Frequently Asked Questions about Tax Maps:

• What are tax maps?

  Tax maps are maintained by the Assessor’s Office to provide a visual inventory for each parcel of land being taxed in the county. Tax maps are intended to represent the general location of parcels for assessment purposes. Tax maps do not represent a survey plat and are not suitable to determine property boundaries. Tax maps are not legal documents and are not suitable for legal, engineering or surveying uses. Property boundaries should only be determined by reviewing the legal documents for the property such as deeds and survey plats or by consulting with a licensed surveyor.

• How do I find my property boundaries?

  Tax maps are not suitable to determine property boundaries. The only way to determine property boundaries is to locate the monuments that mark each corner of your property on the ground. The location of these monuments, such as trees, stakes, iron pipes, etc, are often described in your deed, your deed’s chain of title or a survey plat if one exists. If you cannot find a description of your property boundaries or locate the monuments that mark the boundaries, it is recommended that you consult with a licensed surveyor. Clicking here will take you to a list of surveying businesses in Pocahontas County.

• What’s the difference between a tax map and a survey plat?

  Tax Map: Tax Maps are intended to show the general location of parcels for taxation purposes. They are not considered to be suitable for legal, engineering or surveying purposes. While tax maps may be helpful to the public for other purposes, there is no warranty made as to their accuracy or reliability for any other reason than tax assessments.

  Survey Plat: A survey plat is a professional drawing of the property boundaries. It will include the direction and distance of each property line and may include other things like the location of right of way easements and structures. A professional surveyor is required to be licensed by the state. Unlike tax maps, survey plats are considered an authoritative source and can be used for legal and engineering purposes. An official survey will have a seal indicating the name and license number of the surveyor who created the plat.

• How do I locate a deed?

  Deed’s are maintained in the County Clerk’s office. All deeds are public records and deed books can be viewed at the County Clerk’s office and online at www.pocahontascountyclerk.com

• When are tax maps updated?

  Our website is updated with the current tax year ownership and assessment values as well as new parcel splits or corrections in May of each year. We constantly maintain updates and corrections on our local office database. To ensure you have the most up to date information available you can contact our office directly.

• How do I hire a surveyor?

  You can contact the West Virginia Board of Professional Surveyors or visit their website to find active licensed surveyors in the state of West Virginia. Below is a link to current surveying businesses in Pocahontas County.

  Pocahontas County Surveying Businesses.

• My property is mapped incorrectly, what should I do?

  While tax maps are only intended to represent the general location, we strive to create as accurate maps as possible. Please report a description of any errors using the form located above on this page. The error will be researched and corrected where appropriate. Please note that we can only use public records to make corrections. You might know where your property boundary is, but that does not mean there has ever been a description of that boundary put on public record in the courthouse. If no boundary description can be found in the property’s deed or chain of title, it is up to the property owner to either record a survey plat or corrective deed containing a property boundary description.

  If you have a survey plat and your property is mapped incorrectly, please use the form above to notify us of the problem. We will verify if the plat is recorded in the courthouse. Surveyors do not record their plats in the courthouse, this is the responsibility of the property owner. If there is no plat on public record in the courthouse, then we can not use it to correct our maps. You can record plats with the Pocahontas County Clerk’s Office.

• What are the laws regarding building a fence?

  It is recommended that you consult with a real estate lawyer or licensed surveyor before building any type of fence on your property line. Laws regarding fences can be found in West Virginia Code Chapter 19 Article 17.

• What are Mineral Rights?

  It is possible to own the mineral rights on a property without owning the surface rights and vice versa. Substances such as metal ore, coal, oil, gas, gemstones, salt, etc, can be considered minerals. The Assessor’s Office has records of who owns mineral rights in the county, but we do not map or record the location of where those mineral rights are located. If you own mineral rights, but do not know where they are located, you may need to seek an attorney who can do a chain of title search on the mineral rights to determine what surface property they are under. Here are some links to articles that may be helpful in learning more about Mineral Rights.

  How Can I Locate Who Owns the Mineral Rights Under My Land?

  Basic information about mineral, surface, oil and gas rights.