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Funding Your Land Investment

By Robert King on September 10, 2009

How will I fund a land investment?
Those beginning the process of purchasing land usually have a general idea of how they plan to pay for the investment. However, I have seen many buyers change their method of funding because they became educated on an option that was previously unknown to them and offered them some distinct advantage. Some may simply not understand the process or what they can afford. Following is a brief explanation of the most commonly used methods to fund land transactions.

Cash - Most land transactions that I work with are cash transaction...

By Curtis Seltzer on July 14, 2009

LandThink posted my weekly "Country Real Estate" column last week that discussed a low-cost, low-tech approach to estimating a property's current market value using, what I call, tax-assessed value (TAV) analysis.

This approach adjusts a property's TAV up or down in light of recent sales for similar properties to find current market value. TAV analysis is not an appraisal or a Competitive Market Analysis (CMA). It doesn't try to find a target property's value by tweaking the specifics of recent comparable sales.

It starts with a base-line valuation (provided free via periodic reassessments for tax purposes) and calculates an adjustment factor based on...

By Curtis Seltzer on July 21, 2009

Timberland sellers often provide buyers with an estimate of their property's timber volume and its value. I've seen these take many forms: an oral opinion usually preceded by the phrase "at least"; a hand-scribbled scrap of paper that said "oak, $200,000, pine, $50,000" etc.; a walk-through estimate done by a consulting forester the seller hired;  several hundred pages of consultant-gathered-and-analyzed data sliced and diced every which way; and aerial images that indicate volume and other specifics, among many others.

My experience over the years with seller timber estimates in all formats is that they always need to be verified, and, at worst, th...

By Lou Jewell ALC on July 22, 2009

Anyone involved in a typical Land transaction, leasing, buying or selling may be exposed to 93 plus potential Land issues. For years now I have advocated for need of a "Land Disclosure" form throughout our country. So far only four states have such a document available for the real estate industry and they are Arizona, California, Georgia and Tennessee.

Most states have "Residential Property Disclosure" forms which are executed at time of the listing by the sellers and reviewed and signed off by the buyers during the offering process. We recommend these forms to also be used even in cases where you are selling without the assistance of a real estate fi...

Article by Daniel Bachrach and Anthony M. Rodriguez

Recently, in Jankus v. Edge Investors,1 the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida (Court) issued a highly controversial ruling holding that the use of the 180-day "free look" presale contingency clause in the developer's condominium unit purchase agreement invalidated the developer's use of the improved lot exemption from the registration and disclosure requirements of the Interstate Land Sales Act (ILSA). While the full impact of the ruling is unclear, undoubtedly Jankus will have a negative impact on the ability of developers to utilize the 180-day free look period while simultaneously availing themselves o...

Due Dilligence things to look for when investing

If you have decided to invest in real property you are headed in the right direction. Now what? There are so many horror stories deriving from title issues, environmental issue, financials fraud, insurance fraud, misrepresentation, and many other common mishaps when dealing with real property.

As you know it can be very difficult to identify your property/investment and then take the time to perform the needed due dilligence services.

This is where a good real estate brokerage and consulting firm is worth its wieght in gold. You can hire one of these firms with usually no cost to you and get top knotch service that you just will not be abl...

Do you want an investment that holds its value in these turbulent times? Set your sights on land.

During 2008, as the Dow fell by 31.4 percent and home prices dropped 12.4 percent, according to NAR research, the prices of farm and pasture land generally maintained its value. Land prices usually stabilize during a down turn and hold their value during financial storms, says Lou Jewell, ALC, Dan River Real Estate Inc., Pilot Mountain, N.C.
Combine that stability with the low management and maintenance requirements and rising scarcity, and you have an investment ideal for these challenging times.

Land is the ultimate source of wealth. As the population expands, there will be more demand for ...