How to Read a Land Survey Plat

This article describes the land plat survey system and how to read a land survey plat. Included are how to understand scales, markings (from the plat legend), property lines and corners, and the legal demarcation of boundaries, easements, and the natural situation. Important items for surveying that are not on the plat may include easements on adjacent properties and title insurance and title research. Also discussed are how segments may be denoted by metes and bounds and how metes and bounds differs from subdivisions.