You bought a house with some land and want to put up a new fence. You look at the old wooden posts out back. They look straight enough. You assume they mark the edge of your property. That is a mistake. Those old posts might be off by inches or even feet. Neighbors build things over the line all the time. Sometimes they do it by accident. Sometimes they do not. If you build your new fence based on a bad assumption, you might have to tear it down later. This is exactly when you need a residential land survey . The results matter because the local terrain presents specific challenges. Picking someone who understands the local dirt and history makes a difference. The Problem with Red Clay and Thick Pines The ground across the Piedmont region shifts. Heavy red clay soil expands when we get massive summer downpours and shrinks during dry spells. This constant movement cracks driveways and warps retaining walls. It also moves old property markers. A piece of iron pipe driven into the dirt fi...