A parcel is legally described as 'Lot 7, Block 4, Oakwood Subdivision, according to the plat recorded in Plat Book 12, Page 45, County Records.' Field measurement reveals the lot is 95 feet wide, but the recorded plat shows 100 feet. The appraiser confirms no variance or boundary adjustment has been filed. What is the appropriate site area to report in the appraisal?
Correct Answer
B) 100 feet — the legal description controls, and the plat defines the deeded boundaries.
Under USPAP Standards Rule 2-2(a)(i), the appraiser must report the property as legally defined. Legal descriptions — including plats of record — establish title and boundaries; field measurements reflect physical occupation but do not alter legal area unless confirmed by a licensed surveyor and recorded correction. Fannie Mae Selling Guide B4-1.1-02 and ANSI Z765-2021 (Appendix A) both require reliance on legal description for site area unless a current survey indicates a boundary change. Thus, the plat-defined 100-foot dimension governs. Option B is correct. Option A erroneously prioritizes field measurement over legal description. Option C has no basis in USPAP or measurement standards. Option D is premature without evidence of encroachment — the discrepancy alone doesn’t imply it.
Why This Is the Correct Answer
The legal description controls, and the recorded plat defines the deeded boundaries, so the 100-foot plat dimension is the site dimension to report absent a recorded correction. Nothing the appraiser measured has the legal effect of changing a platted lot. Reporting the record dimension while disclosing the observed discrepancy keeps the report accurate about both the legal and the physical facts. Where the difference is material to value, the appraiser should recommend a survey and may need to state how she treated the uncertainty.
Why the Other Options Are Wrong
Option A: 95 square feet — field measurements always supersede plat records.
Field measurement does not supersede a recorded legal description, and treating it as controlling would let a tape measure rewrite title. The option also contains an internal error, stating 95 square feet where the measurement described is a width in linear feet, which is a difference of several orders of magnitude. Physical measurement informs the appraiser about occupation and possible encroachment, not about ownership.
Option C: The average of 95 and 100 feet — reconciling field and record data improves accuracy.
Averaging a record dimension with a field measurement produces a number corresponding to no legal boundary and no physical condition. There is no appraisal or surveying convention that reconciles conflicting boundary evidence by splitting the difference, and doing so would misstate both sources. Averaging conceals a discrepancy that the reader needs to know exists.
Option D: 95 feet, with a statement that the discrepancy indicates possible encroachment requiring survey confirmation.
The instinct to disclose and recommend a survey is sound and belongs in the report, but pairing it with the 95-foot figure adopts the field measurement as the reported site dimension, which is the same substitution the first option makes. A discrepancy alone also does not establish an encroachment, since the cause could equally be a misplaced fence on the subject's own side or a measurement taken from the wrong reference. The correct handling reports the record dimension and discloses the observation, rather than replacing one with the other.
Record Rules, Tape Reports
The recorded plat says what you own. The tape says what is fenced. When they disagree, report what the record says and describe what the tape found, then send the client to a surveyor. Never let the tape overwrite the record.
How to use: For any record-versus-field conflict, choose the answer that reports the legal dimension. Then look for whether the option also preserves disclosure, since the best answer keeps both the record figure and the observation.
Exam Tip
Do not confuse site area rules with building measurement standards. Published measurement standards govern how living area is computed for a structure; site dimensions come from the recorded description or a survey.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- -Substituting a field measurement for a recorded plat dimension
- -Concluding an encroachment exists from a dimension discrepancy alone
- -Failing to disclose an observed conflict between record and physical conditions
Concept Deep Dive
Analysis
In a platted subdivision, the recorded plat is the legal instrument that creates the lots and fixes their dimensions, and a deed conveying Lot 7, Block 4 conveys whatever the plat describes. A tape measure in the field measures physical occupation, which is where fences, driveways, and structures happen to sit, and physical occupation and record title are different things that frequently disagree. A five-foot shortfall could mean a fence sits inside the true line, a neighbor has encroached, the original monuments were set imperfectly, or the appraiser's own measurement was taken between the wrong points. None of those possibilities changes the recorded dimension, which can be altered only through a survey and a recorded instrument such as a boundary line adjustment or a corrective deed. The appraiser is not a surveyor and is not competent to redefine boundaries, so the recorded plat dimension is what she reports, while disclosing what she observed and recommending a survey where the discrepancy is material.
Background Knowledge
You need the three legal description systems, particularly the lot and block system and the role of the recorded plat, and the distinction between record title and physical occupation. You should also know the Competency Rule's boundaries, since determining boundaries is surveying rather than appraisal, and the requirement to disclose the extent of the appraiser's own observation.
Real-World Application
An appraiser measuring a platted lot finds the fence line five feet short of the plat dimension. She reports the 100-foot platted width as the site dimension, states in the report that observed fencing suggests the physical occupation differs, recommends a boundary survey, and explains that she is not a surveyor and offers no boundary determination.
More Property Description Questions
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Room count in residential appraisal conventionally excludes:
Type I construction classification typically refers to buildings with:
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