Understanding ALTA Table A Item 21: Additional Negotiated Items

Sometimes a survey needs to cover something the standard list of options doesn’t. Maybe a lender wants a specific detail added. Maybe the site has a feature that calls for extra attention. ALTA Table A Item 21 is the spot on the 2026 ALTA/NSPS survey where the surveyor writes those extra requests down. When the surveyor and client agree to add work beyond the numbered Table A items, the surveyor lists it here as 21(a), 21(b), 21(c) and so on.

This is the part people get wrong. Item 21 is not one set service with a fixed checklist. It’s a place to record extra work that the surveyor and client agree on together. What it holds on one survey can look nothing like what it holds on another.

What Does ALTA Table A Item 21 Actually Cover?

Item 21 holds the special or extra requests that fall outside the first twenty Table A items. Each of those first twenty items describes a set task, like showing flood zones or utility evidence. Item 21 is different. It’s an open slot for anything the client and surveyor agree to add on top of those. The 2026 standard added a new Item 20, and that pushed the negotiated slot to number 21.

That’s why you might see more than one entry. If a client asks for two separate extra items, the surveyor labels them 21(a) and 21(b). A third request becomes 21(c). Each letter marks a different agreed request, not a step in a set process.

The content of Item 21 comes from what the two sides agree to. The 2026 standard, in effect February 23, 2026, says the surveyor has to label any extra negotiated items as 21(a), 21(b) and so on, and explain them in a note on the survey. So the words used to describe each item carry real weight. They tell everyone reading the survey what the surveyor actually did. 

The standard points to a few kinds of things that fit here. A state or local rule can call for an item. A client can have a special request tied to how they plan to use the survey. And if someone wants engineering design work as part of the survey, the 2026 standard sends that request to Item 21 too.

When a Standard Table A Item Does Not Fully Match the Project

Most surveys are handled well by the twenty numbered items. Now and then a project needs something those items don’t quite reach. That’s the gap Item 21 fills.

It might be a piece of information no numbered item asks for. It might be a state or local rule that calls for a detail the base list leaves out. Some sites have a feature the client wants shown, like a certain building height or an internal tax parcel line. Other times the client’s plan for the survey calls for added detail, or an engineering design request needs to ride along with the survey work.

One caution matters here. Item 21 is meant to be worked out and written clearly, request by request. It’s not a blank check for unlimited work. A loose instruction like “add everything the lender wants” leaves too much open and can lead to arguments later about what the surveyor actually promised. A clear, named request avoids that.

How 21(a), 21(b), and 21(c) Define Additional Scope

When a survey has more than one extra request, each one carries its own label. The first agreed item is 21(a). A second, separate item is 21(b). A third is 21(c). The letters keep going as far as the requests do.

These labels don’t stand for set services. 21(a) on one survey might mean showing certain building heights. On another survey, 21(a) might mean something completely different. The real meaning lives in the wording written for that one survey. You have to read the note to know what each letter covers.

Splitting the requests apart helps everyone. A lender, a title professional, an attorney and the surveyor can each look at the survey and see the added items listed one by one. Nobody has to guess which parts of a long paragraph belong to which request. The 2026 standard requires this letter-by-letter labeling for exactly that reason. Clear separation makes the added work easier to check.

Why Item 21 Requires Clear Written Scope

An Item 21 request only works when both sides know what it means. Loose wording is where trouble starts. Before the surveyor heads to the field, a few things need to be settled in plain terms.

Both sides need to name the exact request. The client should know what result to expect. Someone has to supply the background records the surveyor needs, so agree on who. Sort out if the work adds field time or research. Then check whether it changes the surveyor’s normal scope.

Once both sides settle those points, the details go into a note on the survey. The 2026 standard requires the surveyor to explain any added Item 21 items, and any change to the wording of a numbered item, right on the survey. That written note is what a lender or title company reads later to confirm the work matches what the client ordered. When both sides spell out the scope early, the note is easy to write and easy to trust.

What to Confirm Before Adding an Item 21 Request

Item 21 works best when you define the result before any field work starts. A short set of questions settles that. Run through these before the surveyor begins:

• What extra result do you actually need from the survey?
• Why do you need it, and what decision does it support?
• Does one of the twenty numbered items already cover it?
• Is a lender, title company, government office or the project team requiring it?
• Will the request send a crew back to the site for more field work?
• Does it involve engineering or another professional service?
• How will the item be worded in the survey?
• Will the survey include a note explaining the added work?

Answer these first and the surveyor can price the work and write the scope with no surprises. Leave them for later and you risk a second trip to the site or a rewrite of the survey. The goal is a clear request, agreed on before anyone measures anything.