• In regards to quieting title, right of way, easements, boundary disputes, adverse possession, etc., a land records researcher is usually subcontracted through your land surveyor or attorney since they are the legal licensed professionals responsible for representing the landowner in any legal disputes.
  
  However, some landowners do engage a researcher for preliminary research prior to engaging a surveyor and attorney because they are curious.
   
• Some people inherit a property from a relative and have no idea where it really is, what is on it, or what they can do with it.
   
• Some people are curious about access options, especially if the parcel is landlocked or appears to have a discontinued road.
   
• Many landowners will hire a researcher directly for a history of their property in origin, ownership, land use, and change over time. Basically, a genealogy of the land. I have also researched properties for historic significance and investigation/explanation of paranormal activities.
   
• Public records, Land records, and land use records research can be performed at the municipal level where information about zoning, abutters, the neighborhood, or past history of proposed uses for a property before the zoning board and planning board (records of minutes) are helpful to a developer or person considering purchasing a property, or to a current landowner considering seeking a variance or a change in use.
   

(Please click here for larger view of historic map