Topic 7 Flashcards
Methods of Land Description
The most common, as well as the least formal way of describing land, is by…
street address
From a legal point of view, street addresses are the least acceptable form of property description.
Three more formal, precise ways of describing land which are used in the United States today..
- ) Metes and bounds
- ) Rectangular (government) survey
- ) Lot, block, and tract
Before the development of the 3 modern systems of land descriptions, the _____ was used. It is still used occasionally today, primarily in inaccessible or undeveloped rural areas. Method uses natural and artificial landmarks and features as points of reference for property descriptions. The results are often more colorful than precise. Works fine as long as creeks aren’t re-channeled, trees cut down, boulders removed, lands regraded, and cowpaths paved over with asphalt.
monuments and markings method
The earliest form of legal descriptions used in the United States, directly descended from the monuments and markings method. Makes use of the boundaries and measurements of the land in question. A typical description reads like a directional travelogue, an exact inventory of directions taken and distances traversed in an imaginary walk along a property boundary. The primary system of description in 21 states and the District of Columbia, and is used elsewhere to supplement the prevailing descriptive form.
metes and bounds
Fixed objects, called _______, are often used to establish real estate boundaries.
monuments
_____ refers to the units of linear measure used to determine distances.
metes
Such a legal descriptions usually begins, and finally ends, at a definite designated place called _______.
the point of beginning, or POB
Directions in metes and bounds descriptions are given in ________
conventional compass terms
Property boundaries are described as running so many degrees east or west of true north or south. North and south are 0 degree references; east and west are 90 degree references. This method of describing directions is called the _______. It makes use of the degrees in a circle to calculate direction. A circle has 360 degrees. A degree can be broken down into 60 minutes, and a minute can be broken down into 60 seconds for more specific measurements. There are 90 degrees in a quarter circle.
bearing method
divides surveyed land into a checkerboard of rectangular parcels. With the exception of the eastern seaboard states and Texas, the system is used today throughout most of the United States.
Rectangular (government) survey
The rectangular gridwork pattern of the method is based on a system of intersecting vertical and horizontal lines laid out across a map of the United States. The vertical lines are called __________ and they run north and south. The horizontal lines run east and west and are called ______.
principal meridians
baselines
- In LA, we have two principal meridians, the Louisiana and the St. Helena, and one baseline.
There are ___ principal meridians and __ baselines in all.
36
32
In any given area, one principal meridian and one baseline will provide the necessary reference points for all survey measurements. The area in the square created by the meridians and baselines is further divided by _____ and ______.
range lines and township lines
_____ run at six-mile intervals on either side of and parallel to each principal meridian.
Range lines
The six-mile strips of land between the range lines are known as _____. Used to determine how far east or west of the principal meridian a specific area of survey lies.
ranges
Numbered outward from the principal meridian in the manner R1E, R2E, that is Range 1 East, Range 2 East, and so forth.
____ run at six-mile intervals on north and south of, and parallel to baselines.
Township lines
The six-mile wide strips of land between the township lines are known as______.
township rows or tiers
Rows are numbered outward from the baseline in the manner of T1N, T2N, that is, Township 1 North, Township 2 North, and so forth.
_____ are formed by the intersection of range lines and township lines. Is the basic unit of subdivision in the rectangular survey system. Identified according to their location in a specific range and a specific township row or tier. Thus, every _____ has a two-part identity. The tier location always precedes the range location.
Townships
Theoretically each township measures ____ on each side and has an area of ____. However, this does not always hold true, for example, along coastlines the boundaries of the township will necessarily be irregular.
6 miles
36 square miles
Every township is subdivided into 36 square parcels called ______. Measure a mile on each side and therefore have an area of 1 square mile, or 640 acres.
sections
The sections in any given township are numbered consecutively to __, always starting at the township’s far northeast corner and counting west across the top row, and so on until the section in the far southeast, which is always the last to be numbered, has been reached.
36
Sections can also be divided into _____.
half or quarter sections
To quarter a section, ____ is used. The progressive subdivision of sections is an essential feature of the rectangular survey system.
horizontal and vertical bisection
Each quarter section is identified directionally: northwest quarter (NW ¼ ) southwest quarter (SW ¼ ) southeast quarter (SE ¼ ) northeast quarter (NE ¼ ).
Since every section contains 640 acres, every quarter section has an area one-fourth as large, or 160 acres.
The quarter sections can be further quartered to an area of 40 acres each.
While legal descriptions proceed from smaller to larger units of subdivision, it is usually easier to find a specific parcel by _____.
reversing the order of reading, that is, by working from larger to smaller units.
By working backwards, step by step, one will eventually locate the parcel or parcels described.
A ____ is 24 miles square and contains 16 townships
check
To keep the distance between range lines, and the length of the sides of townships as close to 6 miles as possible, _____ were introduced. Every fourth township line serves as one. A slight displacement of range lines in adjoining tiers indicates their occurrence. Insure that the township will be able to play its role as a sufficiently precise standard of survey measurement and subdivision.
correction lines
A township with an area in excess of or less than 36 square miles cannot be divided evenly, so a few sections in every township, specifically, Sections 1 through 6 along the north border, and sections 6, 7, 18, 19, 30, and 31 along the west border, are set aside to absorb any excesses or deficiencies in measurements that occur. These sections are known as…
fractional sections
All irregularities of measurement are added to or subtracted from the dimensions of fractional sections. North-south irregularities are absorbed by north border fractionals, and east-west irregularities by west border fractionals.
The incomplete quarters of fractional sections are divided into parcels of roughly equal area called _____. Aren’t part of the ordinary quarterly subdivision process. Their sizes may vary depending upon the number of lots created and the amount of land subdivided.
Numbered consecutively. Besides border fractionals, sections made incomplete by the intrusion of lakes, rivers, and so forth are also divided into these.
government lots
Their legal descriptions are uncomplicated and take the following form: Government lot 11 in the southwest quarter of Fractional Section 7, Township 4 North…etc.
_____ is important in establishing how far below or above sea level a certain area is. This method is also used in measuring the elevations of roads and lots, and in the vertical dimensions of buildings. Plays an important role in the description of individually owned condominium properties, which must show the elevations of ceilings and floors as well as the customary horizontal dimensions.
Vertical description
The elevation of any structure must always be shown in relation to an official ____. Fixed point of reference for vertical measurements.
datum point
The U.S. Geological Survey has established mean sea level at ____ as its official datum, the point on which any vertical measurement in any part of the United States can be based.
New York harbor
Many metropolitan areas have established their own datum points or lines for reference, as well as various secondary points of reference known as _____. Are based on the official city datum. They are affixed to permanent objects at various sites throughout the metropolitan areas. Allow surveyors to make accurate local measurements without having to refer to the official datum point.
bench marks
The U.S. Geological Survey also has its own set of bench marks.
_____ is designed to do what rectangular survey cannot - provide efficient, easily read and understood descriptions for small urban and suburban properties.
Lot, block, and tract
The characteristic feature of lot, block, and tract is the _____. This is a specialized map that accurately delineates the boundaries of individual land parcels within a given area of subdivision.
plat of survey
The plat results from a _____ in which all land in a subdivision tract is divided into streets and blocks, and the blocks themselves into smaller lots - thus the name lot, block, and tract. Lots are numbered and the blocks lettered for identification. The dimensions, and often boundary angles, of individual lots are recorded ‘metes and bounds’ style in the survey plat.
precise initial survey
The plat is then filed in a public government office, usually the county recorder’s office, where it is kept in what is called a ______. Are open to public inspection.
plat book
A complete lot, block, and tract description will always include the page and volume number of the tract description.
Some lots may have ______. Determine how far back from the boundaries of a lot houses or other improvements must be placed in order to conform with local building ordinances. Locations of easements, both public and private, are also recorded in many plats, as well as various types of deed restriction.
setback instructions
1 mile
5,280 feet
1 acre
43,560 sq. ft.
640 acres
1 sq. mile
1 section
1 sq. mile
1/4 section
160 acres
1 township
36 sq. miles
1 acre
208.71 ft. x 208.71 ft.
arpent
about 192 ft. x192 ft.
or 5/6 acre
