LEGAL DESCRIPTION

1. LEGALDESCRIPTION • THE LEGAL DESCRIPTION IDENTIFIES PROPERTY IN SUCH TERMS THAT IT CANNOT BE CONFUSED WITH ANY OTHER PROPERTY. • A LEGAL DESCRIPTION IS ALWAYS INCLUDED IN AN APPRAISAL REPORT.

2. THREE PRINCIPLE METHODS ARE USED FOR DESCRIBING REAL PROPERTY IN THE U.S. • THE METES AND BOUNDS SYSTEM • THE RECTANGULAR SURVEY SYSTEM • THE SUBDIVISION LOT AND BLOCK SYSTEM

3. THE FIRST TWO SYSTEMS ARE OF CONCERN TO RURAL PROPERTY IN AGRICULTURAL USE. • THE THIRD SYSTEM IS PERTINENT TO THE APPRAISAL OF PROPERTIES THAT ARE DEVELOPED FOR RESIDENTIAL USE.

4. METES AND BOUNDS SYSTEM • A SURVEY SYSTEM WHICH MEASURES AND IDENTIFIES LAND BY DESCRIBING PROPERTY BOUNDARIES. • THIS SYSTEM WAS USED FOR LAND TRANSFERS IN THE ORIGINAL COLONIES AND SOME PARTS OF TEXAS.

5. A METES AND BOUNDS DESCRIPTION DESCRIBES THE BOUNDARY OF THE PROPERTY IN A CLOCKWISE OR COUNTERCLOCKWISE DIRECTION FORM THE POINT OF BEGINNING.

6. THE POINT OF BEGINNING IS THE SURVEY REFERENCE POINT WHICH IS TIED INTO ADJOINING SURVEYS. • METES REFER TO DISTANCES. • BOUNDS REFER TO THE BEARING FROM THE TRUE NORTH AND SOUTH LINE.

7. RECTANGULAR SURVEY SYSTEM • THE RECTANGULAR SYSTEM WAS INTRODUCED IN 1784. • THE RECTANGULAR SYSTEM IS BASED ON SETS OF INTERSECTING LINES:

8. PRINCIPLE MERIDIANS , WHICH RUN NORTH AND SOUTH BASE LINES, WHICH RUN EAST AND WEST

9. A RANGE IS CREATED BY LINES WHICH RUN NORTH AND SOUTH PARALLEL TO THE PRINCIPLE MERIDIANS. • EACH RANGE IS SIX MILES WIDE. • EACH SIX-MILE-WIDE RANGE IS DESIGNATED BY CONSECUTIVE NUMBERS EAST OR WEST OF THE PRINCIPLE MERIDIAN.

10. A TOWNSHIP ARE SIX-MILE BY SIX-MILE BLOCKS OF LAND THAT ARE TIERED WITHIN THE STRIPS FORMED BY THE RANGE LINES. • EACH TOWNSHIP IS SIX BY SIX MILES, WHICH IS 36 SQUARE MILES. • EACH TOWNSHIP IS DESIGNATED BY CONSECUTIVE NUMBERS NORTH OR SOUTH OF THE BASE LINE.

11. EACH SECTION IS ONE MILE SQUARE, THERE BEING 36 SECTIONS IN A TOWNSHIP. • A SECTION IS 640 ACRES. • SECTIONS ARE DIVIDED INTO SMALLER AREAS SUCH AS HALVES AND QUARTERS.

12. A LEGAL DESCRIPTION BASED ON THE RECTANGULAR SYSTEM IDENTIFIES THE PRECISE LOCATION OF PROPERTY ON A GRID. • FOR EXAMPLE: NE1/4, SECTION 14, TOWNSHIP 4 NORTH, RANGE 4 EAST

13. LOT AND BLOCK SYSTEM • THE LOT AND BLOCK SYSTEM APPLIES IN MOST URBAN COMMUNITIES. • A TRACT OF LAND IS SURVEYED AND PLATTED INTO RECTANGULAR BLOCKS AND LOTS.

14. EACH BLOCK AND LOT IS NUMBERED FOR IDENTIFICATION. • COPIES OF THE PLAT ARE FILED IN THE COUNTY RECORDER’S OFFICE FOR PERMANENT REFERENCE.

15. LAND MEASUREMENTS • ONE SECTION = 640 ACRES = ONE SQ. MILE • HALF SECTION = 320 ACRES • QUARTER SECTION = 160 ACRES • ONE ACRE = 43,560 SQ.FT. • ONE MILE = 5,280 FT. • ONE LABOR = 177 ACRES • ONE VARA = 33.33 INCHES • ONE CHAIN = 66 FT. • ONE ACRE IS 10 SQ. CHAINS

16. SOILS • SOILS ARE THE BASIC COMPONENT OF VALUE IN AGRICULTURAL PROPERTIES. • SOILS ARE THE MEDIUM OF PRODUCTIVE CAPABILITY.

17. THE USE AND MANAGEMENT OF THE SOIL DETERMINE THE PROFIT THAT CAN BE REALIZED FROM AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION. • EVERY APPRAISAL OF PROPERTY THAT IS USED FOR AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION SHOULD HAVE A FULL DESCRIPTION OF THE SOILS ON THE PROPERTY.

18. PRODUCTIVITY RATINGS • PRODUCTIVITY RATINGS ARE ESSENTIAL TO THE APPRAISAL OF AGRICULTURAL PROPERTIES. • VARIOUS METHODS MAY BE USED TO ARRIVE AT SOME ESTIMATE OF RELATIVE PRODUCTIVITY OF PROPERTIES.

19. LAND CAPABILITY CLASS RATINGS AND YIELD INDEXES MAY BE USED TO ESTIMATE PRODUCTIVITY.

20. LAND CAPABILITY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM • THE LAND CAPABILITY CLASSIFICATION (LCC) SYSTEM WAS DEVELOPED BY THE SOIL CONSERVATION SERVICE (NOW THE NRCS). • THIS CLASSIFICATION IS BASED ON THE LIMITATIONS OF THE SOIL RATHER THAN POTENTIAL YIELD. • INDICATES THE GENERAL SUITABILITY OF SOILS FOR MOST KINDS OF CROPS.

21. Class I soils have few limitations that restrict use. • Class II soils have moderate limitations that reduce the choice of plants or that require moderate conservation practices. • Class III soils have severe limitations that reduce the choice of plants or that require, special conservation practices. • Class IV soils have severe limitations that reduce the choice of plants or that require very careful management, or both.

22. Class V soils generally are not considered suitable for cultivation. These soils are likely to erode, but have other limitations, impractical to remove, that limit their use. • Class VI, VII, and VIII are soils that have severe limitations that make them unsuitable for cultivation or commercial crop production.

23. CAPABILITY SUBCLASSES • Subclass e - the main limitation is risk of erosion. • Subclass w - the main limitation to the soil is excess water, poor drainage, wetness, high water table, or overflow. • Subclass s - the soil is limited because it is shallow, droughty, or stony, or has some other soil problem in the rooting zone. • Subclass c - the chief limitation is climate that is too cold or too dry.

24. SOIL PRODUCTIVITY INDEXING • A SOIL PRODUCTIVITY INDEX IS BASED ON THE RELATIVE PRODUCTIVE CAPACITIES OF DIFFERENT SOIL TYPES. • IT IS A RELATIVE INDEX IN THAT IT IS CALCULATED USING A BASE SOIL TYPE.

25. SOIL PRODUCTIVITY INDEXES CALCULATED FOR DIFFERENT PROPERTIES MAY BE COMPARED TO DETERMINE THEIR RELATIVE PRODUCTIVITY. • IT IS IMPORTANT TO USE THE SAME BASE SOIL TYPE TO CALCULATE THE INDEXES FOR THERE TO BE COMPARABILITY.