An ALTA/NSPS survey covers a required core of items on every job. Table A sits on top of that core. It’s a list of optional items you can ask the surveyor to add. The right ones come down to the property in front of you and what the deal calls for. A property can need a very different set of Table A items than one two counties over. A few simple checks help you land on the right list.
Start With What the Property Needs to Document
Table A is not a box where every option belongs on every survey. The 2026 ALTA/NSPS standards describe the first 20 Table A items as optional survey responsibilities and specifications. The surveyor and client can work out the scope and fee for those items. Your survey request should name the 2026 ALTA/NSPS standard and spell out which Table A items you want.
The right list depends on the site. A downtown commercial building, a suburban retail site, an industrial parcel and a redevelopment property each carry different needs. One may need parking counts and building heights. Another may need almost none of that. Start with the property before you scan the full menu.
Match the Table A Options to the Physical Characteristics of the Site
A good way to choose is to look at what’s actually on the ground. Match the items to real features. The physical site tells you which options earn their place.
If the site has slope or grade changes, Item 5 covers vertical relief and related elevation information. If buildings sit on the parcel, Items 7(a) through 7(c) cover building dimensions, floor areas and measured height. Item 8 covers substantial site features. Item 9 covers the number and type of parking spaces and the striping on them. Item 10 covers certain division or party walls between properties. The 2026 Table A lists all of these as optional.
This is where property type matters. An established commercial property with buildings and structured parking may call for a different set than a bare, vacant parcel. The buildings and the parking give you real reasons to add Items 7, 9 or 10. A raw lot may not need any of them.
Give Special Attention to Utilities and Development Conditions
Some Table A items matter most when you plan to build or redevelop. Utilities lead that group. A few items focus on conditions that can shift during a project.
Item 11 covers evidence of underground utilities from set sources. The 2026 standard is blunt about the limits here. It states that underground utility locations can’t be shown accurately, completely and reliably without excavation. It also notes that utility locate responses can come back incomplete in some areas. So Item 11 gives you useful information, but it does not promise a full, exact map of everything below grade.
A few other items fit development work. Item 15 covers the use of agreed-upon imagery for certain features. Item 16 covers evidence of recent earth moving, building construction or additions. Item 17 covers proposed changes to street right-of-way lines, plus street or sidewalk construction or repairs the surveyor sees in the field. For a redevelopment site, these can flag changes that affect your plans.
Consider Transaction-Specific and Property-Specific Additions
Not every Table A choice comes from the dirt. Some come from what the client, lender, insurer or a government agency needs on record. These items follow the deal more than the ground.
Item 3 covers flood zone classification. Item 6(a) and 6(b) cover zoning information or certain setback requirements, but only when that information comes through the required source. Item 6 does not mean the surveyor runs a full zoning analysis on their own. The 2026 wording sets specific conditions tied to information the client or a designated representative supplies. Item 12 covers survey-related requirements from a government agency. Item 13 covers adjoining owner names taken from current tax records. Item 14 covers the distance to the nearest intersecting street.
A few more round out the list. Item 18 covers certain plottable off-site appurtenant easements. Item 19 covers professional liability insurance. Item 20 covers specified potential encroachments and other listed conditions the surveyor collects in a table. Each one belongs on the survey only if the transaction calls for it.
Confirm the Table A Scope Before the ALTA/NSPS Survey Begins
Before the survey starts, settle the scope with the surveyor. A short check keeps the whole team on the same page. It also cuts down on surprises later.
Confirm these points:
- Confirm that the 2026 ALTA/NSPS standard applies to the job.
- List the exact Table A items you’ve selected.
- Spell out the scope of any negotiated changes to those items.
- Add any negotiated items numbered 21(a), 21(b), 21(c) and so on.
- Name the information you as the client have to provide.
- Note what the lender, title company or insurer needs shown.
- Point out any special site conditions worth a closer look.
The 2026 standards call negotiated extra items 21(a), 21(b), 21(c) and so forth. If you change the wording of a Table A item, the survey has to spell out that change. Settle all of this up front and the finished survey should match what the deal actually needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does every ALTA/NSPS survey need every Table A item?
No. The 2026 standards treat the first 20 Table A entries as optional. A few can still become necessary when a state or local rule calls for them, but most jobs use only a subset that fits the property.
Which Table A items may help a commercial property with lots of parking?
Item 9 fits that case. It covers the number and type of clearly identifiable parking spaces and the striping on surface lots and in parking structures. Whether you add it still depends on the property’s needs and the scope you agree on.
Does Table A Item 11 locate every underground utility?
No. Item 11 covers evidence of underground utilities from set sources. The 2026 standard warns that, without excavation, underground features can’t be shown accurately, completely and reliably. Treat it as strong evidence rather than a guarantee.
When might building measurements get added to a survey?
Item 7 handles that. It can cover outside building dimensions, certain square-footage figures and measured building height. The right picks depend on what the client needs and how the building will be used.
Can a client ask for work beyond the numbered Table A items?
Yes. The 2026 standards let you add negotiated items as 21(a), 21(b), 21(c) and so on. You have to explain any negotiated change to Table A wording, and any extra item, the way the standards require.
