Conveyance Standards

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 1. GENERAL STATEMENT

 2. REQUIREMENTS FOR ALL RECORDED LOTS OF RECORD

 3. REQUIREMENTS FOR EXISTING METES AND BOUNDS DESCRIPTION OF RECORD

 3. REQUIREMENTS FOR NEW METES AND BOUNDS DESCRIPTION FOR CONVEYANCE

 4. REQUIREMENTS FOR PLATS OR SURVEY FOR NEW METES AND BOUNDS DESCRIPTIONS

 5. EXCEPTIONS TO THE REQUIREMENTS FOR NEW

 6. METES AND BOUNDS DESCRIPTIONS

 7. MORTGAGE SURVEYS

 8. FILING OF PLAT OF SURVEY AND DESCRIPTION

 8. FOR NEW METES AND BOUNDS DESCRIPTIONS

 9. CONDITIONAL TRANSFER AGREEMENT

 GENERAL STATEMENT

 It is the intent of these requirements to provide a standard method of checking legal descriptions for deeds, affidavits, and other instruments that require the use of land descriptions. This is in response to Senate Bill 158, the County Auditors Corrective Bill, which is effective May 9, 1996.

 

It is the desire of the county to provide a service for the public to insure proper and accurate descriptions of property, to correct any errors that are evident and to insure that property is accurately described for tax purposes.

 

It is understood that all situations cannot be covered by these requirements and when those situations arise they will be handled as special cases interpreted by the County Engineer’s Office.

 

All authors of instruments of conveyance are encouraged to have descriptions checked by the County Engineer’s Office prior to the actual time of conveyance. This will avoid delays and allow time for any corrections that are necessary.

 

These requirements supersede the Belmont County Engineer “Requirements for Description of Deeds for Transfer” dated January, 1963, and the Memo dated March 10, 1988 which accepts descriptions which had been approved and recorded before January 1, 1976.

 

These requirements do not supersede the Subdivision Regulations for Belmont County, Ohio, dated January 1, 1962.

 REQUIREMENTS FOR ALL RECORDED LOTS OF RECORD/CONDOMINIUMS

 

All instruments conveying a recorded lot in a municipality or recorded subdivided area must designate the lot number(s), the official recorded plat name, the cabinet and slide reference of official record, and the prior recorded deed reference if any exists.

 

Any out-lot or portion of a recorded lot must have an accurate description to establish a tax structure for the portion being conveyed, so as to enable the County Offices to determine the residue or balance left, based on the current Tax Maps and Parcel Numbers. A lot split or vacation of any street or alley shall conform to the requirements of the Minimum Standards for Boundary Surveys in the State of Ohio, Chapter 4733 of the Revised Code.

 

Any area being conveyed in what is commonly known as an “Unrecorded Plat” must have a metes and bounds description.

 

A condominium unit shall be described by its unit number or other designation and the name of the condominium project as set forth in the declaration as required by R.C. 5311.10.

 

REQUIREMENTS FOR EXISTING METES AND BOUNDS DESCRIPTION OF RECORD

 

All existing metes and bounds descriptions of record, which do not create of alter the current tax structure of a parcel(s), will be checked by the Belmont County Engineer’s Office to verify and identify to the Belmont County Auditor the tax parcel(s) to be conveyed. Any proposed conveyance which is presented for transfer, and was previously approved for transfer since May 9, 1986, shall be approved if it contains the same description.

 

Descriptions must be referenced by bearing and distance to an established corner, such as a section corner, quarter section corner, sixteenth section corner, or lot corner of street intersection in a recorded subdivision, or highway monument in a recorded plat, with reference bearing stated.

 

Descriptions will be checked for traverse closure. The minimum allowable closure error is one part in five thousand (1:5,000).

 

All existing metes and bounds descriptions of record must be described verbatim as witnessed by the instrument of previous record and transfer. The correction of scrivener errors, omissions or other obvious mistakes is permitted if it can be shown that a prior recorded instrument contains the correct information.

 

Any existing metes and bounds description which, since the previous conveyance, has been incorporated into a municipality or other political subdivision by means of annexation must be changed to reflect its new corporate location within the situate of the subject instrument of conveyance.

 

All instruments of conveyance attempting to convey the remainder or balance of an existing tax parcel(s) from which out-lots or exceptions to title exist must incorporate the following requirements:

 

A. Each out-lot or exception to title of the original tract(s) must be described verbatim as witnessed by the previous conveyance of record.

 

B. Each documented exception must recite the title and its recorded source by which it can be readily verified. It is not the intent that all easements and restrictions are to be recited unless they are on the previous instrument or readily available.

 

C. It is desired that all instruments of conveyance using exceptions to title to convey balance of remainder of a tax parcel (s) incorporate a statement identifying the tax parcel (s) to be conveyed, and the current taxable area as witnessed by the Belmont County Auditor’s tax duplicate for the subject conveyance (e.g., “It is the intent of this instrument to convey all of Tax Parcel(s) [number and district], containing [acreage or footage], as shown by the Belmont County Auditor”). The County Engineer’s office will assist in furnishing the parcel(s) number when requested.

 

It is desired that the description incorporate the County Auditor’s parcel number for each tract of the description.

 

It is desired that the description incorporate the house numbering address for each tract of the description not located within a municipality, or the street address for each tract of the description located within a municipality.

 

All metes and bounds descriptions must contain all the information pertaining to the description that was present when checked by this Office for pre-transfer verification or approval.

 

Any existing parcel which is land-locked should be accompanied by an easement for ingress and egress to a public highway or street.

 

Descriptions by Section or aliquot thereof are acceptable (e.g., “The northeast quarter of the northwest quarter of Section 15, T-6, R-5, containing 40 acres”).

 

REQUIREMENTS FOR NEW METES AND BOUNDS DESCRIPTIONS FOR CONVEYANCE

 

All new metes and bounds descriptions, not previously recorded, must comply with the Minimum Standards for Boundary Surveys in the State of Ohio. In addition, such new descriptions shall meet the following requirements:

 

Caption must denote state and county, and either the township, section, township and range, or the municipality and plat.

 

All descriptions must be referenced by bearing and distance to an established corner, such as a section corner, quarter section corner, sixteenth section corner, or lot corner or street intersection in a recorded subdivision, or highway monument in a recorded plat, with reference bearing stated.

 

Any course of a new metes and bounds description which is a curve must contain the direction of the curve (right or left), the radius, the long chord bearing and distance, and the length of the curve.

 

All new metes and bounds descriptions must give the acreage contained within its perimeter and calculated to the third decimal place. Total calculated square footage may also be mentioned as a matter of option.

 

Whenever a new metes and bounds description encompasses tow or more taxing districts, or two or more tax parcels, a breakdown of the total area of record must be recited to create an accurate tax structure.

 

Descriptions will be checked for traverse closure. The minimum allowable closure error is one part in five thousand (1:5,000).

 

All new metes and bounds descriptions must be prepared by an Ohio Registered Surveyor and must be accompanied by a signed and sealed plat of survey.

 

A minimum of forty (40.00) feet shall front on a public highway or street, with a minimum forty foot width maintained to the subject tract.

 

Parcels shall not be created which will be land-locked, or having less than forty (40.00) feet frontage on a public highway or street.

 

Adjacent parcels (“J” parcels) not meeting the minimum road frontage requirement may be transferred if the parcel is immediately adjoining a parcel of the same Grantee. Such “J” parcels are not counted toward the maximum number of splits allowed from a parent tract, and are generally of a small area.

 

REQUIREMENTS FOR PLATS OF SURVEY FOR NEW METES AND BOUNDS DESCRIPTIONS

 

All new metes and bounds descriptions shall be accompanied by a plat of survey. The plat of survey shall meet the requirements of Section 4733-37-05, Plat of Survey, of the Minimum Standards for Boundary Surveys in the State of Ohio.

 

In addition, the plat of survey shall meet the following requirements:

 

1. All existing title, and source of title of adjoining owners along each boundary line of subject survey along with the acreage of record or lot number of the adjacent tracts shall be shown.

 

2. Acreage contained within the perimeter of the newly described tract(s), and calculated to the third decimal place, shall be shown. Total calculated square footage may also be mentioned as a matter of option.

 

3. Whenever a new metes and bounds description encompasses two or more taxing districts, or tow or more tax parcels, a breakdown of the total area must be recited to create an accurate tax structure.

 

4. The areas to be shown include the new parcel area, area of record included in the parent tract(s), and area of record of remaining parent tract(s), if applicable. If the tract lies in different sections, or in and out of a corporation, the area shall be stated for each.

 

5. The scale of the plat of survey is preferred to match the scale of county tax maps, but this scale is not required.

 

6. Curve data shall include the radius, length of curve, and length and bearing of long chord.

 

EXCEPTIONS TO THE REQUIREMENT FOR NEW METES AND BOUNDS DESCRIPTIONS

 

SHERIFF DEEDS

 

In the event that a tract of ground is subject to a foreclosure sale and the original deed has been stamped “New Description Required for Future Tax Map Transfer,” the original description may be used in the Sheriff’s Deed. The Sheriff’s deed shall have the “New Description Required for Future Tax Map Transfer” stamp affixed prior to recording.

 

CERTIFICATES OF TRANSFER

 

In the event that a tract of ground is being transferred by a Certificate of Transfer (CT) and the original deed has been stamped “New Description Required for Future Tax Map Transfer,” the original description may be used in the CT. The CT shall have the “New Description Required for Future Tax Map Transfer” stamp affixed prior to recording.

 

CONVEYANCE TO IMMEDIATE FAMILY

 

In the event that a tract of ground is being transferred to a member or members of the immediate family as a gift, and the original deed has been stamped “New Description Required for Future Tax Map Transfer,” the original description may be used in the deed. The deed shall have the “New Description Required for Future Tax Map Transfer” stamp affixed prior to recording.

 

LIFE ESTATE

 

In the event that a tract of ground is being transferred to release a life estate and the original deed has been stamped “New Description Required for Future Tax Map Transfer,” the original description may be used in the Affidavit. If the Life Estate is on record in the Auditor’s Office, the Affidavit shall have the “New Description Required for Future Tax Map Transfer” stamp affixed prior to recording. Otherwise, the Affidavit shall be stamped “Transfer Not Necessary.” The Affidavit shall be accompanied by a copy of the appropriate Death Certificate, if the release is due to the death of the holder of the Life Estate.

 

CONDITIONAL TRANSFER

 

In the event that an instrument is presented for transfer with a description that has been previously stamped “New Description Required for Future Tax Map Transfer,” or the description will not meet the requirements for existing metes and bounds description, the instrument will not be accepted for transfer. However, the instrument may be accepted for transfer, if a Conditional Transfer Agreement is entered into, wherein the Grantor agrees to have a new description prepared, and a corrected deed recorded within a reasonable period of time. The Conditional Transfer Agreement must contain the following: date of Agreement; name of Grantor; name of attorney who prepared the instrument; name of Ohio Registered Surveyor who will prepare new description; time frame and anticipated date of new survey completion; identification of parcel(s) by prior deed reference, Auditor parcel number, and record area; a statement acknowledging that the description is defective and that a new description will be presented for transfer. The instrument shall have the “Conditional Transfer” stamp affixed prior to recording.

 

Any instrument submitted for transfer which contains a description which has been previously stamped “Conditional Transfer” will not be accepted for transfer. Conditional transfers are not encouraged.

 

MORTGAGE SURVEYS

 

Mortgage surveys will not be acceptable for conveyance purposes.

 

FILING OF PLAT OF SURVEY AND DESCRIPTION FOR NEW METES AND BOUNDS DESCRIPTION

 

The Plat of Survey shall be filed in the County Engineer’s Office. There are no size or media requirements.

 

New metes and bounds description shall be filed in the County Engineer’s Office until such time the description is recorded in the County Recorder’s Office. The recorded instrument in the County Recorder’s Office shall serve as the copy on file in the County Engineer’s Office.

 Adopted: November 12, 1996 Effective: January 1, 1997

 

Conditional Transfer Agreement

 Belmont County Engineer

 In the event that an instrument is presented for transfer with a description that has been previously stamped “New Description Required for Future Tax Map Transfer,” or the description will not meet the requirements for existing metes and bounds description, the instrument will not be accepted for transfer. However, the instrument may be accepted for transfer, if a Conditional Transfer Agreement is entered into, wherein the Grantor agrees to have a new description prepared, and a corrected deed recorded within a reasonable period of time. The Conditional Transfer Agreement must contain the following: date of Agreement; name of Grantor; name of attorney who prepared the instrument; name of Ohio Registered Surveyor who will prepare new description; time frame and anticipated date of new survey completion; identification of parcel(s) by prior deed reference, Auditor parcel number, and record area; a statement acknowledging that the description if defective and that a new description will be presented for transfer. The instrument shall have the “Conditional Transfer” stamp affixed prior to recording.

 

Any instrument submitted for transfer which contains a description which has been previously stamped “Conditional Transfer” will not be accepted for transfer.

 

 

 

Date: __________________________________________

 

Grantor: _______________________________________________________________

 

Attorney: ______________________________________________________________

 

Surveyor: ______________________________________________________________

 

Anticipated Date of New Description: ____________________________________

 

Prior Deed Reference: ___________________________________________________

 

Auditor Parcel Number(s): _______________________________________________

 

Area of Record: ________________________________________________________

 

I acknowledge that the description presented for transfer is defective, and that a new survey will be performed and a new description presented for transfer within a reasonable period of time.

 

 

 

Signed: ________________________ Approved by: ____________________________

 

Grantor Belmont County Engineer