1.3 Legal Descriptions and Surveys

Why Street Addresses Are Not Enough

A mailing address can change and is not legally precise, so deeds and mortgages must use a legal description that identifies one and only one parcel on the earth's surface. Three accepted systems appear on the national exam: metes and bounds, the rectangular (government) survey system, and the lot and block (recorded plat) system. Many descriptions combine methods, but each must close perfectly back to its starting point.

Metes and Bounds

The oldest method describes a parcel by distances (metes) and compass directions (bounds), tracing the boundary from a fixed point of beginning (POB) around the perimeter and back to the POB. A valid description must return to the POB; failure to close indicates an error.

Directions read like 'N 45° E, 200 feet.' Monuments — natural (a creek, a large oak) or artificial (an iron pin) — mark corners. When a written distance conflicts with a physical monument, the monument generally controls.

Rectangular (Government) Survey System

Used across most of the U.S., this system overlays principal meridians (north-south lines) and base lines (east-west lines). From their intersection, land is divided into a grid:

Ranges are columns of townships counted east/west of the meridian; tiers are rows counted north/south of the base line. Sections are numbered 1–36 in a boustrophedon (serpentine) pattern, starting at the northeast corner.

Worked Example: Calculating Acreage

A description reads: 'The NW 1/4 of the SE 1/4 of Section 14.' Work the fractions from right to left and multiply by 640 acres:

• SE 1/4 of a section = 1/4 × 640 = 160 acres
• NW 1/4 of that = 1/4 × 160 = 40 acres

Shortcut: multiply all the fractions together (1/4 × 1/4 = 1/16) and apply to 640: 640 × 1/16 = 40 acres. Remember 1 acre = 43,560 square feet, and 1 section = 640 acres = 1 square mile.

Worked Example: Reading a Rectangular-Survey Call

Under the rectangular (government) survey system, land is described by township and range relative to principal meridians and base lines. A standard township is 6 miles by 6 miles (36 square miles) and is divided into 36 sections, each one mile square containing 640 acres. Sections are numbered 1-36 in a boustrophedon (back-and-forth) pattern starting at the northeast corner.

Exam math relies on the 640-acre section. Consider the description: the NW 1/4 of the SE 1/4 of Section 10. Work right to left and multiply the fractions by 640: 1/4 x 1/4 x 640 = 40 acres. A three-part call such as the N 1/2 of the NW 1/4 of the SW 1/4 equals 1/2 x 1/4 x 1/4 x 640 = 20 acres. Always read these descriptions from the last call backward and multiply each fraction by 640 acres to find the parcel size.

Datum, Benchmarks, and Hawaii Practice

Vertical measurements for multi-story condominiums and air rights rely on a datum, a defined point of elevation (commonly mean sea level) from which heights and depths are measured. Surveyors mark known elevations with permanent benchmarks referenced back to the datum, allowing precise descriptions of a condominium unit that floats above ground level rather than touching the earth.

Because Hawaii was never surveyed under the federal rectangular system, the metes-and-bounds method dominates there. A metes-and-bounds description starts at a well-marked point of beginning (POB), traces each boundary by direction and distance (the metes) referencing physical or recorded monuments (the bounds), and must close by returning to the POB. Many Hawaii parcels also carry historic Land Commission Award (LCA) and Royal Patent grant references from the Mahele land division, which the state portion may reference.

Lot and Block (Recorded Plat) System

Most common in subdivisions, this system references a subdivision plat map recorded in the county. A parcel is identified as, for example, 'Lot 7, Block C, Sunset Hills Subdivision, as recorded in Plat Book 12, Page 45.' Because the plat already shows surveyed dimensions, the legal description can be short. The recorded plat governs lot lines, easements, and dedicated streets.

Surveys, Datums, and Air Lots

A survey locates boundaries and improvements on the ground; a spot survey also shows the position of structures relative to lot lines, revealing encroachments. Vertical measurements use a datum (a defined reference elevation; the U.S. Geological Survey uses mean sea level) and a benchmark (a permanent marker). Condominium units are described as air lots using horizontal plus vertical (elevation) measurements to define three-dimensional space.

Three Methods at a Glance

When methods conflict, courts follow a priority order: natural monuments, then artificial monuments, then courses (directions), then distances, and finally area/acreage last.