Looking to invest in undeveloped land? A lot of investors love vacant land as an investment! If you’re thinking about buying land for your family, make sure you weigh these 5 land characteristics before buying raw land for development in California, Colorado, or Texas.
Land Characteristics #1. Legal Area
In many residential areas, boundary markers like fences, sidewalks, and roads mark the legal boundaries of a home. But with vacant land it’s not always as clear. Depending on where the land is, it can be difficult to tell where your property ends and another one begins. Before you even invest, make sure you check the legal boundaries of your property are so you don’t develop beyond those boundaries.
There are three methods for checking land corners and boundaries.
- Method 1: Hiring A Surveyor. Getting a survey is the most accurate method to locate the land corners and boundaries. Local surveyor will locate or put land pins on the ground to mark the corners and boundaries. The disadvantage is the time and cost it takes to get a survey done.
- Method 2: Check County Assessor Plat Map. Usually county assessor will have a plat map showing the approximate land corners and boundaries. This is usually a quick and free way to check land corners and boundaries.
- Method 3: Use GPS coordinates. With the latest GPS technology advancement. These days we can use a handheld GPS device or our smartphone to locate the approximate land corners and boundaries.
We developed a full tutorial on Finding Land Corners and Boundaries using your phone’s GPS and Google Map. At Elegment Land, we always have the corners and boundaries coordinates on everyone of our land listings. Just let us know how we can help.
Land Characteristics #2. Zoning
Municipalities will zone different areas in order to control growth. After all, no homeowner wants a garbage dump or noisy factory beside them! Zoning will restrict what you can build. So, if you’re investing to develop the land, or if you’re planning to sell to a developer, make sure you know what can be built on the property.
There is another type of land, the Unrestricted Land. Land in this category would have no restrictions, and you can typically do whatever you want to do with it. This type of land is typically located in the rural part of Texas, outside of city boundary.
At Elegment Land, we have both unrestricted land as well as land with zoning regulations. We hand pick our residential land parcels, each one is perfect for your new home site.
Land Characteristics #3. Drainage
When it rains, a lot of the water soaks into the ground. But in a heavy rainfall, not all of it will immediately soak in! When it rains, or when the snow melts, where does the water go? Knowing the drainage lines of your property will help you know where to develop, so you don’t build a house whose basement always floods!
Even if you don’t like the drainage line, you can often change it within reason. However, it’s good to know where the water drains before you start building any structures!
Our Tennessee land parcels usually come with Perc Test Reports, showing a good building site that drains.
Land Characteristics #4. Stability for structures
Vacant land has so many promising possibilities but not all land is appropriate for every use. The make-up of the soil will determine if and where a structure should be built on the property, and even how deep you need to dig for a sturdy, dry structure.
At Elegment Land, we offer FREE soil report for all of the land parcels we sell. Ask us for a FREE copy!
Land Characteristics #5. Path of growth
Want to know the best place to buy vacant land? It’s easy, in the area that’s going to be developed in the future! The value of your investment will rise as demand increases for the land around it. So, determine the path of growth so you can know where your next land investment should be.
You can usually get this information from local chamber of commerce, city planning and zoning department, or county planning and zoning department.
Summary
Vacant has historically been a compelling investment. After all, ALL land was vacant at some point! If you want to buy land in California, Colorado or Texas area, make sure you weigh these 5 land characteristics before buying raw land for development.