Land Description Flashcards
Legal description
A detailed way of describing a parcel of land for documents such as deeds and mortgages that will be excepted in a court of law. The description is based on information collected through a survey.
Survey
The process by which boundaries are measured by calculating the dimensions and area to determine the exact location of a piece of land. It is legally sufficient if it allows a surveyor to locate the parcel. To locate means of the surveyor must be able to to find the exact boundaries.
3 basic methods used to describe real estate
- meters and bounds
- rectangular (or government) survey
- lot and block (recorded plat)
Torrents system
Created by Robert Torrens in Australia in 1858. It is issued and granted by the state that identifies properties.
Metes-and-bounds method
Land description that is the oldest town in the US. It was used in the original 13 colonies. Metes means to measure and bounds means linear directions. Relies on a property’s physical features to determine the boundaries and measures of the parcel. Starts at a designated place on the parcel called the point of beginning. This is where it also ends.
Monuments
Fixed objects used to identify the POB, all corners the parcel or ends of boundary segments, and the location of intersecting boundaries. Usually iron pins or concrete posts placed by the US Army Corps of Engineers, gov departments, or trained private surveyors. Include words such as MORE or LESS.
Rectangular survey system
Aka government survey system: established by congress in 1785 to standardize the description of land acquired by the newly formed federal government. By dividing the land into rectangles, the survey provided land descriptions by describing the rectangles in which the land was located. System is based on two sets of intersecting lines: principal meridians and base lines.
Principle meridians
Run north and south in the rectangular survey system
Base lines
Run east and west in the rectangular survey system.
Township lines
Lines that run east and west, parallel to the base line and six miles apart. They form strips of land called tiers. Designated by consecutive numbers north or south of the base line.
Ranges
Land on either side of a principle meridian is divided into six mile wide strips by lines that run north and south, parallel to the meridian. Also designated by consecutive numbers
Townships
The basic units of the rectangular survey system. It is 6 miles square and contains 36 square miles.
Sections
Townships are subdivided into sections and subsections called halves and quarters, which can be further divided. Each townships contains 36 sections each one square mile or 640 acres, (43560 square feet). They are numbered 1-36. Go from upper right hand corner and move back and forth, downward.
Section 16 was always set aside for school purpose so it’s called school section
Lot and block method
Aka recorded plat method. This system uses lot and block numbers referred to in a plat map filed in the public records of the county where the land is located. The plat map is a map of a town, a section, or a subdivision, indicating the location and boundaries of individual properties. Mostly used in subdivisions and urban areas.
Survey
States the property’s legal description.
