Final answer:
Real estate transactions rely on a legal description, which is an exact way of defining property boundaries using systems like metes and bounds or the rectangular survey system. This is necessary to avoid the inaccuracies and issues that come with less formal approaches to describing property.
Step-by-step explanation:
Real estate is bought and sold on the basis of a legal description. A legal description is an official way of identifying property in a transaction that provides exact details, avoiding the confusion that might arise from informal descriptions. It accurately defines a parcel of land using a system such as the metes and bounds, the rectangular survey system, or lot and block. The dimensions of the farm or parcel, its acreage, and any relevant geographic landmarks are included to precisely define the property boundaries.
For instance, when small farms become less profitable, farmers may choose to sell their land for commercial or residential development. A precise property title is necessary for sale, which relies heavily on the legal description to determine the dimensions and acreage. Such a description ensures that any potential developments, like a house or a gas station, align accurately with the designated parcel of land.
In contrast to simple descriptors like plat size only or contacts like a phone number, a legal description is crucial. This is because it provides definitive information about a property that can withstand legal scrutiny, as opposed to more temporary and less precise identifiers such as trees or rocks used in the metes and bounds system.