Real Estate Unit 5: Land Description
metes
A measure of distance and direction used in some formal legal descriptions.
Datum
A point, line, or surface from which elevations are measured or indicated. Referenced in condominium plat maps showing the elevations of floor and ceiling surfaces and vertical boundaries of each unit
What is the length of a mile and number of square feet in an acre?
5,280 feet and 43,560 square feet
Mile
5,280 ft, 1760 yds, 320 rods
Subsurface Rights
Ownership rights in a parcel of real estate to the water, minerals, gas, oil, and so forth that lie beneath the surface of the property.
Rectangular Survey
Base lines, meridians, and townships are elements of which system of property description?
sketch
The location and dimensions of a parcel is identified on the survey
Subsurface rights can be legally described just as air rights, but with what difference?
They are measured below the datum rather than above it.
Cadastral Data Content Standard
To integrate information found in publicly available land records, the Federal Geographic Data Committee has created
sea level at New York Harbor
USGS defined distances noted as above or below datum
Cities with local datums also have designated official local
benchmarks
In describing real estate, the method that may use a property's physical features to determine boundaries and measurements is
metes and bounds.
A parcel of land is two acres. It sells for $1.18 per square foot. What is the total selling price for the parcel?
$102,801.60 An acre consists of 43,560 square feet. 43,560 × 2 = 87,120 total square feet. 87,120 × $1.18 = $102,801.60.
If a farm described as "the NW¼ of the SE¼ of Section 10, Township 2 North, Range 3 West of the 6th. P.M." sold for $4,500 an acre, what was the total sales price?
$180,000 Disregard all elements of the description except those showing area. It is a quarter of a quarter of a section, or 1/16 of 640, or 40 acres. When sold, each acre brought $4,500, so the gross selling price is calculated as follows: 40 acres × $4,500 = $180,000.
A piece of land is for sale for $2.25 per square foot. The land is three acres. What was the total selling price for the land?
$294,030 An acre consists of 43,560 square feet. 43,560 × 3 = 130,680 total square feet. $130,680 × 2.25 = $294,030.
Which of these MOST accurately describes the dimensions of a quarter-section?
1/2 mile by 1/2 mile
A parcel of land is 400 feet by 640 feet. The parcel is cut in half diagonally by a stream. How many acres are in each half of the parcel?
2.94 The parcel is 256,000 square feet: 400' ×640' = 256,000 sq. ft.. Half of it is 128,000 square feet. Each acre requires 43,560 square feet. Therefore: 128,000 sq. ft. ÷ 43,560 sq. ft. per acre = 2.938 acres (rounded to three decimal places). The nearest answer is 2.94.
What is the square footage for this property described by the metes-and-bounds method? Beginning at a point on the southerly side of Smith Street, 200 feet easterly from the corner formed by the intersection of the southerly side of Smith Street and the easterly side of Johnson Street; then east 200 feet; then south 100 feet; then west 200 feet; then north 100 feet to the POB.
20,000 square feet
If lot 13 and lot 14, Block A were combined into one parcel, how many square feet would it contain?
21, 600. The combined parcel would have 21,600 square feet. The parcel would be 180 × 120 = 21,600.
What is the number of the sections in any township?
36
How many acres are contained in the tract described as "beginning at the NW corner of the SW¼, then south along the west line to the SW corner of the section, then east along the south line of the section 2,640 feet, more or less, to the SE corner of the said SW¼, then in a straight line to the POB"?
80 acres. The area described is a triangle formed when a quarter of a section is cut from one corner to the opposite corner. A section has 640 acres, a quarter-section has 160 acres, and half of that quarter has 80 acres.
Legal Description
A description of a specific parcel of real estate complete enough for an independent surveyor to locate and identify it. 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.
air lots
A designated airspace over a piece of land. An air lot, like surface property, may be transferred.
Metes and Bounds
A legal description stating "start at the street sign at the corner of Ash and 11th, go 100' south to the tree, then 50' west ..." is MOST likely what type of legal description?
plat map
A map of a subdivision indicating the location and boundaries of individual properties. Generally shows lots, blocks, easements, streets, floodplains, etc. Usually requires official approval before recordation.
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.
an Improvement Location Certificate (ILC)
A survey that provides only the location of the structures and improvements as related to property boundaries
township lines
All the lines in a rectangular survey system that run east and west, parallel to the base line six miles apart.
Which of the following are NOT basic components of a metes-and-bounds description?
Base lines, principal meridians, and townships
lot-and-block (recorded plat) method
Divides a subdivision into block and lot (individual parcel) numbers and references all data in a subdivision plat map, noting lot sizes, street names, and other required information that is approved by the governing body, and filed in public records of the county where the land is located.
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.
A legal description must contain a reference to which of the following?
The principal meridian and the base line of the survey system area in which the property lies
Point of beginning (POB)
The starting (and ending) place in a land survey using the metes-and-bounds method of property description.
A metes-and-bounds description starts at a designated place on the parcel called the point of beginning.
True
Benchmarks are permanent reference points that have been established throughout the United States.
True
The legal description of a property is based on information collected through a process called a survey.
True
When a survey also shows the location, size, and shape of buildings on the lot, it is called a spot survey.
True
Township
divided into 36 sections of one square mile (640 acres) each and run right to left, then left to right, starting at section 1 at the northeast corner of the township and ending at section 36 at the southeast corner of the township
rectangular survey system (government survey system)
divides land into rectangles called townships, measured from the intersection of a principal meridian and base line, and referenced by degrees of longitude and latitude.
monuments
fixed objects or markers) identify the POB and corners or places where the boundary line changes direction.
bounds
following compass directions or angles to arrive back at POB
Principal meridians
north-south lines separating townships
tiers
rows of townships
Survey Sketch
shows the location and dimensions of the parcel
Elevations
the measurement of how much above or below sea level a place is
A lot-and-block description of a parcel of land must always include
the name or number of the subdivision plat.
Furlon
220 yds, 660 ft, 40 rods, 10 chains
ranges
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.
plat map
Describes the lots and blocks in a subdivision
Survey preparation
Includes both a legal description and a survey sketch.
Beginning at the intersection of the west line of Carney Street and the north line of Wolf Road, running west 140 feet, then north 120 feet, then north 50 degrees east 120 feet, then following the southeasterly curvature of the south line of Jasmine Lane for 100 feet, then south 120 feet to POB. To which lot does this description refer?
Lot 8, Block A
What are the turning points in the metes-and-bounds method of property description?
Monuments
Benchmark
One of many points that have been established throughout the United States, usually embossed brass markers set into solid concrete or asphalt bases. Surveyors rely most heavily on these to mark their work accurately.
Which township section number is directly north of Section 7?
Section 6
Monument
Traditionally used to mark surface measurements between points, but may not be accurate
Some traditional terms of measurement NOT often used today include rods, cubic yards, and
chains
Townships
divided land into rectangles
In the rectangular survey system, a section is further divided into
halves and quarters
Lot number
individual parcel numbered
Land Measurements
mile of 5,280 ft acre of 43,560 sq feet (approx. 209 x 209 feet) square mile of 640 acres (1 section)
Land Acquisition cost
purchase price + sales commissions + back taxes + title fees + title insurance + legal fees + any land preparation - proceeds from salvage
subdivision
the act of dividing land into pieces that are easier to sell or otherwise develop.
block
the section of a street between two other streets
The basic units of the rectangular survey system are
the townships.
