Plot a Metes and Bounds Legal Land Description

Quick Start

Enter your metes and bounds legal land description.

Check Button

• Will run a syntax check on your data, plot the land parcel and calculate area and closure.
• The starting point should meet up with the ending point. This is called "Closure".
• The acreage should be very close to what is on the legal land description.
• Syntax errors will be highlighted.
• Hover over the highlighted fields to see the error message.
• 'Check' is a Free Service.

Calc Button

• Computes Latitudes and Longitudes for all points.
• Computes arc lengths and chord lengths for all curves.
• Has links to download the point coordinates in CSV, KML, GPX and JSON formats.
• Has links to draw your property on top of Road and Satellite Maps.
• 'Calc' is a Paid Service.

Save Button

• You may create an account without any purchase.
• This allows you to 'Save' your projects.
• 'Save' will also add additional lines to the bottom of the data entry form.
• To 'Save', you must manually click the 'Save' button. This app does not automatically save.

Sales Pitch

Each 'Calc' consumes 1 credit. 'Check' is free and does not consume any credits.

Your first 3 'Calcs' are free.

Typically 20 to 30 credits are required to complete a project.

If you wish to setup an account, click Becoming a Subscriber and follow the instructions.

If already have an account, click here.

Or, you can click "Login" on the top right hand corner of any webpage, sign in, and then click the "PLOT" button on the black menu bar.

Metes and Bounds Land Description

Overview:

• A Metes and Bounds Land Description starts at a well defined beginning point and traces the perimeter of a property using carefully measured distances and angles until it finally returns to the point of beginning.
• The end point must meet up with the start point. (Closure)

Example:

A tract of land in the Northwest quarter of the Northwest quarter of Section 30, Township 1 South, Range 66 West of the 6th Principal Meridian, County of Adams, State of Colorado described as follows:

Commencing at the Northwest corner of said Section 30;
Thence South 20°30' East, a distance of 140.60 feet to the Point of Beginning;
Thence North 88°55' East, a distance of 200.00 feet;
Thence South, a distance of 125.00 feet;
Thence South 88°55' West, a distance of 200.00 feet;
Thence North, a distance of 125.00 feet to the Point of Beginning;
Containing 0.57 acres, more or less.

Bearings are based on the north line of the Northwest quarter of Section 30 to bear North 89°42' East with all bearings contained herein relative thereto.

Elements of a Land Description

1. PREAMBLE
   • The preamble provides a general description of the land to be described including the county, state and other general information to orient the reader.
   • The preamble gets the reader to the proper general location.
2. POINT OF COMMENCEMENT
   • This is the reference point.
   • A Point of Commencement is used to unambigously reference the parcel to a well-established point (ie: a government survey corner).
   • A Point of Commencement is used when the reference point is not on the perimeter of the parcel.
   • The Point of Commencement is either inside the land parcel or on another land parcel some distance away.
   • There might not be a Point of Commencement.
3. POINT OF BEGINNING (POB)
   • The Point of the Beginning is "pen down", the first point where the drawing of the perimeter begins.
   • If there is no Point of Commencement, the Point of Beginning is also the reference point.
4. BODY
   • The Body contains a sequence of Calls.
   • These Calls draw the perimeter around the land parcel and end up back to the Point of Beginning.
   • Calls recite Courses and Distances.
   • Calls can be a straight line, a curve, or a line parallel line to another line.
   • Calls can be references to adjoining boundaries, natural or artificial monuments, roads or rivers.
   • Courses are the direction of a line.
   • Courses are usually referenced to true north, but sometimes are referenced to magnetic north or a Basis of Bearing
   • Distance is the length in a well-known unit, such as feet, meters or chains.
5. AREA
   • An Area Call sets forth the approximate acreage in the parcel.
   • The acreage in the Area Call should be very close to the calculated area as defined by the sequence of calls in the Body.
6. BASIS OF BEARING
   • A Basis of Bearing is used instead of true north or magnetic north as the reference for the Courses.
   • A Basis of Bearing is rare, most legal descriptions do not have one.
   • If a land description has a Basis of Bearing, it will be explicity stated. Otherwise leave the Basis of Bearing fields blank.
   • In some US states, a Land Description must always state it's Basis of Bearing, even if it is True North.
   • If there is no Basis of Bearing, this application will use True North