Metes and bounds
Also called: metes and bounds description, legal description
A way of describing a parcel by walking its perimeter in words — from a known point, the bearing and distance of each line in turn until it closes. Used for land that was never platted, mostly older and rural parcels. Costlier to survey than a subdivision lot.
A metes-and-bounds description reads like a set of directions: “Beginning at an iron pin on the north right-of-way of County Road 12, thence N 02°15’ E 412.6 feet to a stone; thence S 87°40’ E 660.0 feet to a point in the center of Mill Creek; thence…” until it returns to the beginning. “Metes” are the measured lines; “bounds” are the physical or neighboring features they run to.
The difficulty is that old descriptions reference things that move or vanish — creeks, fence lines, “the old oak” — and were often measured with chains and magnetic compasses that don’t agree with modern GPS. Surveying one means reconciling your deed with every neighboring deed, finding whatever original evidence still exists, and re-establishing lines that may not close perfectly. That research is why a 2-acre rural parcel can cost two or three times what a subdivision lot does to survey.
Newer parcels use a lot and block description instead (“Lot 14, Block 3, Meadowbrook Estates”) that points to a recorded plat, which is why they’re cheaper.