Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: how can I get the legal description of my property?

Go to the county recorder and look up previous deeds on your property. Pay a small amount of money to an attorney, or a professional real estate escrow company, to make sure your grant deed is drawn up correctly. Could save you lots of money down the road.

Re: how can I get the legal description of my property?

Very few counties make copies of recorded instruments available online. There may be a few. Most sell them over-the-counter or perhaps by on-line order followed by postal delivery. This is both a money-maker and a way to protect the privacy of homeowners. In some cases, lawyers who subscribe to expensive on-line legal research systems like WestLaw or Lexis-Nexis can get adequate legal descriptions from those databases, but their accuracy, completeness and currency is very questionable.

If you are the current owner of the property, and haven't tinkered with the legal description by doing a lot split, lot-line adjustment or grant of easement since purchase, why not just look at you deed? Your title insurance policy probably also has a legal description.

The next easiest way is to go to the county recorder's office and get some assistance from a clerk in looking up the most recent records affecting your parcel. This has the advantage of revealing any recent liens you might not know about.

I concur in Mr. Stone's view that hiring a lawyer or title company to assist you with the deed is a darn good way to prevent a costly error.

Re: how can I get the legal description of my property?

It may not be online. Pull out a copy of the deed to you or of a Trust Deed. It will have the legal description.

Re: how can I get the legal description of my property?

It may not be online. Pull out a copy of the deed to you or of a Trust Deed. It will have the legal description.