Buying land can be a very lucrative business as well as rewarding. Working in land acquisitions I have experienced both. The following are several important tips to be successful in land buying.
What is your Goal? First you want to decide what your goal is when buying land. Are you buying land to hold and sell for a profit at a later date? Are going to develop the land? Do you want the land for farming? Do you plan to build a house on it? When I look for land my goal is to buy it with the intention of selling it to a land developer or builder.
Area. You then want to focus on a certain area. Focus on one area or county at at time. You want to get to know this area really well. Because if you try and learn to many areas at once it can get rather confusing? I like to focus on land that is within 1-2 hours drive time from my home. It also must be close to a major metropolitan area. I focus on the small towns outside the metro areas that I believe have potential for growth.
Drive. Nothing beats windshield time. You will learn and experience more things while driving around your selected area or town than looking at maps or reading about it on the Internet. You can get the feel and lay of the land. Does the area look like it is growing? Is there a lot of construction? Does the area feel safe? Is it close to shopping? I usually drive on the weekends when the traffic is not so bad.
Budget. How much money do I have? Or how much money do I have available to use to purchase the land? Remember, this can include OPM ( other peoples money) such as bank loans, investors, IRA money and many others.
Search. Now you can search for the land. This is when I use the Internet to look at aerial photos (Google earth), realtor listings (Local MLS, Realtor.com or Loopnet.com) and appraisal district information. This way I can see what land is available, what are the current prices, where it is located, even who owns it. This is the time I also call Realtors or FSBO to gather my information. I look for land that has good access, not in the floodplain, has good drainage, in the path of growth, has utilities or nearby utilities and is well priced. Buy right. You make your profit when you buy and only realize it when you sell.
After you have found potential land tracts, then make your offers and put it under contract. Then start your due diligence and talking to prospective sellers. If all goes well, close the deal and then make a profit selling it.
Happy Land Buying
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