Which ALTA Table A items matter most for Utah commercial property? The answer depends on the transaction, property, lender, title insurer, and project team. Table A is not a menu to select automatically. It is a set of optional items selected because they answer a commercial question about the site, financing, title, design, or development plan.
Quick answer: Commercial teams commonly discuss Table A needs involving site addresses, buildings and improvements, parking, utilities, vertical relief or topography, zoning-related information, access, and other site-specific conditions. The buyer, lender, title professional, attorney, surveyor, and design team should confirm what is needed, whether it can be provided, and what supporting information is required.
What Is Table A in an ALTA/NSPS Survey?
An ALTA/NSPS Land Title Survey provides standards-based boundary and title-related information for commercial transactions. Table A allows the client to request optional work beyond core requirements when that work is relevant to the assignment.
The 2026 ALTA/NSPS Standards took effect on February 23, 2026. Official NSPS guidance says the request should identify selected Table A items and that scope should be discussed with the client, title company, and lender. ALTA describes Table A as part of the current standards framework.
Table A items are scope decisions, not assumptions. Some require information from the client, title professional, zoning source, engineer, utility, or another qualified party. Confirm the items in writing before fieldwork begins.
Start With the Commercial Decision
Before selecting options, ask: What does the team need to know to make this property decision? A lender may need financing information, a developer may need building, parking, grade, or improvement information, and a civil engineer may need a separate topographic deliverable.
Selection varies between an occupied warehouse and a vacant tract.
Cook Surveying’s land-surveying and geomatics services support ALTA and boundary surveys, topographic work, construction layout, land development, easement work, and aerial mapping. A coordinated scope helps each service support the next phase.
Table A Categories Commercial Teams Often Discuss
Buildings, Improvements, Parking, and Access
A buyer, lender, or developer may need more detail about buildings, improvements, parking, drives, addresses, access, or other site features. These options can help evaluate site capacity, circulation, redevelopment feasibility, and improvement relationships.
Utilities, Vertical Relief, and Drainage Context
Utility information may affect site planning, construction sequencing, building placement, and access. A selected item may address observable features or available evidence, but not complete underground utility locating or utility-engineering work.
Vertical relief or topographic information can matter for grades, drainage, access, building pads, parking, or redevelopment. Table A work does not universally replace a project-specific topographic or design survey.
Zoning-Related Information
Zoning, setbacks, height, floor-area, and related information can matter, but the surveyor may need client or third-party information. Confirm who is responsible for obtaining and interpreting it. An ALTA survey does not replace legal, planning, or zoning advice.
| Optional-information category | Commercial question it can help address | Typical coordination needed |
| Buildings, parking, and access | How do visible features relate to the property and project plan? | Owner, developer, lender, design team |
| Utilities and infrastructure | What observable or available information matters to the project? | Engineer, utility team, contractor |
| Vertical relief or topography | How may existing grade and drainage affect design? | Civil engineer, developer |
| Zoning-related information | What information must the broader team evaluate for the intended use? | Planner, zoning source, attorney, developer |
Give the Surveyor the Right Documents Early
Provide the current title commitment and referenced documents, legal description, property address and parcels, purchase or loan requirements, certification parties, lender or title instructions, intended use, access restrictions, and deadlines.
Salt Lake City’s checklist includes property lines, buildings, infrastructure, parking, topographic work, grading, and slope analysis among commercial and multifamily site-plan materials. Not every item belongs in every ALTA/NSPS scope, but it illustrates why the surveyor, engineer, owner, and development team should communicate early.
Avoid the “Select Everything” Approach
Choosing every option can add cost, time, dependencies, and unneeded information. Selecting too little can leave the team without information for financing, title, design, or redevelopment. Identify the site, transaction, deadline, and parties relying on the deliverable.
Before authorization, confirm:
•The current Table A form and selected items.
•The client, payment responsibility, certification parties, and intended users.
•The title commitment, supporting documents, required files, and access arrangements.
•Any zoning, utility, topographic, engineering, or legal input needed from other professionals.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Table A items required on every ALTA/NSPS survey?
No. Table A contains optional items. Select them because they serve a transaction, title, lending, design, or development purpose.
Can a Table A item replace a full topographic survey?
Not necessarily. The project may need separate topographic or design-survey work for the civil engineer. Confirm the required scope, deliverable, and detail with the surveyor and design team.
Who decides which Table A items to select?
The client should coordinate with the lender, title professional, attorney, surveyor, and design professionals. The surveyor can explain scope and feasibility, but each party determines its requirements.
Select Table A Items for the Actual Commercial Need
So, which ALTA Table A items matter most for Utah commercial property? The most important items answer the team’s transaction, title, financing, development, or design questions. Define the decision, share current documents, and coordinate scope early.
Cook Surveying & Associates serves developers, commercial buyers, lenders, title professionals, contractors, utilities, and public agencies from Salt Lake City. To discuss ALTA/NSPS scope and Table A coordination for a Utah property, call (801) 364-4051 or email contact@cook-surveying.com.
References
[1] National Society of Professional Surveyors — 2026 ALTA/NSPS Standards
[2] American Land Title Association — ALTA/NSPS Land Title Survey Standards
[3] Salt Lake City Building Services — Commercial / Multi-Family Login Checklist
