Descriptive calls

bearings would be nice.

I would name the neighboring properties as a call for the abutters are equally important as the monuments, either natural or artificial. And it eliminates gaps or overlaps.

330 x330 square? isn't that more like 2.5A

When you cut out a tract only from the parent tract, would you say?

thence East - 300 feet along the 80.23 acre tract

or

thence East - 300 feet along the neighboring that

or

thence East - 300 feet along the abutter

How would you write the bearing and distance and any descriptive along the above north line?

Sorry

> A certain 5-acre tract out of a 80.23-acre tract as described in Deed Book 45, Page 83
> Live Oak County, Texas, further described as follows;
>
> Beginning at a RR spike at the southwest corner of said 80.23-acre tract, thence North - 330 feet,
> along the west line of said 80.23-acre tract and the east line of a 140.45-acre tract as described
> in Deed Book 33, Page 233, Live Oak County, Texas, to a 3/4" iron pipe set for the NW corner of
> this tract;
>
> thence East - 330 feet to a 3/4" iron pipe set for the NE corner of this tract;
>
> thence South - 330 feet to a 3/4" iron pipe set for the SE corner of this tract;
>
> thence West - 330 feet, along the south line of said 80.23-acre tract to the Point of Beginning.

You need quite a bit more description! Who was the deed from and to in book 45, page 83? When was the conveyance executed per said deed? What original land grant(s) is this property a part of? Beginning at a RR spike at the Southwest corner... is there a nearby road (preferably an intersection with another street or creek)? What established the West line of the 80.23 acre tract you followed (such as the Northwest corner of the 80.23 acre tract)? Thence East - crossing the interior of the 80.23 acre tract? Thence South - is it parallel to the West line (in other words - intent)? What's South of the South line of the 80.23 acre tract? What did you use to determine the South line (the Southeast corner of the 80.23 acre tract)?

The key to making a really good description is doing everything you can to identify the intent of the parties involved and to paint as complete a map of the property as possible using nothing but words. It would also be advisable to bury your bearing relation in the description (not all do this, but I believe it to be good practice). Thence East (held record bearing from v. and p.) or (bearings related to compass, astronomic observation, Grid North for State Plane Zone, etc.)

"with" and "along"

"along" has been held to be a general term. There may be a fence in the vicinity of the East line. If so, and the description reads "along a fence" then the fence is understood to be in the vicinity of the line. If the intent of the seller is to sell to the fence, then the description might more properly read "with a fence" which would be understood that the boundary follows every meander of the fence with no deviation.

So if you are following a senior boundary line, you would be "with" that line. If your boundary follows that senior line and it has been divided (such as a subdivision) you might use "with the West line of Smith's 100 acre tract, along the West line of Lot 5, Lot 6, Lot 7, of Such and Such Addition".

"with" and "along"

a tie to the POB would be helpful - to a referenced monument of some type. Bearings on the lines, with a basis of bearing clearly stated, preferably tied to the POB.
Also, describe the intent of each line (is it parallel to another line?).

"with" and "along"

A land surveyor down the road in Jim Wells County uses the call 'along a fence'
for just about any fence, straight or crooked, near the title line. Then I get
a call from farmers and ranchers adjoining who say, 'the neighbor will not let
me repair the fence or straighten it'.

What should I tell my new client?

"with" and "along"

fences are property. who owns the fence? (not just the land under the fence).

The surveyor using "along" would suggest that the fence may or may not be on the boundary - but generally is near it. If he said "with" then the boundary would follow every bend.

"with" and "along"

"...then the description might more properly read "with a fence" which would be understood that the boundary follows every meander of the fence with no deviation."

Interesting - have never seen "with" used like this in a description...

Easily Misconstrued

East, South etc can be interpreted as Cardinal.

Should bind it to your parcel and then the adajacent parcels better:

Beginning at a RR spike at the southwest corner of said 80.23-acre tract, thence 1/ northerly - 330 feet, along the west line of said 80.23-acre tract and the east line of a 140.45-acre tract as described in Deed Book 33, Page 233, Live Oak County, Texas, to a 3/4" iron pipe set for the NW corner of this tract;

thence 2/ easterly (bearing is better) on a new line through the 80.23-acre tract - 330 feet to a 3/4" iron pipe set for the NE corner of this 2.5 acre tract;

thence 3/ southerly (bearing is better) on a new line through the 80.23-acre tract - 330 feet to a 3/4" iron pipe set on the southerly line of said 80.23-acre tract and "describe southerly bounding tract" for the SE corner of this 2.5 acre;

thence 4/ westertly - 330 feet, along the south line of said 80.23-acre tract and along "describe southerly bounding tract" to the Point of Beginning.

Paul in PA

Texas is a “Metes & Bounds” state … therefore you need to be in the state of mind that the more you describe the adjoiners “metes & bounds” the better your description will be… Think like you’re being paid by the WORD not the foot.

Here’s a recent Texas example … I had the luxury of having a USC&GS Monument nearby …

Being a 104.33 acre tract of land out of Block 58, Freestone County School Land, Abstract Number 144, Clay County, Texas; and being part of the tracts of land conveyed to Jerry Wayne Morgan & Barbara A. Morgan per the deed recorded in Volume 484, Page 761, Deed Records, Clay County, Texas (DRCCT) and being more particularly described below:

BEGINNING at a bent 120d nail found for the northwest corner of said Block 58, from which a 120d nail found for the northwest corner of Block 57, Freestone County School Land, bears North 89° 40' 35" West at a distance of 3598.80 feet and
a USC&GS brass monument stamped “JONES 1902” bears South 37° 56' 52" West at a distance of 1177.24 feet;

THENCE South 89° 30' 58" East, with the common line between said Freestone County School Land and the south line of the Texan Emigration and Land Company Survey and a tract of land conveyed to the North Camp Operating Company per the deed filed in Volume 508, Page 184, DRCCT, a distance of 1087.96 feet to a 5/8" iron rod with a cap stamped "RPLS 5094" set in the center of Liberty Road for the northeast corner of the herein described tract of land, from which a bent 120d nail found for the Northeast corner of said Block 58, bears South 89° 30' 58" East at a distance of 2808.40 feet;

THENCE South 0° 26' 31" East, departing the north line of said Freestone County School Land Survey and passing a 5/8" iron rod with a cap stamped "RPLS 5094" set for a point on line at a distance of 2215.60 feet, in all a total distance of 4202.21 feet to a 5/8" iron rod with a cap stamped "RPLS 5094" set for the southeast corner of the herein described tract of land; from which a 5/8" iron rod found for the southeast corner of said Block 58, bears South 89° 45' 17" East at a distance of 2466.48 feet and a 5/8" iron rod with a cap stamped "WALTERS RPLS 4614" found for the northeast reference point for the tract of land conveyed to Tiffany L. Browning per the deed recorded in Volume 463, Page 583, DRCCT, bears South 87° 18' 45" West at a distance of 234.38 feet;

THENCE North 89° 45' 17" West, with the south line of said Block 58 and the north line of Block 56, a distance of 1074.07 feet to a 5/8" iron rod with a cap stamped "RPLS 5094" set for the southwest corner of said Block 58, from which a 1/2" iron rod found for the Southwest corner of Block 57, Freestone County School Land, bears North 89° 45' 17" West at a distance of 3660.36 feet;

THENCE North 0° 37' 49" West, with the west line of Block 58, a distance of 4206.93 feet to the POINT OF BEGINNING and containing a calculated Gross Area of 104.33 acres of land, of which 1.8 acres are encumbered by Browning & Liberty Roads.

Bearings Based on Grid North, North Central Texas Zone, NAD 83.

For the State of Texas only, if an original patent was being surveyed and had one common
line with an existing survey, would there be any descriptive call along the lines not tied
to the existing survey?

Man that's a good one Mike.

"with" and "along"

I'm in the habit of using the term "on" when the described line is the same as an existing deed line.
"With" is used to describe parallel lines; thence N 00° 24' 35" E, parallel with the east line of....
Perpendicular line are described as; thence S 89° 35' 25" E, perpendicular to the east line of...

Descriptive calls - a question

"for the northeast corner of the herein described tract of land" and "departing___ line"

i find this type of statements to be helpful but basically superfluous BS.

just wondering other folks opinion.

> I write a description for selling a tract to the State.
>
> A certain 5-acre tract out of a 80.23-acre tract as described in Deed Book 45, Page 83
> Live Oak County, Texas, further described as follows;
>
> Beginning at a RR spike at the southwest corner of said 80.23-acre tract, thence North - 330 feet,
> along the west line of said 80.23-acre tract and the east line of a 140.45-acre tract as described
> in Deed Book 33, Page 233, Live Oak County, Texas, to a 3/4" iron pipe set for the NW corner of
> this tract;
>
> thence East - 330 feet to a 3/4" iron pipe set for the NE corner of this tract;
>
> thence South - 330 feet to a 3/4" iron pipe set for the SE corner of this tract;
>
> thence West - 330 feet, along the south line of said 80.23-acre tract to the Point of Beginning.
>
>
>
> Should the north and the east lines of this tract be more descriptive?

I would say if you surveyed it, be more descriptive. Include bearings or at least reference angles to the previous described line.
If the POB is not a corner of record (like a section corner here in PLSSia), I would commence at a known corner.
IMO, your description, without these calls, is as good as just describing it as the south 330' of the west 330' of a tract as described in...
This means the next poor sap that has to retrace your survey, has to first survey the 80.23 acre tract before the cutout can be established. I like the calls to monumentation. Those are, after all, the corners regardless of distances measured (assuming your survey is creating this parcel)

If cutting it out of a parent tract, there is no need to call an abutter on those lines that are interior to the parent tract. Nor would I call the abutter on the exterior lines unless the adjoining parcel had senior title to the parent tract you are cutting from.

If you have nothing else descriptive to call, such as along an existing fence, parallel to a road or building wall, parallel to the line on the opposite side of the parcel, etc., then calling from monument to monument is sufficient. Fully describe your monument - i.e. "... to a 1" galvanized iron pipe with brass cap marked "LS 1234, 2013"; thence South..."