real property 1 ch. 3: Surveys and Land Descriptions

the SE 1/4 of the NE 1/4 of a section would be an area of land equal to

40 acres

a section of a township contains:

640 acres

base line

Imaginary east-west survey line used in the government survey system to establish township lines. identified as being a certain number of degrees north of the equator. Only one base line will cross each principal meridian; therefore, a parcel of land can be described as being a certain distance east or west of a given principal meridian and a certain distance north or south of a given base line.

principal meridians

Imaginary north and south lines used in a government survey system. Meridians intersect the base lines to form a starting point for the measurement of land under that system. Principal meridians are identifiable in terms of their distance in degrees, minutes, and seconds west of the Greenwich meridian. The United States contains 35 principal meridians, and each is assigned a name or number for identification purposes

call

boundary line, each is described by a course and a distance

The real property evidence considered by the surveyor typically consists of

physical field evidence, written record evidence, and field measurements.

vertical lines which run north and south are used in the governmental rectangular survey system are known as:

principal meridians

once the beginning point has been fixed, the metes and bounds description

proceeds along a series of calls, each call being a course and distance describing a boundary line of the land

Most surveyors prepare surveys based on standards developed jointly by title insurance companies and surveyors. These standards are generally referred to as the ALTA/ACSM standards.

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One of the key objectives when reviewing a survey is to determine if the survey description of the property matches the description contained in either the deed from the current owner or the title insurance commitment.

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The purpose of the description is to fix the boundaries of the land and to distinguish the land in question from other land.

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The surveyor, having made an evaluation of the evidence, forms an opinion as to where the lines would be located.

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a metes and bounds legal description usually cannot be prepared without a survey

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course and distance describing a boundary line of land in a metes and bounds land description defines a call

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a township square is subdivided into

36 sections

As-built survey

locates all physical improvements on the land in relation to the boundary lines. reveals interesting features of property the surveyor usually locates all fences, walls, driveways, pavements, building structures, natural features such as ponds and streams. this information is necessary to determine both the presence of features that may limit the value or use of land and the conformity with local ordinances regarding minimum building setbacks

survey

"to look over" refers to the evaluation of real property evidence to locate the physical limits of a particular parcel of land.

Three types of land description are in use in the United States:

(1) government rectangular survey description, (2) platted description, and (3) metes and bounds description.

Whenever a legal description involves a curve, the land surveyor should give the following information concerning each curve

(a) the arc distance of the curve; (b) the radius distance of the curve; (c) the chord course (a chord being a straight line drawn from the beginning point of the arc to the ending point of the arc); and (d) the distance of the chord

For purposes of land descriptions, a survey must provide the paralegal with the following information:

(a) the state, county, land district, and section in which the property surveyed is located; (b) an indication of which direction on the survey is north; (c) a point of beginning for a land description; (d) courses and distances for each property line; (e) the name of the surveyor; (f) a scale for distances not shown on the survey; and (g) in most cases a legend of abbreviations or symbols used.

which of the following would be an appropriate monument for purposes of locating a point of beginning on a survey

-street intersection -intersection of land lot lines -intersection of a street with railroad or street with stream -all of the above!

the NW 1/4 of the SE 1/4 of a section would be an area of land equal to:

10 acres

Most surveyors prepare surveys based on standards developed jointly by title insurance companies and surveyors. These standards are generally referred to as the [x] standards.

ALTA/ACSM

legal description

Description of real property by a government survey, metes and bounds, or lot numbers of a recorded plat, which description is complete enough that a particular parcel of land can be located and identified.

what is easement?

Easement is the right granted to a nonowner of real property in order to use the real property for a specific purpose

distance

In a metes and bounds legal description, it is the length of a property boundary line, usually measured in feet and hundredths of a foot; example: 82.13 feet.

range lines

Land on either side of the principal meridians is also divided into 6-mile strips by north and south lines called range lines.

zoning

Legitimate police power of governments to regulate the use of real property.

easement

Right granted to a nonowner of real property to use the real property for a specific purpose. For example, a right granted to an electric utility company to locate an electric line on real property is an easement.

chord

Straight line drawn from the beginning point of an arc to the ending point of that arc.

plat

Survey of real property that often is recorded. The platted, or short form, description describes a piece of land by reference to a recorded survey or plat. The first requirement for a platted legal description is that a land surveyor prepares a plat showing the dimensions and boundaries of the land. The plat is then recorded in the county records where the land is located. Platted descriptions commonly are used in single-family home subdivisions, condominiums, and industrial parks. The local custom in some areas also may dictate that almost all property be platted. A paralegal preparing a platted legal description need only make reference to the plat, indicating the book and page numbers where the plat has been recorded.

platted description

The platted legal description refers to a certain lot being shown on a certain plat recorded in a certain plat book and page within the county. For the legal description to be correct, the land being described must in fact appear as designated in the brief reference. It is a good idea to obtain a copy of the recorded plat to make certain that the property is adequately and correctly described. -land lot -district -county -state -subdivision name and lot block and unit numbers -recorded reference to plat book and page numbers

A metes and bounds description must close.

This is a true statement. This means that the legal description starts at the beginning point, follows each boundary line by course and distance, and ends back at the beginning point. If the land description does not close, it is defective.

basic requirements of a legal description for metes and bounds:

a) identification of land lot, district, section, county, and state in which the property is located; (b) definite beginning point; (c) compass direction and distances from one point to the next; and (d) return to the beginning point.

township lines

range lines, run east and west at a 6 mile interval parallel with base lines and form strips of land or tiers called townships

metes and bounds description

sets forth and completely describes the boundary lines of the land usually begins with an introduction that locates the land in a general part of the state For example, the state of Georgia is subdivided into counties, a county is further subdivided into land districts, and some districts are divided into sections. Within districts and sections are land lots that range from 40 to 490 acres. The boundaries of the counties, districts, sections, and land lots are all made definite by government survey.

township

squares of land formed by the intersecting township lines and range lines make up a grid, with each square within the grid having about 6 miles on each side. These squares, called townships, make up the basic units of the rectangular survey system. In theory, each township is 6 miles square and contains 36 square miles; in reality, a slight overage or shortage may exist because of difficulties encountered during surveying.

course

the direction in which the boundary line travels In a metes and bounds legal description, the direction of a property boundary line.

Basic survey information includes a north arrow indicating which direction is north and a legend describing any symbols the surveyor used to mark different items on the survey.

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other issues to review on a survey include setback lines, which may be required by private restrictions or

zoning regulations