Real Estate Key Terms Unit 6

Section

A portion of a township under the rectangular (government) survey system. A township is divided into 36 sections, numbered 1 through 36. A section is a square with mile-long sides and an area of one square mile, or 640 acres.

Rectangular (Government) Survey System

A system established in 1785 by the federal government, providing for surveying and describing land by reference to principal meridians and base lines.

Benchmarks

Permanent reference marks or points established for use by surveyors in measuring differences in elevation.

Methods of Describing Real Estate

(1) Metes and bounds, (2) Rectangular (or government) survey, (3) Lot and block (recorded plat)

Common Land Measurements Units

-Mile of 5280 feet -acre of 43560 square feet -square mile of 640 acres

Legal Description

A description of a specific parcel of real estate complete enough for an independent surveyor to locate and identify it.

Monument

A fixed natural or artificial object used to establish real estate boundaries for a metes-and-bounds description.

Datum

A horizontal plane from which heights and depths are measured.

Plat Map

A map of a town, section, or subdivision indicating the location and boundaries of individual properties.

Lot-and-block (recorded Plat) Method

A method of describing real property that identifies a parcel of land by reference to lot and block numbers within a subdivision, as specified on a recorded subdivision plat.

Metes-and-bounds Method

A method used to describe a parcel of land that begins at a well-marked point and follows the property's boundaries, using directions and distances around the tract, back to the place of beginning.

Range

A strip of land six miles wide, extending north and south and numbered east and west according to its distance from the principal meridian in the rectangular (government) survey system of legal description.

Township Lines

All the lines in a rectangular survey system that run east and west, parallel to the base line and six miles apart.

Point Of Beginning (POB)

In a metes-and-bounds legal description, the starting point of the survey, situated in one corner of the parcel; all metes-and-bounds descriptions must follow the boundaries of the parcel back to the point of beginning.

Survey Preparation

Includes both a legal description and a survey sketch. A less precise analysis, found in the improvement location certificate (ILC), may be used. The legal description must be included by reference or transcribed exactly as written to avoid future problems over incorrect boundaries.

Tiers

Strips of land that are six miles wide, extending east and west and numbered north and south according to their distance from the base line in the rectangular (government) survey system of legal description.

Base Line

The main imaginary line running east and west and crossing a principal meridian at a definite point; used by surveyors for reference in locating and describing land under the rectangular (government) survey system of legal description.

Principal Meridian

The main imaginary line running north and south and crossing a base line at a definite point; used by surveyors for reference in locating and describing land under the rectangular (government) survey system of legal description.

Townships

The principal unit of the rectangular (government) survey system. A township is a 6-mile square of 36 square miles.

Survey

The process by which boundaries are measured and land areas are determined; the on-site measurement of lot lines, dimensions, and position of a house on a lot, including the determination of any existing encroachments or easements.

Air Rights

The right to use the open space above a property, usually allowing the surface to be used for another purpose.