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An appraiser has to have a basic, working
knowledge of the legal descriptions,
especially for the area where they work
If an appraisal requires knowledge beyond
the working knowledge the appraiser needs
to rely on professional surveyor or
abstractor.
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Three common methods to legally describe
real property;
Rectangular survey system
 Metes and bounds system
 Lot and block system
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Most common system in the US
RSS was originally implemented in US May
20, 1785 through legislation passed by the
Continental Congress for disposal of land in
the Western Territory
Sometimes referred to as Government
survey system or Government System
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Each state divided into arbitrary northsouth lines called Meridians and into
arbitrary east-west lines called Baselines
These are arbitrary and not related to
geographical meridians
Each meridian is unique and crossed by its
own baseline
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Every 6 miles from the principal meridian
another line was drawn; resulting columns
are called ranges
Every 6 miles from the baseline another line
was drawn and the resulting space was
called a township.
Each range and township are 6 miles square
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Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, N and
S Dakota use 5th Principal Meridian
established in 1815
Range
Meridian
Township
Base Line
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Each section has 640 acres and each acre
contains 43,560 square feet
Always to remember to read the location
backwards when finding a parcel with the
rectangular system
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Every 24 miles there are corrections lines to
adjust so that the townships fit with the
curvature of the earth.
Quarter sections on the north and west
boundary take up excess or shortages in the
township. These are known as fractional or
government lots.
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W½NE¼, NE¼NE¼ & 6a. W½SE¼NE¼ 1593-4
W½NW¼, SE¼NW¼ & NW¼SW¼ 8-69-37
E½NW¼ 9-72-41
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Based on early land descriptions in
America; used natural or man made objects
From Hartford, CN 1812 court records for
land description. “Commencing at a heap of
stone about a stone’s throw from a certain
small clump of alders, near a brook running
down off a certain marked white birch….”
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Metes describe the direction from one
reference point to another as well as the
distance between the points
Bounds refer to the Point of Beginning
(POB) of a description (this is also the point
of return) and all intermediate points.
From a permanent marker the parcel is
described in distance (lineal measure) and
bearing (angle) from that point
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Distance usually measured in feet to nearest
tenth of one-hundredth of a foot
Chain = 66.0 feet
Rod = 16.5 feet (5.5 yards)
Link = 7.92 inches
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Bearing measured in degrees, minutes and
seconds
For legal descriptions we use 90 degree
segments
60 minutes (60’) in one degree
60 seconds (60”) in each minute
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A metes and bounds description moves
from point to point following the course laid
out in the description.
Courses are in degrees, minutes and
seconds of an angle from the north or south.
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There have been Permanent Reference
Marks (Bench Marks) established (4.5 inch
disks in steel or concrete
The bench marks are referenced to each
other by distance and direction
Key point is to have a starting point that can
be found again.
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N80 0’0” East, 152 feet to the point of
beginning;
Thence S80 degree 0’0” East 180.0 feet;
Thence S15 degree 0’0” West, 160.00 feet;
Thence S85 degrees 0’0” West 151.00 feet;
Thence N4 degrees 10’58” East 199.50 feet
to the point of beginning
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This is for land ready for subdivision into
homes and businesses into blocks and lots.
Simplest and most convenient to describe
small lots or tracts within a subdivision
Metes and bounds to survey an show the
parcel; parcel assigned a lot number, Each
block given a block number and the tract
given a name or number
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Vertical land description; measured in terms
of vertical measurements. Used for air
rights or subsurface
Topographic maps; contour maps used for
land that will be developed and soil to be
moved, etc.