Texas Principles of Real Estate 1 Chapter 8

Sq Foot

144 sq inches

Rod

16.5 fee

Cu Yard

27 Cu Feet

Vara

33 1/3 inches.

Acre

43,560 square feet; 160sq rods

Mile

5280 feet 1760 yards 320 Rods

Section

640 acres

Sq Mile

640 acres

Chain

66 feet, 4 rods, 100 links

Sq Yard

9 sq feet

Metes and Bounds

A legal land description method identifying a lot's exact dimensions and location in reference to a fixed and permanent monument.

Location Survey

A location survey is boundary survey with the additional location of all the interior improvements. Missing corner markers are replaced. The surveyor will prepare a map showing the boundaries and improvements. This type of survey may be required for obtaining a loan.

In the rectangular survey method, how large is a township in square miles and how large is a township section?

A township is 36 square miles and a section is one square mile or 640 acres.

Land surveys have many applications. They are used to assess:

Boundaries for properties Topography for engineering designs Outline elevations for flood insurance for home sites Title for real estate transactions, subdivisions and other construction projects They are also used to assign government measurements to public land.

Geographic Positioning System

GPS surveys use portable receiving antennas to gather data transmitted from satellites which are used to calculate the position of the object being located on the surface of the earth. The receiving antennas can be miles apart and still obtain very accurate data. GPS surveys are used to establish coordinate control points for the State Plane Coordinate Systems, large boundary surveys, and subdivision surveys. It can also be used to collect data for Geographic Information Systems / Land Information Systems (GIS/LIS), such as the location of streets, homes, businesses, electric, phone & gas utilities, water & sewer systems, property lines' soil & vegetation types, water; courses, etc. This data can be used in future planning, preservation and development.

The three accepted methods of legally describing parcels of real estate are:

Metes and bounds Rectangular survey system, or government survey method Lot and block method, or recorded plat method

Texas is not

Public Land State and has a hybrid of its own early system, based on Spanish land grants and a variation of PLSS.

A legal description is required for

Public recording Creating a valid deed of conveyance or lease Completing mortgage documents Executing and recording other legal documents

When did the Public Land Survey System begin?

Shortly after the American Revolution, when the federal government became responsible for large areas of land west of the original thirteen states.

What does Texas law require in order to record the plat with the county?

That all taxes, both current and delinquent, must be paid

Why is Texas not a Public Land State?

The public lands in the 30 Public Lands States were owned by the United States Government, but Texas retained ownership of its public lands even after annexation to the United States.

ALTA/ACSM Survey

This is a very detailed survey often required by lending institutions and is strictly geared towards companies purchasing commercial property. Standards created by the American Land Title Association (ALTA) and the American Congress of Surveying and Mapping (ACSM) are used to create this type of survey. The location of all improvements in relation to property lines as well as any easements and setback requirements are shown on this survey as well as any encroachments that exist.

Subdivision Survey

This often includes a topographic survey of a parcel of land which will be divided into two or more smaller tracts, lots or estate division. This can also be used for site design of lots, streets and drainage. It is for construction and recording.

Topographic Survey

This survey locates improvements and topographic features such as elevations of the land, embankments, contours, water courses, roads, ditches, utilities, etc. This survey is often used in conjunction with a Location Survey in order to prepare a Site Design Map, a Subdivision Map, or an Erosion

Site Planning Survey

This survey uses a boundary and topographic survey as a base to design future improvements. It can be a design for a house, a residential subdivision, a store, a shopping center, a new street or highway, a playground, or anything else.

Rectangular Survey Systems (Government Survey Method)

Uses a refined version of longitude and latitude system of mapping with a surveyed grid of meridians, baselines, townships, and ranges to describe a piece of land. Not used in Texas.

A legal description of real property is

accurately locates and identifies the boundaries of the subject parcel to a degree acceptable by courts of law in the state where the property is located. Must be included in a sales contract.

Metes and Bounds: The description always identifies

an enclosed area by starting at an origination point called point of beginning or POB and returning to the POB at the end of the description.

Residential surveys

are usually the most common and come in two basic forms.

National Geospatial Advisory Committee

created in 1994 to coordinate geographic data acquisition and access.

Tier

east-west strip between parallels (also called township strip)

The description of a recorded plat property

first presents the property's lot number or letter, then the block identifier and subdivisions name.

base parallel or base line

is the designated line for identifying townships. There is a base parallel for each principal meridian.

Boundary Survey/Monumentation

is the establishment of permanent on-the-ground objects that mark exact location or surveyed points and lines.

principal meridian

is the single designated meridian for identifying townships in the principal meridian's geographical "jurisdiction." There are 37 principal meridians in the national survey.

Recorded Plats is also known as

lot-block-tract system, recorded survey, or recorded map

Texas Uniform Condominium Act

requires a licensed surveyor record condominium plats showing elevation of floor and ceiling along with the outside boundaries.

Construction Survey - This survey uses

surveying techniques to stake out buildings, roads, walls, utilities, etc. This includes horizontal and vertical grading, slope staking, and final as-built surveys.

Township

the area enclosed by the intersection of two consecutive meridians and two consecutive parallels. Since the parallels and meridians are six miles apart, the township is a square with six miles on each side.

The term "bounds" refers to

the directions of the boundaries that enclose the parcel of real estate.

The term "metes" refers to

the distance measurements used in the description.

Monumentation

the establishment of permanent on-the-ground objects that mark exact locations of surveyed points and lines

Public Land Survey System

the method traditionally used over the largest part of the United States to survey and classify land parcels and is occasionally referred to as the rectangular survey. The survey was the first mathematically-designed system in any modern country

Range

the north-south area between consecutive meridians

Lot and Block Method or recorded plat method

this system is used to describe properties in residential, commercial and industrial subdivisions.

The principle purpose underlying legal description of real property is

to create a consistent, unchanging standard for locating the property.

Cadastral Land Surveys

typically contain much more information. While house location maps give property owners a sense of what is present and where, a cadastral document shows exactly where boundaries, easements, and property lines are located. Surveyors typically go to the property and make real-time measurements, which are compared with archived land records to create a more complete picture of what is located where.

Recorded Plats

uses the metes and bounds method of land description to locate the borders of each parcel.

House Location Survey

which is also sometimes called a drive-by survey, is designed to show the location of the house and other large structures on the property, as well as the orientation of those structures in relation to each other.