Advice for buying southern land.

[mbohuntr]

Hey all (or...Y'all)

We are thinking of buying up a parcel of vacant land (10-100 acres) in Eastern Tennessee, southern Va., or western N. Carolina. to hold until we retire in about 15 yrs. and then build there.

Here are my concerns... (Very few/no tornadoes) also, Here in NY, the taxes are such that holding a parcel that long would eliminate any savings or appreciation. What are the taxes (if any) on vacant property, and the taxes on residential property (built). Here, a 50 acre parcel will pay $300-$600 /yr, and a $130,000 home can expect to pay $4000-$10000 yr. depending on the township. Any insights or links would be greatly appreciated!! and the tractor will be (southernised) to plant food plots, and brush hog rather than move mountains of the white crap...

 

[randy41]

property taxes are usually less than they are in NY here in SWVA. i have 40 acres and a house and the taxes are about $1600/year. but we have personal property tax also which is a car tax on top of that. but as you know every locality has different tax rates.

 

[thatguy]

I live in Bedford (near roanoke VA) and our taxes are very low.. for 10 acres and a $300k house we pay <$2000/yr..

In the SW VA area (coal mining areas) you will run into the issue of possibly not owning your mineral rights - not sure about that part of TN though..

Depending on your specific area you may go from flat ground to VERY mountainous..

Brian

 

[mbohuntr]

Does the mineral rights thing mean they can enter your property and mine without your permission? What about the taxes on vacant land, any links? Thanks!

 

[MotorSeven]

Does the mineral rights thing mean they can enter your property and mine without your permission? What about the taxes on vacant land, any links? Thanks!

That depends on when they were leased. Most have a termination date and almost all of them here were 20 year terms and expired years ago.

Taxes here are very low and Tornado's are rare due to the steep ridges that breaks them up. Middle TN has rolling hills so they get hammered. My parameters for a retirement location were: low taxes, abundant clean water, very little industry(pollution) and reasonable land prices. when you add these things up you come up with a economically poor County which means your retirement dollar will stretch the most.

I bought here in '01, retired in '07 and have zero regrets. I do wish I had done what you are doing and bought years earlier when the prices were a fraction of what I paid. In '98 an ac (wooded)was >$500, in '01 it was <$1,000....big difference. Now with the downturn we are back to '01 prices with larger tracts going for less.

My wife opened up her own Real Estate Company(Creek Country Real Estate in Sneedville TN) last year, so I will send you a PM with the link. That will give you an idea of the prices/taxes in our area.

 

[mbohuntr]

Excellent! keep it coming!!

 

[JD5210]

In Bedford, VA, we have what is called Land Use. What that is if, your land is used for valid farming use it is only taxed at $400 an acre, $200 if wooded even if the true value is much HIGHER. Another way to go, is to purchase the land, then work to get it into a conservation easement, this applies through out the state and would only be taxed at $400/acre regardless of its use.

As with everything government related there is all kinds of rules.

Please know services are VERY limited, most people are on well and septic. No trash pick-up, for the most part volunteer fire and rescue. Very limited sheriff protection. If you live on a private road no snow removal.

I love it here. To many people move down here from populated areas and want all kinds of services and all kinds of rules that apply to others. Can not have low taxes and expect to get services.

 

[KTurner]

Hey all (or...Y'all)

We are thinking of buying up a parcel of vacant land (10-100 acres) in Eastern Tennessee, southern Va., or western N. Carolina. to hold until we retire in about 15 yrs. and then build there.

Here are my concerns... (Very few/no tornadoes) also, Here in NY, the taxes are such that holding a parcel that long would eliminate any savings or appreciation. What are the taxes (if any) on vacant property, and the taxes on residential property (built). Here, a 50 acre parcel will pay $300-$600 /yr, and a $130,000 home can expect to pay $4000-$10000 yr. depending on the township. Any insights or links would be greatly appreciated!! and the tractor will be (southernised) to plant food plots, and brush hog rather than move mountains of the white crap...

I would find the area/climate you're interested in, then compare the tax rates and property values from county to county in that area. The tax rate of the city next door is ~1.1% while our county is ~0.66%. The property values are higher in the county though. And we just had one of the largest taxpayers in the county shutdown. They paid something like 2-3% of the total county budget, so now that has to be made up somehow.

Keith

 

[mbohuntr]

Exactly what we have now, except we are punished for owning more than a few acres. I would eventually like city water, but it's not a deal breaker.... We really miss taking the dog for a walk on our property, but the taxes just weren't worth it anymore.

 

[JD5210]

Take a look in Bedford, Franklin and Flyod counties in VA. Here 1/2 of property taxes go to schools $9,200/yr/child of which the county pays $4,000.

At least here you are not going to find city water, unless you got a BIG check book to buy land near Lynchburg or Roanoke.