Property boundary map: how to see your boundaries online

You can see a property boundary map for free on your state government's online map: Queensland Globe, SIX Maps in New South Wales, VicPlan in Victoria, SAPPA in South Australia, ACTmapi in the ACT and LISTmap in Tasmania. Search the address and the lot outline appears over an aerial photo. But the line you see is a drawing, not a survey. It can be out by a metre or more, and it cannot tell you whether a fence, driveway or shed is on the right side of the boundary. Only a surveyor can do that.

What an online boundary map actually is

Every state keeps a digital map of land parcels, usually called the cadastre or DCDB (digital cadastral database). It was mostly built by digitising old paper plans and maps, then fitted to aerial photos and survey control over the years.

That makes it excellent for seeing the rough shape of a block, its lot and plan number, and how it sits against the street and the neighbours. It is not the legal boundary. The Queensland Government puts it plainly: the digital cadastre is "the point of truth for the graphical representation of property boundaries" but "not the point of truth for the legal property boundary", which "will always be the plan of survey or the related titling information."

Where to see property boundaries in each state

Queensland - Queensland Globe. Search by address or lot on plan and turn on the property layers to see the parcel outline over aerial imagery. The Queensland Government warns that the boundaries shown "do not represent the true property boundaries on the ground", and puts the error in the least accurate areas at up to about 63 m. Survey plans, the legal record, can be bought through Titles Queensland.

New South Wales - SIX Maps. NSW Spatial Services' SIX Maps viewer shows cadastral boundaries, lot and DP numbers, imagery and addresses. The NSW Planning Portal Spatial Viewer also shows lots alongside planning layers.

Victoria - VicPlan. Search the address and download the property PDF, which includes a detailed map with approximate site dimensions. Note the word approximate. Title plans can be ordered through LANDATA.

South Australia - SAPPA. The SA Property and Planning Atlas shows land parcels, and clicking a parcel brings up its details. Certificates of title and survey plans can be bought through SAILIS.

ACT - ACTmapi. Turn on the block and section boundary layers. Clicking a block returns its plan details.

Tasmania - LISTmap. The Cadastral Parcels layer shows property boundaries, free, and can be overlaid on aerial imagery and contours. The LIST is blunt about its limits: the information is "indicative only" and should not be used "as a basis of true boundary location."

Why the online line does not match the fence

It is very common to find that the boundary on the map and the fence on the aerial photo do not line up. There are three usual reasons:

• The map is approximate. Older and rural areas were digitised from small-scale maps, so the drawn line may be metres from the true one.
• The photo is approximate. Aerial images have their own positional error, and a tall house or tree can lean in the image and hide the fence line.
• The fence really is in the wrong place. Fences are often not on the boundary. The Surveyors Board of South Australia notes that "major discrepancies between boundaries and fencing are not uncommon", and a fence does not move the legal boundary on the title.

So a mismatch on an online map is a reason to look closer, not proof of a problem, and a perfect match is not proof there is none.

When you need a surveyor

Only a surveyor registered or licensed in your state can mark a boundary on the ground. In Queensland, only surveyors registered with the Surveyors Board of Queensland can carry out cadastral surveys. In South Australia, the Surveyors Board says only licensed surveyors can undertake a boundary survey. Victoria uses licensed surveyors, while NSW, the ACT and Tasmania use registered surveyors.

The survey most buyers and owners need is usually called an identification survey. It locates the existing boundaries and shows where buildings, fences and other structures sit relative to them. The Queensland Government recommends exactly this if you want to know whether a fence is on the common boundary.

It is worth getting one when:

• You are building close to a boundary. A new house, extension, garage or pool near the line, where setbacks are tight.
• You are replacing a dividing fence and you or the neighbour are not sure where the boundary is. NSW and Queensland both have a formal notice process for having the common boundary defined by a surveyor.
• Something looks wrong when you buy. A driveway, shed or carport that appears to cross the line on the online map, or a block whose fences enclose noticeably more or less land than the title area.
• You are subdividing or selling part of the land. That needs a new plan of survey anyway.

Boundary pegs left from an earlier survey help, but pegs get moved and buried. Disturbing survey marks is also against the law in Queensland, so do not pull or reset them yourself.

What to check before you buy

You do not need a survey for every purchase. For most buyers, a quick look at the online map plus the title documents is enough to spot the cases worth a closer look:

1. Find the lot on your state's map. Note the lot and plan number and compare the outline with the aerial photo.
2. Read the title and plan. The title and registered plan show the legal dimensions and any easements. Our guide to easements on title explains what those lines mean.
3. Look for structures near the line. Anything built close to or over the drawn boundary, on either side, is a question for your conveyancer.
4. Ask your conveyancer about a survey if anything looks off, and before you rely on a particular boundary for a building plan.

Getting boundary data into design software

If you are a designer, builder or consultant setting up a site, you will want the cadastre as a file rather than a picture, lined up with contours and imagery in your CAD or GIS package. The same rule applies: it is fine for early design and briefing, and a surveyor's boundary and detail survey replaces it before anything is set out. Our guide to getting cadastre into Civil 3D and QGIS covers formats and coordinate systems.

Common questions

How can I see my property boundaries online for free? Use your state's government map: Queensland Globe, SIX Maps in NSW, VicPlan in Victoria, SAPPA in South Australia, ACTmapi in the ACT or LISTmap in Tasmania. Search the address and turn on the property or cadastral layer to see the lot outline over an aerial photo.

How accurate are online property boundary maps? They are approximate. The digital cadastre was largely built from older plans and maps, so a drawn boundary can be out by a metre or more, and much further in some rural areas. Tasmania's LIST, for example, describes its boundaries as indicative only.

Is the fence the legal property boundary? Not necessarily. Many fences are not on the boundary, and a fence's position does not change the legal boundary shown on the title and survey plan. A surveyor can tell you where the boundary is relative to the fence.

Who can mark my property boundary? A registered or licensed surveyor. In Queensland that means a cadastral surveyor registered with the Surveyors Board of Queensland, and in South Australia a licensed surveyor. Ask for an identification survey if you want to know where your buildings and fences sit relative to the boundary.

Need the lot boundary, easements, contours and planning layers for a site as CAD or GIS files? Export site data for any address or see a sample export.

LayeredGeo lets you download site data for Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, the ACT and Tasmania - contours, cadastre and more - in DXF, Shapefile, GeoPackage, KMZ and raster formats, ready for Civil 3D, QGIS and ArcGIS.

Sources

• Queensland Government - Cadastral data, Queensland series. data.qld.gov.au
• Business Queensland - Survey marks and property boundaries. business.qld.gov.au
• Business Queensland - Digital cadastral data accuracy. business.qld.gov.au
• Land Tasmania - LISTmap. nre.tas.gov.au
• Surveyors Board of South Australia - Public information. surveyorsboardsa.org.au
• ACT Government - Surveying a boundary. planning.act.gov.au
• Legal Aid NSW - Boundaries. legalaid.nsw.gov.au

About this article. Published by LayeredGeo and written from the published research cited in the Sources section above. It is general information about how property and ground conditions are assessed in Australia, not engineering, planning, legal or financial advice, and it is not specific to any property. Check anything that matters against the source dataset or a suitably qualified professional before you rely on it. If you spot something wrong, tell us at hello@layeredgeo.com.au and we will fix it.

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