What it reads
Deed language is inconsistent, so the reader is built for the way descriptions are actually written, not a tidy format.
- Bearings and distances in quadrant form, such as North 45 degrees 30 minutes East, 210.00 feet, written out or abbreviated.
- Old units. Chains, links, rods, poles, perches, varas and meters all convert. 4 chains and 50 links reads as one distance.
- Curve calls. Arcs are computed as true arcs, so the acreage isn't a chord shortcut.
- Commencing calls. Tie courses from a point of commencement to the true point of beginning are kept apart from the boundary.
- Carve-outs and easements. Each less and except parcel and each easement becomes its own figure, placed by its own ties. Easements are drawn at their stated right-of-way width.
- Aliquot descriptions. The West Half of the Southwest Quarter of Section 34 has no bearings at all. ChainLink plots it against the PLSS section at nominal GLO dimensions, then re-proportions it once you've measured the corners of the parent forty.
Three ways to get the deed in
- Paste the text from a deed search, a title commitment, or an email.
- Open a PDF. Recorded PDFs that contain real text read cleanly, because the app takes the text straight from the file.
- Photograph the page. The built-in camera reader works with no signal, but it's rough. For paper deeds, Google Lens reads far better: snap the page, copy the text, and paste it in. Multi-page photos are stitched at the overlap.
Before anything is plotted, every call appears in a review list so you can check it against the paper and fix a misread.
When the description doesn't close
Most programs show you a misclosure and stop. ChainLink reads it and names the likely cause:
- A course that couldn't be read, reported first, because a dropped course makes every other finding provisional.
- A distance blunder. A misclosure parallel to one course points to that course's length, often a transposed digit.
- An angle or bearing blunder at one station, including a flipped quadrant.
- Assumed angles and unstated turn directions, flagged so you can check the record.
- Area against the recited acreage. This catches a duplicated or missing course that closure alone can't see.
For each finding it shows the correction that would close the figure and what the misclosure would drop to. Nothing is applied for you. It's shown, and you check it against the paper.
Fit the record to the ground, then walk to the corners
The plotted record moves as one rigid piece. Slide and rotate it on the imagery to check the fit against fence lines and roads. Or, once you've located two deed corners on the ground, use the two-point fit: it holds one corner, rotates toward the second, and reports how far the record misses.
Every plotted corner is a live point. You can inverse to it, stake to it with the total station, or use the phone's GPS to walk to it through the brush. That's the part a desktop deed program can't do.
Bringing in the neighbors works too. Each deed is its own record, and shared corners snap together so you can assemble a block the way the descriptions describe it.
How to plot a deed
- Open the app and tap Enter Field Mode.
- Start a new job. Choose GPS Start if you're on site, or Plot a deed first if you're in the office.
- Open Records → Open Deed Plotter and paste, photograph or open the description.
- Tap Read the calls, check the review list against the paper, then tap Plot Deed.
- Check Diagnostics if it doesn't close, and slide or fit the record onto the imagery.
Questions
Is there a free app to plot a deed?
Yes. ChainLink Survey plots metes and bounds descriptions on aerial imagery in your phone or computer browser. It is free while in beta, with no account and nothing to download.
Can it plot old deeds written in chains, rods or varas?
Yes. Chains, links, rods, poles, perches, varas and meters are all converted, and mixed phrases like 4 chains and 50 links are read as one distance.
Why doesn't my deed close?
Common causes are a transposed digit in a distance, a flipped quadrant on a bearing, a dropped or duplicated course, or an angle written without saying which side it is turned from. ChainLink checks for each of these and names the likely one, along with the correction that would close the figure.
Is a plotted deed the same as a survey?
No. A plot shows what the record says. Where the boundary actually is on the ground is a question for a licensed surveyor, and a plot is not a substitute for one where the law requires it.