Doug – I would write the Perk Test to be done at the buyers expense along with other due diligence. They have 14 days to complete all due diligence. You need to give them a little time. This is a big expense and they don’t want to get stuck with a property that won’t perk. If there are homes with wells in the are, then it will perk.

Doug – in some areas (like FL) everything is in the 100 year flood zone and can be built on with proper floor elevation. Disclose as Laurie says and you should be fine. People in that area probably expect this.

Over pricing will make you regret it. The junker property owners will call even more if you use an average comp price. What we are really looking for is someone who gets the offer and says “Hmm, I think I will get rid of this property. I am tired of paying taxes on it every year.” Sometimes it is junk and we decline. Sometimes it is a nice,…[Read more]

Lee – You know you are at the right offer price when you feel this way –

I’m hoping he will accept the lower price but I have a feeling he will not accept it and that is okay too.

Lee – Here is how I handle any calls that I don’t want to make. I prepare by getting my facts. Then I decide what my position is (ie buy, decline, low offer, etc). Then I put it on the list for tomorrow. When tomorrow comes, I do those calls first to get them out of the way so I can enjoy the rest of my day. Do whatever it takes to trick you into…[Read more]

Lee – Let’s say that you decide not to buy it after talking to the county. This is really easy. I would say “Mr Seller, I have done my due diligence on this property and it does not have legal access. I am sorry, but I can not purchase it.”

If I wanted to reduce the offer I might try “Mr Seller, compared to other remote properties with poor…[Read more]

Lee – I would say that the access is lacking. Trimmer Spring roads comes in from the NW and then becomes US Forest Service Rd 12501. I think that the whole road is really a forest service road and not a real public roadway for legal access. I have been burned when making the assumption that a forest service road is my legal access. Call the county…[Read more]

Lee – thanks for taking the time to share this information. Everyone should read this post and learn from it.

Greg – The POA would probably put up a gate if they could. I am guessing that the property may be in a state/county that does not allow the parcel to be landlocked. They must allow access. I guess they are offended and all they can do is threaten you with letters from their lawyer. It seems that they would like to enforce the POA rules on a…[Read more]

You own it right? Not the guy you are selling to on terms. So the POA and their attorney will continue to come after you.

If the vesting deed is 20 years old then I don’t look any further. Title companies usually only go back 20 years.

Judith – Post your deals on the Dealboard and on Landtank. Good luck.

Laurie – all good points! I forgot how often I have to monkey around with the APN format to find the data.

Andrew – Yes, non US citizens can buy and sell land in the US. If you are located outside of the US there are some issues. Getting things notarized is an obstacle but several people are doing this from overseas successfully.

Mike – is it just that parcel or is the whole county like that? There are some counties in West TX that have very poor property records.

Bob – Too steep for me. That property has a constant 45% slope (strong slope) over 1000 feet from road to road. You can see this useing the topo map view on Parcel Fact. There is only one home on a similar lot. Nearby, there are lots with homes on another street and if you look at the topo map for that area you can see that it is relatively level.…[Read more]

James – We are dealing with human beings. The reactions are complicated and not entirely predictable. There are some trends that we see. Price too low and we get fewer deals. Some motivated sellers are not as motivated as others and will not respond to the lowest offer. I have worked in some markets where the price of land is skyrocketing. All…[Read more]

Andrew – I would find out why that property for $80K has been on the market for 200 days. There is a reason and you need to know what that reason is so that you can understand pricing. I recently thought I overpriced a very expensive county because I was double checking comps after I sent the mail and found some listing information for parcels…[Read more]

Ann-Marie – Good question. It will be easiest for you to begin with one county that has 1200 to 1500 records. That will make your research and pricing a lot easier on the first few mailers that you send out. It is also easier to handle the incoming calls because there aren’t as many different areas to be familiar with. You can do multi county…[Read more]