We were looking to upgrade back in '87. Looked for many weeks for some land, but it was at the peak of a housing boom (in this area) at the time. Virgin land was going for $ 20-$50K/acre. We kept looking in the paper at new land listings and finally saw a private sale of a wooded parcel, 11.7 acres, for $ 35K. Tried calling the tel number for a few days, but no answer. I asked my wife to check the listing for the number and found that I had transposed 2 numbers. Called the number and talked with the seller. He confirmed the land was available, so I asked to come to see it. I asked if the price was fixed, or was he allowing bidding up on the price among buyers. The seller was an older local who told me the price was fixed and he "didn't want any of those realtor crooks trying to scam him". He stated that he had two appointments the next day, but I was able to arrange to see it the next day at 7:00 AM. Got there the next morning. Land was somewhat out of the way (something we wanted), wooded but overgrown in what was the best area to build, had no utilities close by, and of course it was pouring rain. I told the wife it was now or never, given the price. She was nervous about making a snap decision on such a consequential purchase, but I convinced her. I hand wrote a bill of sale and gave the seller a check for 10%, which I did not have the money in the bank to cover (at that moment). After I got to work that morning, I went to the local bank to transfer funds to cover my check, and arranged a short term loan to cover the $ 35K for the sale, until we sold our home.
Within a month we closed the sale. I had several calls from the other perspective buyers to see if we would subdivide and sell a parcel to them, but we declined. Within a month we sold our existing house and paid off the loan on the land, and used the collateral of the land to get a good mortgage for the next house. During that time we moved in with the mother-in-law, and put most of our stuff in storage. Took a couple of months to clear part of the land, find a builder, work out utilities, etc. We ended up trading 1/2 acre to a neighbor for utility access, and the land gave him access to a portion of his land he wanted to divide off and sell. That worked out for us, since it was 1/2 mile from where we were building. Finally had the house under construction and moved in about 6 months later.
Still a semi remote site. We have a couple of neighbors that are a bit closer than before, but still fairly private. Our one issue has been that our driveway (0.6 miles long and paved) seems to show up on google maps, and we occasionally get people driving back expecting the road to go through to somewhere. We turn them around and have put up private property and no trespassing signs, but still get the occasional person following the driveway that does not go where they want to go.
paul
Within a month we closed the sale. I had several calls from the other perspective buyers to see if we would subdivide and sell a parcel to them, but we declined. Within a month we sold our existing house and paid off the loan on the land, and used the collateral of the land to get a good mortgage for the next house. During that time we moved in with the mother-in-law, and put most of our stuff in storage. Took a couple of months to clear part of the land, find a builder, work out utilities, etc. We ended up trading 1/2 acre to a neighbor for utility access, and the land gave him access to a portion of his land he wanted to divide off and sell. That worked out for us, since it was 1/2 mile from where we were building. Finally had the house under construction and moved in about 6 months later.
Still a semi remote site. We have a couple of neighbors that are a bit closer than before, but still fairly private. Our one issue has been that our driveway (0.6 miles long and paved) seems to show up on google maps, and we occasionally get people driving back expecting the road to go through to somewhere. We turn them around and have put up private property and no trespassing signs, but still get the occasional person following the driveway that does not go where they want to go.
paul