, a fresh boundary survey, a subdivision, or a topographic survey showing levels for an architect. These are different jobs at different prices, and a written scope avoids paying for the wrong one.
Keep your attorney in the loop. On a purchase, your attorney and your surveyor should talk. The lawyer knows what the deeds say; the surveyor knows what the ground says. Discrepancies between the two are what you are paying them both to find.
What happens during the survey
A typical boundary survey in Grenada runs through these stages:
- Research: the surveyor obtains copies of existing plans for the parcel and its neighbours from the Lands and Surveys Division and reviews the deed description your attorney provides.
- Notice to neighbours: adjoining owners are normally informed so they can attend and point out where they understand the boundary to run. Their presence early on prevents arguments later.
- Fieldwork: the team clears lines where needed, searches for existing marks such as concrete monuments or iron pins, and measures with a total station or GNSS receiver tied to the national survey control.
- Placing marks: corners that are missing, or new corners in a subdivision, are marked on the ground, usually with concrete or iron markers.
- Plan preparation: the surveyor draws the plan showing bearings, distances, area, marks, adjoining owners, roads and features.
- Submission and checking: the plan is lodged with the Lands and Surveys Division for examination; once accepted, it receives an approval reference and can be used in deeds and planning applications.
- Handover: you receive copies of the approved plan. Keep originals safe and give copies to your attorney.
Cost and timing: what drives the bill
Surveyors in Grenada quote by the job, and fees vary widely. The main drivers are the size of the parcel, the terrain, how much bush has to be cut, whether the existing marks can be found, how many neighbouring plans need to be reconciled, and whether a subdivision is involved. A small, flat house lot in a laid-out development with intact marks is a very different job from a steep, overgrown acre on former estate land with no surviving corners.
Ask for a written quotation that says what is included: research, fieldwork, marks, plan preparation, submission fees and copies. Government fees for checking and lodging plans are separate charges set by the authorities and they change from time to time, so confirm them at the time.
On timing, the fieldwork itself may take a day or two for a simple lot, while research, drafting and approval add weeks. Delays at the approval stage are common, especially when the plan has to resolve conflicts with older surveys. Build that into any purchase or loan timetable rather than promising a seller a completion date the survey cannot meet.
Surveys on Carriacou and Petite Martinique
Land on Carriacou and Petite Martinique falls under the same national survey and registration system as the mainland, but the practicalities differ. Fewer surveyors are based on the sister islands, so many jobs involve a surveyor travelling from Grenada by ferry or plane with equipment, and travel and accommodation can be built into the quote. Grouping work with neighbours who also need surveys can make a visit more economical.
Much land on Carriacou has passed through families for generations with informal divisions between relatives, and boundaries are often marked by dry-stone walls, old fence posts or lines of trees rather than surveyed corners. A survey there frequently starts by reconciling what the family understands with what any recorded plan shows. Where no plan exists, expect a fuller job.
Hurricane Beryl in July 2024 damaged or displaced fences, walls and vegetation across Carriacou and Petite Martinique. Physical features that once served as rough guides to boundaries may have moved or disappeared, which makes a proper survey more important, not less, before rebuilding a wall or selling a plot. Check availability and timing with surveyors before planning a trip around it.
Mistakes owners make with surveys
Relying on the fence. Fences, hedges of croton or hibiscus, and lines of trees are often decades out of position. The legal boundary is what the approved plan and the marks show, not what was planted.
Moving or removing marks. Boundary marks are protected, and disturbing them can be an offence. Builders clearing a site sometimes knock them out; ask the contractor to protect them and have the surveyor re-establish any that are lost before walls go up.
Using an old plan for a new purpose. A plan approved decades ago may use different control, older units or an area that no longer matches. Ask the surveyor whether it is still adequate for a sale, a loan or a planning application.
Leaving neighbours out. A survey done without adjoining owners being told is legally sound if done properly, but it invites suspicion. A short conversation and an invitation to attend costs nothing.
Paying everything up front. Agree staged payment: a deposit to start and the balance on delivery of the approved plan.
Frequently asked questions
Can a surveyor from another Caribbean country survey land in Grenada?
Only a surveyor licensed to practise in Grenada can certify a boundary survey for official use here. Regional firms sometimes work with a locally licensed surveyor. Check the licence with the Lands and Surveys Division before you pay anyone.
Is a new survey needed if the seller already has a plan?
Not always, but a check survey is wise. The surveyor confirms the marks still exist, the plan matches the ground and nothing encroaches. Many buyers find fences, driveways or cisterns in the wrong place only after this check.
How long does plan approval take?
It varies with workload and complexity. A straightforward plan may move through in weeks; one that conflicts with older surveys can take much longer while differences are resolved. Ask your surveyor for a realistic estimate at the start.
What happens if a neighbour refuses to let the surveyor onto their land?
Most surveys can be completed from your side of the line, but access sometimes matters. Your surveyor and attorney can advise on the legal position and on approaching the neighbour formally. A calm explanation of what the work involves often resolves it.
Is a topographic survey the same as a boundary survey?
No. A boundary survey fixes the legal lines and marks. A topographic survey records levels, slopes, trees and features for design. Architects usually want both for a hillside house lot, and many surveyors can do them in one visit.
