Walk that lot!

   Here’s a quick story that is true. Years ago I met a guy who owned a good sized drop off lot, several acres, a bit out in the county. It was a beautiful spot with lots of trees, no one around him, lots of privacy and well off the beaten path. He did his all homework (almost) before he bought the land, checked out everything he was supposed to (almost), and he got a great piece of land. So far so good.

   He had owned it for almost a year when approached me to build him a home. We met up at the office and he brought along his draft floor plans and a plat (drawing) of the lot. We chatted for a bit about where he wanted to place the home on is property. The homesite was rectangular in shape and he was talking about placing the home at the front of the property, somewhat close to the road. I asked him, while looking at the plat, what was on the back half of his lot. “Just trees, I think.’ he said. “You think? You’re not sure?” I asked him with a raised eyebrow. “Well no, see it’s really over grown and tough to walk through.” The guy owned a couple acres of land he’d never even seen! We made plans to meet again the next week and I encouraged him to walk the whole thing in the mean time.

   A few days later I get a phone call from this client. Turns out he took my advice and, after putting on some old cloths, he walked his entire lot. And towards the back lot line, hidden in plain sight, was a big garden. And I’m not talking about tomatos or flowers here. It was a certain weed that is illegal pretty much everywhere. Not one or two plants but a full blown, cultivated and fertilized growing operation roughly half the size of a football field! Whoever was growing this stuff had apparently been at it for a while and they had tools and bags of plant food and all sorts of things around. Can you imagine if someone else found that instead of him, like maybe the cops? That would be one heck of a thing to try and explain. Luckily he was able to call in the police and get it out of there. We had a heck of a laugh about it, and we still do, but it could have been a very bad situation. He owned the land, see? He’d owned it for almost a year. It would have been his butt in a sling.

   When looking at lots don’t judge from the road. Get out of the car and walk the whole thing. Bring a pair of boots with you if need be. The above example seems crazy but it really happened. Other things to look for, beyond illegal drugs, are trash piles and old dump spots, signs of illicit gatherings, busted down old cars, kids’ tree forts or hunting stands, and more.

   Be on the look out for old pipes sticking out of the ground or pipe covers and tank covers. This could be sign of previous development on the land. Finding out that you have a very old, half full, rusty and leaky oil tank buried on your property is not an enjoyable thing. With all the local and federal enviromental regulations governing toxins, dumping and disposal you could have a big bill on your hands.  Before you buy that land walk the whole thing and while you’re at take notice of the sun angle and how you can take advantage of it.