Real estate title glossary
What is legal description?
Definition
A legal description identifies a parcel precisely enough to locate it on the ground, by metes and bounds, by lot and block on a recorded plat, or by the government survey system.
A street address is not a legal description: addresses change and can be ambiguous. Deeds and mortgages describe the land itself, and an error in the description is one of the most common reasons for a corrective deed.
How it shows up in a title search
A title search compares the description in each deed and mortgage to the vesting deed. A mismatch can mean a loan secured by the wrong parcel, or a gap in the chain.
Guides that go deeper
- Metes and Bounds: Description, Example and How to Read OneA 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.
- Plat Map: What It Shows, How to Read One, and Plat of Survey DifferencesA plat map is the recorded drawing that divides land into lots, streets and easements. What it shows, how to read one, and how a plat differs from a survey.
- APN Lookup: How to Find an Assessor's Parcel Number for Any PropertyAn APN is the number an assessor assigns to one parcel. How to do an APN lookup, with formats for Maricopa, Cook, NYC, Harris, Philadelphia and Florida.
Related terms
Source: Legal Information Institute, Wex: metes and bounds. Plain-English summary of general US usage; state law varies, and this is not legal advice.