A tidy certificate of title in SA can sit in a drawer for years while a fence, a shed or an eave ends up somewhere it shouldn’t be. The title records the land on paper. It says nothing about what’s been built on the ground since.
This guide is for Adelaide owners who hold a title, or are about to, and wonder how far to trust it. Torrens Survey Co is advertising, not a surveying firm. It holds no surveying licence and doesn’t survey. It puts you in touch with an independent Licensed Surveyor, who quotes and contracts with you directly.
If you already know what the survey is for, tell us what it is for and get a written quote from an independent Licensed Surveyor.
What a certificate of title in SA actually records
Think of the title as the official summary of who holds an interest in a piece of land. It identifies the land, names the registered owner or owners, and lists the registered interests that sit over it. Those usually include a mortgage and any registered easements. It normally carries a diagram of the land as it was drawn on the plan.
That’s a lot of useful information, and it’s the first thing a conveyancer, lender or council will ask to see. A few points matter in practice.
- It names the people whose signatures count. For a land division, the application needs consent from the registered owners and also from any registered interests on the title, such as a lender (Land Services SA).
- It lists registered easements. Land division plans have to show all existing registered easements (Planning, Development and Infrastructure (General) Regulations, Schedule 8), so an easement on your title is not a footnote.
- It reflects a plan, not a walk around your block. The diagram shows the shape and dimensions of the allotment as drawn. It doesn’t show where the pegs, fences or buildings are today.
- It’s only as current as the copy you hold. An old copy can miss a newer mortgage or easement, so ask for a current one before you rely on it.
Land Services SA holds the register and deposits the plans that create titles. A conveyancer or solicitor can order a current copy for you. Ask about the fee, because we don’t quote one here.
What your SA certificate of title cannot tell you
Owners often treat the title as proof that everything on the block is where it should be. It isn’t. The Surveyors Board SA says major discrepancies between boundaries and fencing are not uncommon and can sometimes be very difficult to rectify. A title can’t flag that problem, because it never looked at your fence.
| Question you are asking | Does the title answer it? | Who answers it |
|---|---|---|
| Who owns the land, and who holds a mortgage? | Yes | The title copy; a conveyancer explains it |
| Which registered easements affect the land? | It lists them, but not where they sit against your buildings | The easement terms are read by a conveyancer or solicitor; a Licensed Surveyor can mark the position on the ground |
| Where is the boundary on the ground? | No, the diagram is on paper | A Licensed Surveyor |
| Is the fence on the line? | No | A Licensed Surveyor |
| Do the house, shed, eaves and driveway sit inside the title? | No | A Licensed Surveyor |
| What are the existing ground levels for a design? | No | A feature and level survey |
| Can the block be divided, and what does the zone allow? | No | The council, PlanSA and the Planning and Design Code |
Two of those points deserve a second look.
First, the position of the boundary. In South Australia only licensed surveyors can undertake a boundary survey or place a survey mark that defines a property boundary, according to the Surveyors Board SA. Surveys by unlicensed practitioners have no legal standing. The Surveyor-General’s own guidance describes the pegs from an identification survey as the surveyor’s opinion of where the boundary lies. That’s why the work is done by a person who is accountable for that opinion.
Second, encroachments. SA Government describes an encroachment as a structure that crosses the legal boundary, and it lists buildings, driveways, eaves and balconies. Neither the title nor a quick look over the fence will tell you whether you have one. If a dispute does arise, the SA Government guidance sends encroachment disputes to the Supreme Court, and the Encroachments Act 1944 also lets either owner apply to the Land and Valuation Court. Both are slow, costly routes for a problem a survey may have shown earlier.
Your title isn’t unreliable. It’s a different record from the ground, and the survey compares the two.
Three blocks where the title was only the starting point
These are anonymised situations of the kind Adelaide owners describe. They’re not client stories, and none of the figures below is a quote for your block.
A Campbelltown block someone wants to split
The owners of a 1960s brick home on a 900 m2 block in Campbelltown want to know if they can put a second home behind the first. The Greater Adelaide Regional Plan 2025 notes that some infill in Campbelltown has generally taken the form of townhouses, so the idea isn’t unusual.
The title tells them two useful things. There is a mortgage on it, so the lender will need to consent to a division. And it lists any registered easements, which a land division plan must show. The title doesn’t tell them whether the block can be divided at all. That depends on the zone and overlays in the Planning and Design Code, which the council or a planner checks. We don’t publish minimum block sizes, because that check is specific to the land.
On cost, one Adelaide surveying firm, Sawley Lock O’Callaghan, says a standard one-into-two land division in metropolitan Adelaide costs “in the order of $30,000 - $34,000”. Its page, last modified 12 May 2025, doesn’t state whether GST is included. The figure covers state and council fees, Land Services SA plan fees, surveyor and consultancy fees, conveyancer or solicitor fees and SA Water fees. The same page warns that SA Water may charge non-standard costs for water and sewer extensions, which “could increase the costs significantly”, and that power and NBN connection are extra. Treat it as one firm’s guide, not a quote.
Two statutory fees show how the number builds. For 2026-27 the open space contribution in Greater Adelaide is $10,166.00 per new allotment. A two-lot Torrens division creates one new allotment. The Commission may require the contribution for divisions of 20 allotments or fewer. Land Services SA’s official wording on time is “many months, sometimes even years”.
If a split is the plan, the land division surveys page explains how that job runs.
A Mount Barker buyer checking the shed against an easement
A buyer in Mount Barker is one signature from contract. The title lists a registered easement along the rear of the block, and the seller’s shed sits near the back fence. The buyer wants to know if the shed is over the easement, or over the boundary, before settlement.
The title cannot settle either question. It confirms the easement exists and gives its terms to the conveyancer. It doesn’t place the shed. Only a survey that marks the boundary and the easement on the ground can show that, and that work belongs to a Licensed Surveyor. The Surveyors Board SA recommends engaging one when buying or selling, so you know about any encroachments.
Trade Heroes, a national cost guide updated 6 March 2026, gives a boundary survey as $900 to $2,500. It doesn’t say whether GST is included, and it’s a national range, not an Adelaide price. No South Australian firm we checked publishes a price for this kind of job. An Adelaide surveyor quotes your block.
Settlement dates don’t stretch, so ask the surveyor about timing when you request the quote and tell your conveyancer. Our guide to identification surveys before buying goes through the steps. The identification surveys page covers the job itself, and easements on title in SA explains what the wording on a title can mean.
A bluestone villa in Unley with a wall on the title boundary
A bluestone villa in Unley has a side wall that appears to sit right on the boundary. The owners want to extend, and their designer needs a site plan. The title diagram gives the side dimension. It can’t say whether the wall sits exactly on that line, a little inside it or a little over it, and neither can a tape measure from the neighbour’s fence.
A development application for a new building or extension needs a site plan drawn to scale. The regulation lists the boundaries and dimensions of the site, the distances to boundaries and existing and proposed ground and floor levels where relevant. It doesn’t say who prepares that plan. A feature and level survey is the usual way to get the existing levels and the offsets to the boundary. EastWest Surveyors, a surveying firm’s national guide from 16 November 2025, puts feature and level or contour surveys at AUD $1,500 to $4,500. GST isn’t stated, and again it is a national range. Adelaide surveyors quote each job, and the price depends on the block, the evidence on site and the survey type.
Reading your title before you book a survey
You don’t need a survey to read a title, but a few minutes with the document will make your first conversation with a surveyor and a conveyancer much shorter.
- Get a current copy of the title, not an old one from the last purchase.
- Check that the names on it match the current owners. If they don’t, tell your conveyancer.
- Note every mortgage, easement and other notation. Ask your conveyancer what each one means for your plans.
- Compare the diagram with what you have on site. Note anything that looks different, such as a fence that seems to run at an angle to the diagram.
- Write down what the survey is for. A fence, a purchase, a design and a land division each call for a different kind of survey.
Point five matters more than it looks. The honest first step is often working out what kind of survey you need. A fence dispute needs a boundary answer. A designer needs levels and offsets. A land division needs a Licensed Surveyor’s plan and conveyancing.
If the fence is the trigger, the Legal Services Commission’s guidance is to get a survey that shows the precise location of the boundary. Neighbours can share the cost if both want it. If not, the person who books the survey pays. Under the Fences Act 1975, a survey reasonably required for the fencing work counts as a fencing cost. Our page on fences and boundary surveys covers the notice steps.
When a surveyor is named, check their licence. There’s no searchable online register. Contact the Registrar at registrar@isasa.org.au or (08) 8212 0343, or check the Gazette list of Licensed and Registered Surveyors in South Australia, updated each July and January.
Tell us what the survey is for, and we put you in touch with an independent Licensed Surveyor who quotes and contracts with you directly. Use the contact form first. If you’d rather talk, the number is (08) 5550 3814. We don’t promise turnaround times, fixed prices or that a boundary is where you think it is.
What the title and the survey do together
The title tells you what is registered. The survey tells you where it sits. Most expensive surprises come from a gap between the two, and they’re cheaper to find before you build, buy or lodge anything.
Some jobs also need more than a surveyor. A land division needs a conveyancer or solicitor to prepare the application, and a building on the boundary may need an engineer. Read the title early and ask the right person each question.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my certificate of title show my exact boundary?
No. The title carries a diagram drawn from a plan, but the position of the boundary on the ground is a matter for a Licensed Surveyor. Pegs placed on an identification survey represent the surveyor’s opinion of the boundary, according to the Surveyor-General. If your fence or building is close to the line, ask a surveyor to confirm it.
How do I get a copy of my certificate of title in SA?
Land Services SA holds the register. A conveyancer or solicitor can order a current copy for you, and owners can ask Land Services SA directly. We don’t quote a fee because it’s not on this site’s fact sheet, so check Land Services SA’s published fees before you order.
Will my title show easements and mortgages?
It lists registered interests, and those normally include mortgages and registered easements. It doesn’t show where an easement runs in relation to your shed, garage or extension. A conveyancer or solicitor reads the terms, and a Licensed Surveyor can mark the position on the ground.
How do I check that a surveyor is licensed?
Contact the Registrar at registrar@isasa.org.au or (08) 8212 0343, or check the Gazette list of Licensed and Registered Surveyors in South Australia. There’s no searchable online register. Only licensed surveyors can carry out a boundary survey or place a survey mark that defines a boundary.