Metes and Bounds: Description, Example and How to Read One
A metes and bounds description traces a property boundary from a point of beginning, line by line, back to that point. A worked example and how to read one.
Quick answer
Metes and bounds is a way of describing land by tracing its boundary. The description starts at a point of beginning, follows each boundary line by direction and distance, often using landmarks called monuments, and ends where it began. It is one kind of legal description written into a deed.
What is metes and bounds?
The Legal Information Institute says metes and bounds are "the boundaries of a parcel of real estate that identified by its natural landmarks," and that they are often used in the legal description of land (Legal Information Institute, metes and bounds).
The same page explains the structure: a metes and bounds legal description "starts from a point of beginning, then traces the outline of the property’s boundary lines until there is closure in the legal description." Closure means the last line returns to the starting point, so the shape is fully enclosed.
You will also see the phrase written as metes & bounds. It is the same thing. The description does not use a street address. It uses lines, angles, distances and landmarks, which is why it can describe a farm, a wooded lot or an odd-shaped parcel that no tidy grid would fit.
Definition
Metes and bounds — A method of describing a parcel of land by tracing its boundary lines (the "metes" are the measurements of direction and distance, the "bounds" are the boundaries and landmarks) from a starting point back to that same point.
What does a metes and bounds description contain?
A metes and bounds description is a paragraph of survey language, usually found in the deed, that walks around the edge of the property. Each leg of the walk gives a direction and a length, and the walk is built from a few repeating parts.
The point of beginning is where the walk starts. It is usually tied to something fixed, such as a road intersection or a marker set by a surveyor. Each call, as the individual legs are known, then states a bearing (the compass direction of the line) and a distance. Curved boundaries add a radius and an arc length.
The description also names monuments. The Legal Information Institute defines a monument as "a natural or artificial permanent fixture in land that is referred to in a legal description of the land" (Legal Information Institute, monument). Rivers, roads and trees count, as does an iron pin set by a surveyor. The metes and bounds page says both natural and artificial monuments can be used.
Finally, the description often names the neighbors along each side ("land now or formerly of ..."), and may state an acreage. These details help a reader place the parcel, but the lines and monuments are what define it.
What is an example of metes and bounds?
The description below is a hypothetical for an invented lot. It is an illustration only, not a real property, and the bearings and distances are made up to show how the walk works. Read it one call at a time.
"Beginning at an iron pin set at the intersection of the east line of Maple Road and the north line of Cedar Lane; thence North 10 degrees 00 minutes East along Maple Road, 200.00 feet to an iron pin; thence South 85 degrees 00 minutes East, 150.00 feet to a stone monument; thence South 05 degrees 00 minutes West, 205.00 feet to a point on the north line of Cedar Lane; thence North 86 degrees 00 minutes West along Cedar Lane, 148.00 feet to the point of beginning."
The table breaks the same description into its calls.
| Call | Words in the description | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Start | Beginning at an iron pin at Maple Road and Cedar Lane | The point of beginning, tied to a road corner and a marker. |
| 1 | North 10 degrees 00 minutes East, 200.00 feet | First line: mostly north, slightly east, 200 feet long. |
| 2 | South 85 degrees 00 minutes East, 150.00 feet to a stone monument | Second line: nearly due east, ending at a named monument. |
| 3 | South 05 degrees 00 minutes West, 205.00 feet | Third line: mostly south, slightly west. |
| 4 | North 86 degrees 00 minutes West, 148.00 feet to the point of beginning | Last line: back to the start, which is closure. |
How do you read a metes and bounds description?
Find the point of beginning
Locate the starting marker or corner named in the first line. Everything else is measured from it, so an unclear starting point makes the rest unreliable.
Read each bearing and distance in order
A bearing such as "North 10 degrees East" is read from north or south toward east or west. Draw each leg from the end of the one before, in the order written.
Mark the monuments
Note every pin, stone, road, creek or fence the description names. These are the physical things a surveyor looks for on the ground.
Check that the shape closes
The last call should return to the point of beginning. A sketch that does not close points to an error in the description, a misreading, or a missing call.
Compare with the deeds before and after
The description in a new deed should match the one in the owner’s earlier deed, unless a survey or a split of the parcel explains the change. See chain of title for how to check that links connect.
How is metes and bounds different from the public land survey system?
Metes and bounds follows the shape of the individual parcel. The federal rectangular survey, used across much of the public domain, divides land into a grid instead. Federal law sets the rules: "The public lands shall be divided by north and south lines run according to the true meridian, and by others crossing them at right angles, so as to form townships of six miles square," with exceptions for things like navigable rivers (43 U.S.C. 751, Legal Information Institute).
Each township is then subdivided into sections "containing, as nearly as may be, six hundred and forty acres each," numbered from one to thirty-six, as the same section of the code states. Section 752 adds that corners marked in the surveys are established as the proper corners (43 U.S.C. 752, Legal Information Institute).
The two systems often meet in one description. A parcel inside a section may be described by its position in the grid, while an irregular piece is carved out with metes and bounds calls that start from a section corner. Where a given property sits depends on the state and its history, and the deed is the document that shows which method applies.
| Feature | Metes and bounds | Rectangular survey (43 U.S.C. 751) |
|---|---|---|
| Basis | Boundary lines, bearings, distances and monuments | A grid of townships and sections |
| Unit size | Whatever the parcel is | Township six miles square; section about 640 acres; 36 sections per township |
| Starting reference | A point of beginning chosen for the parcel | Corners marked in the government survey |
| Best suited to | Irregular parcels and older tracts | Land surveyed as part of the public lands |
| Where the figures come from | Legal Information Institute, Wex | 43 U.S.C. 751 and 752, read on the Legal Information Institute site |
What problems show up in a metes and bounds description?
Because the description is long and written in survey shorthand, errors creep in. A search report or a surveyor should flag any of these:
- The description does not close, so a leg is missing or a number is wrong.
- A monument has moved, rotted or been removed, such as a tree, a fence or a creek bed that shifted.
- The call names an owner of the neighboring land who has since changed ("now or formerly").
- A newer deed describes the land differently from the previous deed without a survey that explains why.
- Two descriptions overlap, leaving a gap or double coverage between neighbors.
- A deed refers to an old survey or plat that is not recorded or cannot be found.
What a description in the record does not tell you
Why does a legal description matter in a title search?
A title search is only as good as the match between the land and the documents. The Legal Information Institute lists the property’s legal description among the usual elements of a valid deed, describing it "generally with lots, blocks, metes, and bounds" (Legal Information Institute, deed). If the description in one deed differs from the next, the search has to find out why.
In practice, a records search is usually run by owner name or parcel number, then the legal description in each deed is compared across the chain. A match supports the conclusion that the same land passed from owner to owner. A mismatch is a flag for a human to look at, not a finding of a defect. Our guide to how to do a title search walks through the full method, and how to find out who owns a property covers the first step.
HeritageDeed reports the current owner for $49, the current and previous owner for $79, and a 30-year search for $129, in the counties on the title search coverage page. The reports state which records were searched. They do not survey land and do not insure it.
Key takeaways
Key takeaways
- Metes and bounds describes land by tracing its boundary from a point of beginning, line by line, back to the same point.
- The parts are the point of beginning, calls (bearing and distance), monuments and closure.
- The federal rectangular survey is a different system: townships six miles square, sections of about 640 acres, 36 per township.
- A description in a deed is words, not a survey. Only a licensed surveyor can mark the lines on the ground.
- In a title search, the legal description should match across the deeds in the chain, and a mismatch needs an explanation.
Frequently asked questions
- What does metes and bounds mean?
- Metes and bounds is a method of describing a parcel of land by its boundary lines. Metes are the measurements of direction and distance, and bounds are the boundaries and landmarks. The description starts at a point of beginning and returns to it.
- What is a metes and bounds description?
- It is the written survey language, usually in a deed, that walks around the edge of a property. Each call gives a bearing and a distance, often to a named monument, and the last call returns to the point of beginning so the shape closes.
- What is an example of metes and bounds?
- A short example reads: beginning at an iron pin at a road corner, thence North 10 degrees East 200 feet, thence South 85 degrees East 150 feet, thence South 5 degrees West 205 feet, thence back to the beginning. This one is invented, for illustration only.
- What is a point of beginning?
- The point of beginning is the place where a metes and bounds description starts and, if the description closes, where it ends. It is usually tied to a fixed marker, road corner or monument so that a surveyor can find it again on the ground.
- What is a monument in a metes and bounds description?
- A monument is a natural or artificial permanent fixture in land that the legal description refers to. A river, road, tree, stone or surveyor’s iron pin can serve. Monuments tie the written lines to something that can be found on the land.
- What is the difference between metes and bounds and lot and block?
- Lot and block descriptions refer to a numbered lot on a recorded plat, so the deed can be short. Metes and bounds writes out the boundary lines in the deed itself. A deed may use either, or combine them, and some use both.
- Is metes and bounds the same as the public land survey system?
- No. The public land survey system is a grid of townships six miles square, divided into sections of about 640 acres. Metes and bounds follows the shape of one parcel. Descriptions often combine them, with metes and bounds calls starting from a section corner.
- Does a title search check a metes and bounds description?
- A records search compares the legal description across the deeds it finds and flags differences. It does not measure the land or find monuments on the ground, which takes a licensed surveyor. A title search is not a survey, title insurance or legal advice.
Sources
Primary records and official documentation cited in this article.
- 1Legal Information Institute, metes and bounds (Wex)
- 2Legal Information Institute, monument (Wex)
- 3Legal Information Institute, deed (Wex)
- 4Legal Information Institute, 43 U.S. Code 751, Rules of survey
- 5Legal Information Institute, 43 U.S. Code 752, Boundaries and contents of public lands; how ascertained
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