Questions to Ask When Buying Land
These 56 questions to ask when buying land are for people who mean to build a house on it, people buying lots in a new subdivision, and anyone looking at acreage to farm, camp on or simply hold. They run in six groups: the first checks that decide whether a parcel deserves a second visit, access and title, the rules on what you may do there, utilities, the land and its surroundings, and the price and the deal. Some are for the seller or the agent. Many are better put to the planning office, the health department, the assessor, a lender or a title company, and the notes say which, along with what to get in writing. Rules and costs differ by state and county, so read each note as a prompt to ask how it works where the land is.
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The questions
Each question, and why to ask it
Start Here
Is there legal, recorded access to the parcel from a public road, and what does the deed say about it?
Why ask it
A track everyone has always driven is not the same thing as a recorded right of way, and a lender, an insurer or a permit office may each want to see the second. The good answer names a document: deeded road frontage, or an easement with a recording number. If the answer is 'we've never had a problem', have a title company or attorney check before you spend on anything else.
How is the land zoned, and do the minimum lot size and setbacks leave room for what I want to build?
Why ask it
Zoning decides what may go on the parcel and how far it has to sit from each line, so ten acres on paper can come down to one small buildable pocket. Take your real plan to the planning office, including the shop, the barn or the second dwelling, and ask whether they will confirm the answer in writing. A seller's 'you can do anything out here' is an opinion, not a zoning check.
When was the parcel last surveyed, and will you walk the boundary with me and show me the corners?
Why ask it
A fence, a tree line or a mowed edge is only somebody's guess at where the land stops. Walking the lines with the seller shows you the corner pins if they exist, and also the neighbor's woodpile, the shed and the ATV trail that no plat map shows. If nobody can find a corner, price a new survey into your offer.
Which utilities are already at the property line, and which would I have to bring in or build on site?
Why ask it
'Utilities available' in a listing can mean a power line that stops well down the road. Take the services one at a time, power, water, sewer, gas and internet, and ask where each one physically ends. Whatever stops short of the lot line is yours to extend, or to replace with a well, a septic system or a propane tank.
Are there deed restrictions, covenants or an owners' association on top of the zoning?
Why ask it
Private covenants are often stricter than the county: they can set a minimum house size, ban a manufactured home or livestock, and give you a deadline to finish building. They are recorded documents, so read the copy itself and not a summary of what is usually allowed. Where there is an association, find out what the dues are and whether it is active enough to enforce anything.
Why are you selling, and how long have you owned the land?
Why ask it
An owner of twenty years knows where the water stands in spring and which neighbor mows over the line. An heir or an investor who never walked the parcel knows only the listing. If the seller once meant to build and gave up, ask what stopped them, because the same obstacle is probably still there.
Access and Title
Who maintains the access road, is there a written agreement, and is it passable all year?
Why ask it
On a shared private road with nothing in writing, the grading and gravel get paid for by whoever minds the potholes most. Find out what was spent in the last two years, who paid, and whether a fire truck or a delivery truck could get in during mud season or snow. Some lenders want a recorded maintenance agreement before they will finance a parcel on a private road, so check with yours.
Would a driveway onto the road need a permit, and what would it cost to build one to the building site?
Why ask it
The road authority, not the seller, decides where an entrance may go, and it can turn down the spot you had in mind over sight lines or drainage. Have an excavator walk the route as well. On a long or steep approach, with a culvert and many loads of gravel, the driveway can turn out to be one of the bigger bills of the whole build.
In a subdivision, are the streets, curbs and drainage finished and accepted by the town, or still the developer's to complete?
Why ask it
Until a town or county accepts a street, the plowing, the patching and the final layer of paving can remain the developer's job, and the lot owners' if the developer walks away. The public works or planning office can say whether the roads are accepted and whether a bond is held to finish them. Ask too whether your lot would owe an assessment for sidewalks or street lights that are not in yet.
What easements cross the property: utility, access, drainage, pipeline or conservation?
Why ask it
An easement is someone else's right to use part of your land, and its width and route matter more than the bare fact of it. Have each one drawn on the survey to see whether it runs through your building site, since power line and pipeline easements commonly bar structures and sometimes trees. A conservation easement is the one to read slowly: it can limit building across the whole parcel, and it usually stays when the land is sold.
Do the mineral, oil and gas, water and timber rights come with the land?
Why ask it
In some regions these rights were split off and sold generations ago, and whoever holds them may be allowed onto the surface to use them. 'I think so' is not an answer here: the title search should say who holds each right and whether a lease is running. Where minerals are severed, a local attorney can tell you what the holder may and may not do on your acreage.
Are you the owner of record, and does everyone named on the deed agree to sell?
Why ask it
Nobody lives on a vacant lot to notice a stranger offering it for sale, which is why title companies warn about impostor sellers on vacant lots. Match the name on the recorded deed to the person you are dealing with, and slow down if they will only text or email. On inherited land, one heir who will not sign can stall the whole sale.
Is anyone else using the land now: a farm tenant, a hunting lease, grazing, or a neighbor who cuts across it?
Why ask it
A written lease may bind you until it runs out, and a handshake arrangement that has gone on for years can be awkward, or in some places legally hard, to end. Ask to see any agreement, what it pays and when it expires. Then read the ground itself: gates, tree stands, wheel ruts and livestock tell you who has been there.
Are there unpaid taxes, liens or judgments against the parcel?
Why ask it
These are debts tied to the land, not to the person selling it, so they usually have to be cleared at closing or they stay with the parcel. The county treasurer can tell you today whether the taxes are current, and a title search looks for the rest. Be most careful with a lot priced low because of 'back taxes owed', and ask a title company whether it would insure that title before you pay anything.
Has a neighbor ever disputed a boundary or a fence line, or built something over it?
Why ask it
The seller knows this better than any record does, and a long pause before the answer is information too. A shed, a fence or a driveway that has sat over the line for years can give the neighbor a claim in some places, so ask a local attorney how that works there. A dispute that was settled and recorded is fine; one that is 'being worked out' becomes yours at closing.
What kind of deed will I get, and can I buy an owner's title insurance policy on this parcel?
Why ask it
Deed names vary by state, but the question underneath is the same: does the deed promise good title, or does it, like a quitclaim, pass along only whatever the seller happens to hold? Bargain lots sold directly by an owner are sometimes offered with the second kind and no title work at all. If a title company declines to insure the parcel, get it to say exactly why before you go further.
Rules
What kind of home is allowed here: site-built only, or also a manufactured home, a cabin or a tiny house?
Why ask it
This one matters most when the plan is anything other than a conventional house. Zoning or covenants may set a minimum square footage, require a permanent foundation or bar manufactured homes outright, and the two documents do not always agree. Describe the exact home you have in mind, down to its size, to both the county and any association.
When the listing calls the lot 'ready to build', what has actually been done?
Why ask it
The phrase has no fixed meaning. It can cover a recorded plat, an approved septic design, utilities stubbed at the line and a graded pad, or nothing more than a mowed field with a sign on it. Go through those four with the agent and ask for the paper behind each yes.
Is the lot tied to a particular builder, or may I bring my own?
Why ask it
Developers sometimes sell lots only together with a contract to build with one company, or with one from a short approved list, and that narrows both your choice of plan and your room to compare prices. Find out whether the tie is written into the purchase contract or the covenants, and whether it would bind someone you later sold the lot to. If outside builders are allowed, check whether the developer charges a fee or holds a deposit for that.
Does an architectural committee have to approve my house plans, and is there a deadline to start or finish building?
Why ask it
Design review can reach the siding, the roof pitch, which way the garage faces and the trees you may cut, and a rejected plan means paying a designer for another round. Get the written guidelines, the usual length of a review and the names of who sits on the committee now. Where there is a build deadline, find out what follows a missed one: a fine, or the developer's right to buy the lot back.
What am I allowed to do on the land before a house is built: camp, park an RV, put up a shed or store equipment?
Why ask it
Some counties cap camping at a set number of days a year, or will not allow a shed or a parked RV on a lot with no permitted dwelling. If weekends on the land are the whole point for the first few years, put that plan to the zoning office in those words. Then read the covenants, which can ban what the county allows.
Are livestock, a home business or short-term rentals allowed on this parcel?
Why ask it
Each of the three tends to sit under a different rule: animals under zoning and acreage, a business under a home occupation clause, and short-term rentals under an ordinance of their own. Give numbers when you ask, such as six hens, two horses or one rented cabin, because the limit is frequently a number. 'Nobody checks' is not a yes, since one neighbor's complaint is usually all it takes.
Could the parcel be divided later, and what is the smallest lot the rules would allow?
Why ask it
Being able to split off a piece for family, or to sell part and recover some of the price, changes what the land is worth to you. Road frontage, minimum lot size and septic capacity each limit the number of lots, and some covenants forbid any division at all. A listing that says 'subdividable' is a hope until the planning office agrees.
Has anyone applied for a building permit, a variance or a rezoning on this parcel before, and what happened?
Why ask it
A past refusal is a public record, and it names the exact rule this land runs into, whether that is septic, access or setbacks. An approval that lapsed is good news of a different kind: the site passed once, though you would apply again under today's rules. The permit office can usually look up the history by parcel number.
Which permits would a house need here, how long do they take, and are there impact fees on new homes?
Why ask it
Some places charge every new home a one-time fee toward schools, roads or parks, and the amount differs widely from one county to the next. The building department has a fee schedule, and its staff can usually tell you how long approvals are really taking this year. A slow queue means another season of taxes and loan interest before anyone breaks ground.
Utilities
Has a perc test or soil evaluation been done for septic, and would the county approve a system for the size of house I want?
Why ask it
Where there is no sewer, the septic permit is often what decides whether a house can be built at all, and how many bedrooms it may have. The health department can tell you what is on file for this parcel and how old a test may be before it has to be redone. A passing result on the lot next door says little about this one, because soil can change over a short distance.
How deep are the wells around here, what do they cost to drill, and what is the water like?
Why ask it
A local driller will answer this better than the seller, including which neighbors had to drill twice. Treat any depth or price as a range, and ask what happens to the bill if the first hole comes up dry. Water heavy in iron or sulfur can usually be treated, but the equipment is a cost that never goes away.
Is there already a well, a septic tank, a power pole or an old driveway on the land, and was each one permitted?
Why ask it
Existing improvements only save money if they are on record and still work. The papers to ask for are the well log, the septic permit and the date each was last in use. A tank nobody permitted, or a well that has sat idle for years, may need testing, upgrading or proper closing before the county will count it.
Is public water or sewer available at the road, and what are the tap fees to connect?
Why ask it
A main running past the frontage is not a promise that you may connect. The district may be at capacity or may require annexation first, and it sets its own tap fees. Call the provider with the parcel number, get the fee in writing, and find out who pays for the pipe from the main to the house.
How far away is the nearest power line, and what would the utility charge to bring electricity to a building site?
Why ask it
Line extensions are priced by distance and terrain, and on a cheap, remote parcel the quote can come uncomfortably close to the price of the land. The utility can usually work up an estimate from the parcel number and a sketch of where the house would sit. If the route crosses a neighbor's land you would need an easement from them, so raise that in the same call.
Which internet and cell providers actually reach this parcel, and is there mail and trash service?
Why ask it
Stand on the building site and check your own phone, then ask the nearest neighbor what they use and what speeds they really get. A coverage map can be optimistic at its edges, and 'service available in your area' sometimes stops at the last house on the road. For anyone who would work from home, this one answer can decide the whole purchase.
Land and Location
Is any part of the land in a floodplain, a wetland or protected habitat, and has a delineation ever been done?
Why ask it
Ground that looks dry in August can still be a regulated wetland, because the line is drawn from soil and plants as well as standing water. Look up the flood map for the parcel yourself, and ask an insurer whether a house there would need flood insurance. Where low ground sits near the spot you would build on, a delineation is worth pricing before you commit.
How much of the parcel is actually buildable, and where does the water go after a heavy rain?
Why ask it
Slope drives the cost of the driveway, the foundation and the septic field, so have the seller point to where they would put a house and say why. Walk it after rain if you can and follow the water: ditches, culverts, washed-out patches and soft ground show where it collects. A building site that takes the neighbor's runoff is a problem you would be buying.
What is under the building site: rock, heavy clay, fill or a high water table, and has anyone dug a test pit?
Why ask it
Ledge near the surface can mean blasting for a foundation or a trench, expansive clay calls for a different footing, and filled ground may need an engineer's report before anyone will build on it. A neighbor who built recently, or the excavator who dug for them, usually knows more about what is down there than any map.
Has a builder walked this lot, and what would it cost to get it ready for a foundation?
Why ask it
Clearing, grading, hauled-in fill, a retaining wall and a taller foundation on a slope are all charged before the house itself starts, and two lots at the same price can differ widely on that bill. Many builders will walk a lot with a serious buyer and give a rough range. Bring the floor plan you have in mind, because a walkout basement suits one slope and fights another.
Which way does the lot face, and where on it would the house, the garage and the driveway go?
Why ask it
Orientation decides which rooms get the morning sun, whether the driveway sits in the shadow of the house all winter, and what the main windows look out on. Stand where the front door would be at the hour you are usually home. On a narrow lot, sketch the setbacks first, since they may leave only one place the garage can go.
Is there a creek, a pond or a spring on the land, and what am I allowed to do with the water?
Why ask it
Water on a parcel is a selling point with strings attached: buffer strips where nothing may be built, permits for a crossing or a dam, and in some regions a separate system of water rights that decides whether you may draw from it at all. Ask the state or county agency how it works there, and whether the stream runs all year or only after rain.
What has this land been used for, and were there ever fuel tanks, dumping, old buildings or heavy spraying?
Why ask it
Old farm dumps, buried tanks and abandoned wells turn up on rural parcels, and each can complicate a build or a loan. A seller who says 'just pasture' can be asked what was there before the pasture. If the history includes a workshop, a fuel depot or a dump, ask whether an environmental assessment was ever done and what it found.
When was the land last logged, and what is the standing timber worth today?
Why ask it
A parcel cut hard just before it was listed has had part of its value taken off already, and the slash, ruts and stumps left behind are yours to deal with. If the trees are part of the reason for the price, have a forester look before you offer. If they are in the way, get a clearing quote, since opening a wooded building site is seldom cheap.
What is this land like in the other seasons: spring melt, high summer, hunting season and deep winter?
Why ask it
One visit on a dry autumn day can hide a driveway that turns to mud in March, a view that disappears when the leaves come out, and gunfire next door every weekend of the season. Ask the seller for photographs from other months, and ask a neighbor which time of year they like least.
Who owns the land around it, what do they do with it, and is anything planned nearby?
Why ask it
A quiet parcel can sit beside a hunting lease, a quarry, a poultry barn, a shooting range or a field already approved for houses. The planning office can tell you what applications are pending and how the neighboring parcels are zoned, which shows what could arrive later. Knock on a door too, because neighbors know things no office has on file.
How many lots in this development are sold or built on, and are more phases planned?
Why ask it
A half-empty street means construction traffic, noise and mud for as long as the rest takes to sell, and the dates of the recorded sales show how fast that has been going. Later phases can also change what is behind your back fence, so look at the full plat and not only the lots on offer now. It is worth learning as well when control of the association passes from the developer to the owners.
How far is it to the nearest fire station, hospital and grocery store, and is there a hydrant or other water supply close by?
Why ask it
Distance to a fire station and to a water supply can feed into what an insurer charges, and some rural districts bill a yearly fee for fire protection. Get a quote for a house on this parcel from a local agent before you assume a figure, and ask whether wildfire or flood risk changes it. The drive to the hospital and the store is worth timing yourself, once in daylight and once in bad weather.
Price and Deal
What is the asking price based on, and what have similar parcels nearby actually sold for?
Why ask it
Land is harder to price than a house: no two parcels match and few change hands in a year, so asking prices can drift a long way from sold ones. Ask for recent sales with similar access, utilities and buildable ground. Then compare them per usable acre, because swamp and steep slope count in the acreage and add little to the value.
Is the acreage in the listing taken from a survey, the deed or the tax record?
Why ask it
Tax map acreage is an estimate drawn for billing, and on an irregular rural parcel it can differ noticeably from what a surveyor measures. If the price was worked out per acre, ask whether the contract can adjust to the surveyed figure, so that a shortfall found later is not yours to absorb.
How long has the land been for sale, and has an offer or a contract fallen through?
Why ask it
Land can sit for a long while with nothing wrong with it, so the time alone proves little. A sale that collapsed during due diligence is another matter, and the follow-up is what that buyer found. Sellers are sometimes glad to hand over the perc result, survey or title report the last buyer paid for.
What stays with the land: fences, gates, sheds, culverts, a camper, equipment or a crop in the field?
Why ask it
With a house, everyone assumes the kitchen stays. Raw land has no such convention, and a seller may intend to take the gate panels or to leave a collapsed trailer behind. Write each item into the contract as staying or going, along with who pays to haul away what nobody wants.
What are the property taxes today, and what would they be at my purchase price and for my intended use?
Why ask it
The seller's bill is a poor guide to yours: vacant land is often assessed low, and in some places a sale or a new house resets the value. The assessor's office can walk you through how each would be treated on this parcel. The answer counts for most if you mean to hold the land for years before building.
Is the land under an agricultural or forestry tax classification, and would my plans trigger rollback taxes?
Why ask it
Farm and forest classifications cut the yearly bill, and in many jurisdictions taking land out of that use brings a charge for several years of the taxes that were saved. Whether the seller or the new owner owes it depends on local law and on the contract, so get the estimate from the assessor and name the payer in your offer. It is also worth asking what it would take to keep the classification, if a hay field or a stand of trees would do it.
What will it cost to own each year if I do nothing with it: dues, road fees, insurance and upkeep?
Why ask it
Empty land still sends bills: an association or road assessment, liability insurance in case someone is hurt on it, and mowing or brush clearing where the county enforces a weed or fire rule. Add those to the taxes and multiply by the years you expect to wait before building. That total belongs next to the purchase price when you compare two parcels.
Would a bank or credit union lend on this parcel, and how much would I need to put down?
Why ask it
Loans on raw land tend to ask for a larger down payment, a shorter term and a higher rate than a home mortgage, and some lenders will not write them at all. Local banks, credit unions and farm lenders are the usual places to try, and each will want to hear about access, the survey and your plans. Find out before you offer, so that a financing condition in the contract has a deadline you can meet.
Can the lot and the house be financed together with a construction loan, and would a lot I already own count toward the down payment?
Why ask it
Lenders handle this differently: some write one loan that covers land and construction and turns into a mortgage when the house is done, some want the lot paid off first, and some give credit for what you have put into the land. A loan officer who does construction lending can tell you which applies and what they need from a builder before approving. Have that conversation before paying cash for the lot, while the order of the two purchases is still yours to choose.
What would the land and the finished house cost together, and how does that compare with what homes nearby have sold for?
Why ask it
A construction lender usually has the finished house appraised from the plans against recent sales around it, and a costly lot plus heavy site work can push your total past that figure. A local agent or appraiser can give a range for a completed home of your size on this road. If your sum comes out well above it, ask the lender how a gap like that would be treated before you settle on the lot.
Is the price negotiable, and would you consider owner financing?
Why ask it
Owner financing comes up more with land than with houses, and a seller who offers it may hold firmer on the price. Get the rate, the term, any balloon payment and what happens after a missed payment in writing. Ask as well whether you receive the deed at closing or only after the last payment, and have an attorney read the contract, because the two arrangements protect a buyer very differently.
Which closing costs fall to me, and who pays for the survey, the title policy and the transfer tax?
Why ask it
Custom on who pays what differs by state and county, and on an inexpensive parcel the fixed costs of closing can be a large share of the price. A title company or closing attorney can estimate them before you make an offer. Settle the split in the contract, not at the closing table.
Will you give me a due diligence period for a survey, soil testing and title work before my deposit is at risk?
Why ask it
The answer you are after is a number of days, plus a yes to refunding the deposit if the land fails one of those checks. Size the period to the slowest item, which is often the septic evaluation or a surveyor's backlog. A seller who refuses any study period is asking you to buy before you know whether the land can be used, and it is fair to ask what they expect the tests to show.
Evaluating a Piece of Land
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Verify With the Authorities, Not the Seller
Take the parcel number to four offices
The office names change from county to county, but the four jobs are the same. Planning or zoning says what may be built and how close to the lines. The health or environmental department holds septic records and permit rules. The assessor explains taxes, special classifications and rollback exposure, and the road authority handles driveway permits and who maintains the access. A short call or visit to each, parcel number in hand, replaces a lot of guessing.
Get written quotes for the things that cost real money
Ask the electric utility for a line extension estimate, a well driller for the usual depth and price in that area, and an excavator for a driveway and building pad figure. Add the septic system, whether conventional or engineered. On a remote parcel these can add up to more than the land itself, and every one of them can be known before you buy.
Commission a survey and a title search
A current survey shows the corners, the easements and any encroachment, and a full title search looks for severed mineral rights, old liens and heirs' interests. On rural land these are not formalities. They are the two documents that can change the deal.
Walk the whole parcel, more than once
Walk the boundary, the low ground and the intended building site, and go back after heavy rain and at a different time of day. Look for standing water, wetland plants, drainage from neighboring land, old dumps, foundations, well casings, survey markers, and signs that other people are driving or walking across it.
Whether You Can Actually Build
Access first, everything else after
Without recorded legal access there may be no permit, no loan and no insurance, and negotiating an easement from a neighbor after you own the land can be expensive and is sometimes impossible. Confirm access in the record before you spend money on anything else.
Work out the buildable area, not the acreage
Subtract setbacks, easements, wetlands, floodplain, steep slopes, and the area needed for a septic field and its reserve. A ten acre parcel with a stream, a pipeline easement and a bluff can offer a smaller usable footprint than a level suburban lot.
Sort water and waste before design
The septic evaluation often decides where the house can go and how many bedrooms are permitted, and local rules set how far the well must sit from the septic field. Design around those two constraints, not around a view with the hope that the systems will fit.
Price the whole project, not the land
Land price, closing costs, survey, testing, driveway, utility extension, well, septic, permits and site preparation together form the real number before a single wall goes up. Write them all down with quoted figures and add a contingency, because site work has a way of finding rock or water.
When buying land to build a house, bring the builder early
A builder or designer who walks the ground before you offer can say whether your plan fits between the setbacks, what clearing, grading and the foundation would add, and which way the house ought to face. A lender who writes construction loans can say how the lot and the build would be financed together. Have both conversations before closing, when a bad answer costs only the time it took to ask.
Buying lots in a subdivision
A lot in a platted development comes with paper that raw acreage does not: the recorded plat, the covenants, the design guidelines, and sometimes a contract that ties the lot to one builder or sets a date to start. Read all of it before the offer, and ask the town whether the streets and drainage have been accepted or are still the developer's to finish. Access, survey and soil still need checking, though on a serviced lot those answers usually come faster.
Where Buyers Get Caught
Assuming access because a track exists
Long use is not the same as a recorded right, and the neighbor who has tolerated it may not be the neighbor you get. This one issue is what makes some cheap parcels cheap.
Buying before the soil is tested
A failed perc test can make a parcel unbuildable for a conventional house, and an engineered system, where one is allowed, can cost far more than a standard one. Ask your agent or attorney about making the purchase conditional on an approved evaluation for the size of home you intend.
Missing the rollback tax on agricultural land
Taking land out of a farm or forestry classification can trigger back taxes for prior years, charged when the use changes. Ask the assessor for the figure and settle in the contract who bears it.
Forgetting the cost of getting power in
On a remote parcel the line extension can be one of the largest numbers in the whole project, and it is one the utility will estimate if asked. Request it during the study period, while the answer can still change your offer.
Accepting a deed nobody will insure
A low price, a quitclaim deed and a seller in a hurry can add up to a parcel with a lien, a missing heir or no legal access. If a title company will not issue a policy, find out why before any money moves.
Not looking at the neighbors
Adjoining use governs how the land feels to live on: noise, dust, smell, traffic and hunting. Check what is permitted next door as well as what is there now, since a use the zoning already allows can start up without anyone asking you.
The Seller, the Price and the Offer
Confirm who you are buying from
Look up the recorded deed yourself and match the names on it to the person offering the land. If the owners are several heirs, a trust or a company, ask who has authority to sign and see it in writing. Close through a title company or an attorney who verifies identity, and treat a seller who avoids a phone call or a meeting as a reason to slow down.
Price the usable acres
Start from sold parcels, not listed ones, and adjust for what makes land useful: recorded access, power nearby, soil that passes for septic, and ground that is dry and level enough to build on. Then set the cost of whatever this parcel lacks against the asking price. A cheaper lot that needs a long driveway and a line extension can end up the more expensive one.
Know how you will pay before you offer
Ask a local bank, a credit union or a farm lender whether it finances vacant land and what it needs to see from the parcel. If the seller offers to carry the loan, get the rate, the term, any balloon payment and the point at which the deed passes to you in writing, and have an attorney read it. The terms on offer vary a great deal from one lender and one seller to the next.
Put the conditions in the offer
An offer on land normally names a study period and what you may do during it: survey, soil and septic evaluation, title review, and a check with the planning office on your intended use. State that the deposit comes back if any of those fail, list what stays on the land and what the seller will remove, and say who pays for each report. How such conditions are written varies by state, so have a local agent or attorney draft them.
Documents and Reports to Gather
- Deed, legal description, and any recorded access easement
- A current survey showing corners, easements and encroachments
- Full title search and a commitment for title insurance
- Recorded covenants, deed restrictions or association documents
- For a subdivision lot: the recorded plat, design guidelines and any builder agreement
- Zoning verification, setback requirements, and any permit or variance history
- Septic evaluation or perc test results, and health department requirements
- Written line extension estimate from the electric utility
- Well driller's estimate of depth and cost, plus local water quality reports
- Flood map for the parcel, and any wetland delineation
- Current tax bill, assessment classification, and rollback tax exposure
- Driveway or culvert permit requirements from the road authority
- A builder's rough estimate for site preparation and the foundation
- Written road maintenance agreement for any shared private road
- Records of severed mineral, oil and gas, water or timber rights, and any active lease
- Any farm, grazing, hunting or timber lease, with its rent and end date
- Well log and septic permit for any system already on the land
- Permit and impact fee schedule, and water or sewer tap fees where a main is available
- Recent sold prices for comparable parcels, and an estimate of closing costs
- A lender's terms for a land loan, or the seller's financing terms in writing