Licensed surveyors use those techniques which will allow them to determine the legal description of a parcel of property. There are a number of different types of surveys, including the following:

• Boundary Survey
• Location Survey
• Topographic Survey
• Site Planning Survey
• Subdivision Survey
• Construction Survey
• Geographic Positioning System
• ALTA/ACSM Survey

Surveyors conduct property surveys most frequently when land is being sold.

Land has three unique physical characteristics: immobility, indestructibility, and heterogeneity. 

Real property is ownership of real estate and the bundle of rights associated with owning the real estate.

Personal property is ownership of anything that is not real estate, and the rights associated with owning the personal property item.

Manufactured homes and mobile homes are considered personal property, because they are moveable. However, in California, a manufactured home may be considered real estate by removing the wheels and attaching it to a permanent foundation.

All real estate, by its physical nature, is tangible property. Personal property may be tangible or intangible.