Best Chance of getting someone to sell some land

[ovrszd]

Everything is for sale at the right price.

See post #30.

 

[oldpilgrim]

See post #30.

and #32

 

[quicksandfarmer]

Do some reading on basic salesmanship.

Because you're selling -- you're selling the idea of them selling you the land. And the key to selling is to find out what matters to the other person, what they want, need and fear. You've only talked about what you want. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that making a complete stranger happy isn't what matters to them. It might be -- some people live to make others happy -- but it's unlikely. So stop thinking about what you want and start finding out what they want. It probably isn't money.

 

[GGB]

In the era of modern farming equipment getting bigger and bigger, cutting out small parcels makes it more difficult to farm the remaining ground.

For example, my grandfathers both first farmed using horse and mule teams to pull one bottom plows. Today we use a 16 row planter, but that's not even close to being big! But most people who haven't ever been in the cab of a tractor or combine have little idea of how much room it takes to turn equipment around or work around small parcels cut out of a field.

So even if the ground the OP was looking at wasn't being farmed, it may have been in an area needed to turn equipment around more easily, or be where trucks are parked to load grain.

Most land owners I know aren't interested in selling off any small parcels. Perhaps the entire field, but only if there is a pressing need for money.

As another poster mentioned, zoning in many rural areas has gotten far more stringent in the last 10-20 years. The cost to survey land has also gotten more expensive, especially if it is in an area that has not been surveyed in several generations. Finding survey marks sometimes involves working from points several miles away-the farther, the more expensive.....ask me how I know!

 

[TomSeller]

Yep. Having suffered the shame that I feel, my land is not for sale.

Your brother is the one who should feel shame, not you. You tried to avoid selling, but he put you between a rock and a hard spot.

 

[ovrszd]

Your brother is the one who should feel shame, not you. You tried to avoid selling, but he put you between a rock and a hard spot.

Thanks Tom

 

[Deere Dude]

In 1989 I was in the buying a lot kick someplace to build a new house. I had the general area give or take 5-10 miles. I simply would look at a field or a prospective site and cold call the owner. From reading these posts you can surmise how that turned out. It wasn't pretty. Just trying to track down the owners was a nightmare and I went on many wild goose chases just trying to find them, and always getting the same answer.

After looking for months, one day I looked at a lot near a subdivision and tried locating the owner. l knocked on a door and she told me the hardware store owner in town owned it. I tracked him down and he said, "Nope not my land either." Another miss. but he said he has different couple acres he would sell me on the other side of town. He told me where it was and I took a drive to see it by myself.

It was a 5 acre plot on the highway 1/2 mile from town. I saw what he was selling. It was a 3 acre marshy front with a 2-3 acres slightly elevate field near the rear. I thought it could work so I came back and talked to the 85 YO owner and asked if he could come out and verify the lot lines for me.

Once there he said that wasn't the land he explained to me. So he took me next door to that lot and it was 7 acres with a marshy front with a stream going through it and the backdrop was a hill in a huge woods and a building site would be perfect for a walk out basement to the front of the house. I thought it would be perfect.

I asked him what he wanted for it and he said, "What would you give?" I told him I wold offer $5000 if he would pay for the survey. He took it and I was a happy camper. I priced the survey and was told it would cost about $1500 so I went back to him with the news and he said that is to much and to just forget the deal. I told him to be fair, because I thought it was nuts to, I would split it with him. He then agreed, the deal went through and I was happy. I never did get the survey because it was a corner of a big field that was divided by a highway,

The moral is, don't get caught up in just one piece of property because something better might be out there.

 

[CobyRupert]

Everyone has a price. Obviously you couldn't get to hers.

:thumbsup:

Everything is for sale at the right price. Convincing someone to sell is a matter of finding that price. Convincing someone to sell at the price your willing to pay is a whole different story.

:thumbsup:

 

[ovrszd]

In 1989 I was in the buying a lot kick someplace to build a new house. I had the general area give or take 5-10 miles. I simply would look at a field or a prospective site and cold call the owner. From reading these posts you can surmise how that turned out. It wasn't pretty. Just trying to track down the owners was a nightmare and I went on many wild goose chases just trying to find them, and always getting the same answer.

After looking for months, one day I looked at a lot near a subdivision and tried locating the owner. l knocked on a door and she told me the hardware store owner in town owned it. I tracked him down and he said, "Nope not my land either." Another miss. but he said he has different couple acres he would sell me on the other side of town. He told me where it was and I took a drive to see it by myself.

It was a 5 acre plot on the highway 1/2 mile from town. I saw what he was selling. It was a 3 acre marshy front with a 2-3 acres slightly elevate field near the rear. I thought it could work so I came back and talked to the 85 YO owner and asked if he could come out and verify the lot lines for me.

Once there he said that wasn't the land he explained to me. So he took me next door to that lot and it was 7 acres with a marshy front with a stream going through it and the backdrop was a hill in a huge woods and a building site would be perfect for a walk out basement to the front of the house. I thought it would be perfect.

I asked him what he wanted for it and he said, "What would you give?" I told him I wold offer $5000 if he would pay for the survey. He took it and I was a happy camper. I priced the survey and was told it would cost about $1500 so I went back to him with the news and he said that is to much and to just forget the deal. I told him to be fair, because I thought it was nuts to, I would split it with him. He then agreed, the deal went through and I was happy. I never did get the survey because it was a corner of a big field that was divided by a highway,

The moral is, don't get caught up in just one piece of property because something better might be out there.

Great story!!!! Your diligence paid off!!!

 

[dmccarty]

In 1989 I was in the buying a lot kick someplace to build a new house. I had the general area give or take 5-10 miles. I simply would look at a field or a prospective site and cold call the owner. From reading these posts you can surmise how that turned out. It wasn't pretty. Just trying to track down the owners was a nightmare and I went on many wild goose chases just trying to find them, and always getting the same answer....

My comment is based on what Deere Dude said but aimed at people looking to buy land.

Right before we found our place, we were not having good luck finding places for sale where we wanted to live, at the right size and price. I started spending lots of time in the county offices, specifically the Deeds and GIS offices. I would look the GIS maps, which one can do easily from home now a days, to find parcels of the sizes we wanted in a location we wanted. I would then look up the owners and sometimes go look at the Deeds. Had some interesting conversations with county employees as well but that is another story.

Anyhow, I was making a list of properties and their owners. My priority was to find out of state owners because I figured they might be more willing to sell. The plan was to get together a list, check out thoughts no the FMV of the land, and then mail the owners asking if they wanted to sell.

Never had to mail a letter though because we found our place.

Today, I could have done all of this research from home. Having said that, county employees often know stuff that can be of interest, so poking around the court house can pay off too. :laughing::laughing::laughing:

Later,
Dan

 

[dmccarty]

The moral is, don't get caught up in just one piece of property because something better might be out there.

Dear Deere Dude is absolutely correct! :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

I think about what we ended up buying, and it's location compared to other places where we put in bids, and I am mighty thankful those bids were rejected. We did not think having a rejected bid was good at the time but it sure was in hindsight!

Later,
Dan

 

[dmccarty]

One other experience that might be helpful to others.

We know of a parcel that had been for sale for years by an out of state owner. It would not surprise me if the land is still for sale.

The owner inherited the land from his parents and the owner was well up there in age. He was never going to move back to the place which was just raw land and he lived out of state. He wanted to sell and enjoy the money before he died. The problem was a neighbor. The neighbor was using the land as his own and I think was scaring off potential buyers. For sale signs, some quite big and permanent installations, would disappear or be pushed down by the "wind." Funny how the the wind left tractor tracks... :shocked:

Ok two things. :laughing::laughing:

Others have mentioned farmers needing large tracks because of the size of the equipment. This is true. That equipment is expensive and it needs to make as much money as possible and having to work around cut outs, low spots, old houses, barns, etc., costs the operator time and money. My wife's great grand parents had a large farm and as the generations have died off, the land is being subdivided among the surviving family. In our case, the land is leased out to a large local farmer. He has come in and cleared out numerous old houses, barns, and groves of trees at his own expense because it makes it easier to run his equipment and he makes more money.

I know other families where the land is now owned by dozens of family members. Some want to sell and others do not. This causes quite a bit of conflict in the family and it ain't pretty. This is a situation that a buyer does not want to get near.

Later,
Dan

 

[ultrarunner]

A son and daughter inherited a 40 acre mostly steep and secluded spot in a box canyon... power and phone with a great 7500 square feet concrete block barn.

It has been for sale 5 years for 2.5M and this year reduced it to 2M...

Some people aren't interested in selling... they just list the property at a high price to keep from being bothered...

I spoke various times to the listing broker and he sent me a copy of the listing agreement that states under no circumstances are the owners to be bothered with anything less than a full price cash offer, as-is.

I do check from time to time just out of curiosity...

 

[bigtiller]

A son and daughter inherited a 40 acre mostly steep and secluded spot in a box canyon... power and phone with a great 7500 square feet concrete block barn.

It has been for sale 5 years for 2.5M and this year reduced it to 2M...

Some people aren't interested in selling... they just list the property at a high price to keep from being bothered...

I spoke various times to the listing broker and he sent me a copy of the listing agreement that states under no circumstances are the owners to be bothered with anything less than a full price cash offer, as-is.

I do check from time to time just out of curiosity...

Sounds like a deal for a doomsday prepper after he inherits the mother load and stumble across their real estate advertisement. It'll just take some time for them to connect.

 

[ovrszd]

2M for 40 acres comes out to $50,000 per acre. In many, many spots in California, that's not out of line. Someone will buy it.

 

[ultrarunner]

I've been tracking it...

Would love to have a home for the car collection but it is beyond my realm...

The thought is someone with a winery aspirations would find it ideal.

I don't like the 6 miles in on a small county road in an are fire prone... plus most of the property is rugged...