Buying Adjacent Lot—Buildable?

[TromboneAl]

The lot next to ours is about to go on the market.

It's empty and looks like this (our property extends a ways into the woods):

We would like to purchase it simply to keep someone else from building a house on it. It sounds like it would cost around $150,000.

However, it's not clear that it's a buildable lot. If it isn't there's no point in our buying it.

Does the seller likely to determine/specify whether it's buildable?

The seller may figure that she has us over a barrel.

If it is buildable, I figure the only downside would be if I end up paying too much for it. I would be able to sell it if/when we move.

We can afford it, and I think I would take the $150,000 from one of our Roths so as to avoid a big tax bill.

Any tips on how to approach this?

 

[Senator]

The county or city will determine if it is build-able. They need setbacks and a minimum number of square feet per lot.

It's hard to tell how big it is from your drawing. At $150K, if it is not build-able, they are dreaming.

 

[Just_Steve]

Is there road access?

 

[CardsFan]

The county or city will determine if it is build-able. They need setbacks and a minimum number of square feet per lot.

It's hard to tell how big it is from your drawing. At $150K, if it is not build-able, they are dreaming.

+1. And factor in environmental requirements.

My brother and I inherited a lot on Cape Cod. Technically, it was build-able, in terms of size and set backs, BUT, newer zoning laws (regarding septic), and environmental laws (wetlands on the property), made building on it next to impossible without spending $30-40k to go though the process, just to find out, with no guarantee of success. We ended up sell it for 1/5 of the "assessed value", just to get rid of it. Haven't been back. Don't know if anyone built on it.

Make a low ball offer and see what happens.

 

[OldShooter]

Call the responsible Planning or Zoning authority. Only they can tell you. If you have the property ID that will be helpful. Even your property ID should get them to the right map.

 

[Senator]

Haven't been back. Don't know if anyone built on it.

Walk the street with Google Maps. You can also see if you should have kept it...

 

[Luck_Club]

Al,
From the looks of it you have about a 26K square foot lot, and the other lot is about the same. From that perspective why wouldn't it be build-able? Ledge, Wetlands, or not in my backyard...?

$150K is a big chunk for 1 lot of raw land, and if it were me I'd really read up on land costs in the surrounding community. Downtown Manhattan and it's a bargain. Topeka Kansas and I've go a bridge to sell you. Judging from the pine Forrest I'm thinking closer to Topeka than Manhattan.

 

[zinger1457]

Is that a typical price for a lot in your area? Sure seems expensive for a wooded lot that's a little over 1/2 acre based on the drawing but I guess that all depends on the area you live. If someone else bought it to build on it looks like they would have the additional cost of installing a well and septic system which can get expensive. Need to get a perk test done on the lot for a septic system to find out if the lot would even accept one.

 

[Ginny]

If someone else were to build on it, you would loose a lot of peace and quiet, plus workers having a look at your cars and property. After doing your due diligence, I say buy it.

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

Call the responsible Planning or Zoning authority. Only they can tell you. If you have the property ID that will be helpful. Even your property ID should get them to the right map.

That's where I'd start, but that's only one part of it. They might only tell you about the zoning for building on that lot, but they might not know that it's wooded, so ask about clearing trees, too.

Also, where is the access to that property? Are there utility lines nearby? You can ask your local utilities that you're thinking of purchasing the property, and ask what it would cost to get service started there. If the infrastructure isn't already in place, it could cost tens of thousands of dollars.

I look forward to seeing your wooded lot on the "Blow that dough!" thread!

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

Sis and her husband were in a similar situation. There was a small piece of property next to their house that the city owned and wanted to sell. Some crackpot bought it and came up with a series of nutty ideas (like a subterranean home) that they had to object to repeatedly before the zoning board. Ultimately, they bought the property from the crackpot, who made money on the sale (he was crazy, not stupid).

That said, I don't think the purchase price of the lot was anywhere near $150k. Maybe 10% of that.

 

[JDARNELL]

Put up a large pink sign shaped like a pig and put an old wrecked car near the property line. Also a couple of dogs on leashes and old tires. That should solve your problem.

 

[Aerides]

as others have said find out the specs from the city/county. Even if it could not be built on now, in your shoes I'd buy it, to avoid someone else getting it and doing who knows what, or if zoning regs changed in the future.

Empty natural lot that's all mine? Vs. someone else who WILL do something with it, at very least give you another fence to look at instead of the trees. If you have the dough to blow...

 

[Bestwifeever]

Somebody’s going to buy it and try to use it. If it’s not legally buildable, get ready for appeal after appeal to build on it anyway. If you can afford it, just buy it for the peace of mind.

 

[NW-Bound]

From the other thread about the contested driveway, I recall that T-Al's home is at the NW corner of his lot.

The buyer of the adjacent lot will not be able to build anywhere close to T-Al's home. Usually, the house is put close to the access road to save on cutting and clearing trees, and it looks like the access is on the south edge of that lot.

There will be a lot of trees for separation. I don't see that the new neighbor would be a cause for concern.

 

[CardsFan]

Walk the street with Google Maps. You can also see if you should have kept it...

You made me look. So far, 10+ years later, no house.

So, maybe I made the right decision. Or, maybe they have a longer time line than I do.

Doesn't matter much, either way.

 

[zinger1457]

You made me look. So far, 10+ years later, no house.

Google maps is slow to update in my neighborhood, it still shows an empty lot where a house was built 4 years ago.

 

[Bamaman]

That's no $150K lot. It'd be good to be a $25k lot, unless you're in a very expensive real estate market. The forest is not even very mature, and we're not talking hardwood trees there.

It'd be nice to have, at a price that the land is worth. And due to the pie slice, it's only worth something to you.

 

[REWahoo]

That's no $150K lot. It'd be good to be a $25k lot, unless you're in a very expensive real estate market.

Al lives on the left coast, where expensive real estate was invented.

 

[RobbieB]

Nah, it's that way because a lot of people want to live here.

 

[Peter]

Speaking of left coast, we bought two small adjacent lots for ~$150k. Motivation was the same as Al's: protection against possible future development.


Having said that, these lots were/are unbuildable as they stand, although there are various future scenarios that could change that. But we decided it was worth it for peace of mind. Definitely a blow that dough (now 'BTD' in our household!) expenditure.

 

[NW-Bound]

In the West coast, from California going up to Vancouver, I have seen homes built on steep or rocky lots that look very expensive to build. Yet, people build homes on these lots, and the challenge of building makes the homes more unique.

So, when people talk about "unbuildable", does it mean in the financial sense, or in the red tape or environmental or political sense?

 

[Peter]

If you're asking about the lots in my post, the 'unbuildability' is because there is no street access. But that could conceivably change.

 

[NW-Bound]

I was referring to T-Al's neighboring lot that people commented about its "buildability".

But in your case, I did not know that a piece of land could be subdivided without setting aside land for a future road or street. It is interesting. Perhaps the subdivision was done a long time ago, when the rule was different.

 

[Ronstar]

The drawing in the OP does not show that lot 41 has access to a road. It's landlocked unless lot 41 gets access by other means or is a contiguous holding to another property not shown on the map. 2 Questions. Is the property for sale only lot 41? If so, how does it get access to a road?