Florida Legal Descriptions Practice Questions and Answers
Legal Descriptions accounts for about 5 of the 100 Florida sales associate exam questions. Expect the three description methods, township and section vocabulary, Florida's survey reference lines, and fractional-acreage math. These eight original questions move from identification to calculation, with a clear solution and authoritative source after every answer.
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Official outline coverage
What Legal Descriptions can test
The scored set emphasizes the most error-prone rules. Use this map to make sure the smaller subtopics are in your review plan too.
- Purpose and sufficiency of legal descriptions
- Metes and bounds, monuments, and point of beginning
- Lot and block descriptions and recorded plats
- Government rectangular survey system
- Principal meridians, base lines, township, and range
- Sections, numbering, and aliquot parts
- Fractional acreage calculations
- Florida's Tallahassee Meridian and Base Line
Quiz mode · Test yourself
Legal Descriptions Practice Questions
8 scenario-based questions on legal descriptions, scored, each with a full explanation after you answer. Every question is also written out below if you would rather study at your own pace.
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How Legal Descriptions is testedRead the strategy behind this topic
First identify the method. A description that walks directions and distances from a point of beginning is metes and bounds. A lot and block description depends on a named recorded plat. A rectangular-survey description uses township, range, section, and fractional parts.
For survey math, lock in three anchors: a standard section is nominally 1 mile square and 640 acres, a standard township is nominally 6 miles square with 36 sections, and an acre contains 43,560 square feet. Apply every fraction from right to left or multiply all fractions together.
Florida's rectangular surveys reference the Tallahassee Principal Meridian and Tallahassee Base Line. Township numbers show north or south of the base line, while range numbers show east or west of the principal meridian. Sections follow the standard serpentine numbering pattern from 1 in the northeast to 36 in the southeast.
Study mode · Every question explainedAll 8 questions, correct answers, exam traps and sources
Read each question at your own pace, then reveal the correct answer, the reasoning, and the trap that catches most candidates.
1. In the government rectangular survey system, how many acres are in one full section?
- A.160 acres
- B.320 acres
- C.640 acres
- D.5,280 acres
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: C. 640 acres
Why C is correct: A section is one mile square and contains 640 acres. A township is six miles square and contains 36 sections.
Trap: 640 is the acres in a section. 36 is the number of sections in a township. Do not swap them.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Public Land Survey System
2. How many acres are in the SE 1/4 of the NW 1/4 of a section?
- A.10 acres
- B.40 acres
- C.80 acres
- D.160 acres
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. 40 acres
Why B is correct: Multiply the fractions and apply them to 640 acres: one quarter times one quarter times 640 equals 40 acres. Working it stepwise, the NW quarter is 160 acres, and the SE quarter of that is 40 acres.
Trap: Apply every fraction in the description. Using only the last quarter gives 160 acres, which forgets the first quarter.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Public Land Survey System
3. A township in the government survey system is
- A.one mile square and contains 640 acres
- B.six miles square and contains 36 sections
- C.ten miles square and contains 100 sections
- D.a single recorded subdivision lot
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. six miles square and contains 36 sections
Why B is correct: A township is six miles by six miles, so it is 36 square miles, and it contains 36 sections. Each section is one mile square and holds 640 acres.
Trap: A section is one mile square. A township is six miles square and holds 36 of those sections.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Public Land Survey System
4. A property is described by starting at a fixed point, then following a series of directions and distances around the perimeter. For this description to be valid, it must
- A.reference a recorded plat and lot number
- B.return to the same point of beginning so the boundary closes
- C.use only compass directions, never distances
- D.be at least one acre in size
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. return to the same point of beginning so the boundary closes
Why B is correct: This is a metes and bounds description. It must begin and end at the same point of beginning so that the boundary closes around the parcel. If it does not return to the point of beginning, the description is defective.
Trap: A metes and bounds description that does not close at the point of beginning is invalid. It does not need a recorded plat; that is the lot and block method.
5. A description that identifies a parcel as Lot 7, Block C of a named, recorded subdivision plat uses which method?
- A.Metes and bounds
- B.Government rectangular survey
- C.Lot and block (recorded plat)
- D.Monument and benchmark
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: C. Lot and block (recorded plat)
Why C is correct: The lot and block method, also called the recorded plat method, identifies a parcel by its lot and block numbers on a subdivision plat that is recorded in the public records. It is the most common method for describing platted subdivision lots.
Trap: Lot and block depends on a recorded plat. Metes and bounds traces the perimeter, and the survey system uses sections and townships.
6. Why is a street address ordinarily not used by itself as the legal description in a deed?
- A.Street addresses can change or be duplicated and may not define the parcel's legal boundaries
- B.Street addresses are valid only for commercial property
- C.A deed may never mention an address
- D.Only the property owner may know the street address
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A. Street addresses can change or be duplicated and may not define the parcel's legal boundaries
Why A is correct: A legal description must identify the parcel with enough certainty to distinguish it from every other parcel. A street address is useful for location, but it may change, be duplicated, or fail to define the legal boundary. The deed should use a legally sufficient land description.
Trap: An address helps people find property. A legal description identifies the land interest being conveyed.
Source: F.S. 689.025, legal description required in a quitclaim deed
7. In a rectangular-survey description, Township 3 South, Range 2 East means the land is located
- A.south of the principal meridian and east of the base line
- B.south of the base line and east of the principal meridian
- C.three miles south and two miles east of the point of beginning
- D.in Section 3, east half of Section 2
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. south of the base line and east of the principal meridian
Why B is correct: Township tiers are counted north or south from the base line. Ranges are counted east or west from the principal meridian. In Florida, those reference lines are the Tallahassee Base Line and Tallahassee Principal Meridian.
Trap: Township pairs with the horizontal base line. Range pairs with the vertical principal meridian.
Source: Public Land Survey System; Florida DEP land-survey guidance
8. How many acres are in the W 1/2 of the NE 1/4 of the SW 1/4 of a standard section?
- A.10 acres
- B.20 acres
- C.40 acres
- D.80 acres
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. 20 acres
Why B is correct: Multiply every fraction by 640 acres: one half times one quarter times one quarter times 640 equals 20 acres. You can also work from right to left: the SW quarter is 160 acres, its NE quarter is 40 acres, and the west half of that is 20 acres.
Trap: Do not stop after one or two fractions. Every aliquot part narrows the parcel.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Public Land Survey System
Frequently asked questions
Are these real Florida real estate exam questions?+
No. These are original Pass Florida questions based on the official exam outline. They are not copied or recalled Pearson VUE items. This legal-description set was checked against 2026 Florida platting law and current federal and Florida survey guidance on August 31, 2026.
How many acres are in a section and a township?+
A section is one mile square and contains 640 acres. A township is six miles square and contains 36 sections. One acre contains 43,560 square feet. These three numbers anchor most legal description math on the exam.
What are the three methods of legal description?+
The three methods are metes and bounds, which traces the perimeter from a point of beginning; the government rectangular survey system, which uses townships, sections, and fractions; and lot and block, which references a lot and block on a recorded subdivision plat.
How many legal description questions are on the Florida exam?+
Legal descriptions is about 5 percent of the 100-question Florida sales associate exam, so expect roughly 5 questions on the description methods and the survey-system acreage math.
What is the point of beginning in metes and bounds?+
The point of beginning is the specific location where the boundary description starts. The calls then follow directions, distances, and monuments around the parcel and return to that same point so the description closes. A point of commencement may first lead to the true point of beginning.
How are sections numbered in a township?+
The standard pattern begins with Section 1 in the northeast corner, moves west to Section 6, then reverses direction on the next row. The serpentine pattern continues until Section 36 in the southeast corner.
What are Florida's principal survey reference lines?+
Florida's Public Land Survey System uses the Tallahassee Principal Meridian and Tallahassee Base Line. Township designations measure north or south from the base line, and range designations measure east or west from the principal meridian.
Keep studying
Sources
- Florida DBPR Candidate Information Booklet
- U.S. Bureau of Land Management, cadastral tools and PLSS
- U.S. Bureau of Land Management, PLSS land-entry guide
- Florida DEP, Public Land Survey guidance
- Florida DEP, Survey and Mapping services
- 2026 F.S. 177.021, legal status of recorded plats
- 2026 F.S. 177.091, plats made for recording
- 2026 F.S. 689.025, deed legal-description requirement