Lakefront Purchase Real Estate ?????

[FOOTDOC]

I am seriously considering buying a piece of lake front property from a private party without using a realtor. If there are any realtors in our group, what do I need to look out for to protect myself. It seems pretty straight forward. This older gentleman has a nice lot on a local lake and the lot is nice and high and not in a flood plain. I think his asking price is fair and am willing to make an offer. Are there any questions I should be asking or things I should be looking out for? Thanks in advance

[steve(IL)]

I am no realtor, but have a few tidbits to offer. 1) You can hire an attorney to protect your interests at closing. This is a typical practice in home buying. Anything in writing between you and this gentleman should always include the caveat "contingent on attorney's approval" or something like that. 2) Speaking from experience as a waterfront property owner - consider prevailing winds in that region. For example, if the property in question is on the North or East portion of the lake, SW winds will blow leaves, sticks, garbage, etc. to your shoreline. Not necessarily a reason to take a pass - just be advised. 3) Who is responsible for the lake? DNR? An association? As a property owner - you might assume certain responsibilities.

[bountyhunter]

GO to a realitor [if you know of one the better have them rite purchase agreement for a flat fee . lots of them do it your saveing and they will get the paper work done .

[Dreamer]

There are a number of things you can do. Since I'm not familiar with the area, I'll just make a couple suggestions and say besides that do some research in regards to any requirements for upkeeping the shore line, boundaries, etc.
Then make the offer subject to getting an inspection of the major electrical, plumbing, heating, cooling, sturctural, roof. etc. deficiencies. If the property is on a well or septic system they should be checked also.

Most areas have whole house inspectors that you can hire to do that for you. A water sample and a septic inspection would be seperate items. Generally, one can make an offer giving you 7-10 days to do these inspections and be back to the seller in writing during that period of time with a request to fix/negotiate something should a deficiency show up.

Hoep that helps.

Get an attorney to help you write it up, but make sure these items are covered unless you feel comfortable with them being okay.

Dreamer
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Dreamer
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[Phil T.]

Check the taxation history. MN, for example, is full of lake property owners whose present taxes are more than their old mortgage payments.

[Wallygetter]

FootDoc, there are several things that should be settled, in writing with both buyer and seller signatures, along with a witness signature. Among these are, who will pay for the Title Insurance Policy, Warrenty Deed, Pest Inspection, Water Test, and Septic pump and inspection, if needed. Normally these are all paid for by the SELLER. Property taxes should be dicussed, the fair way to both parties would be to pro-rate the taxes in arrears, which means the seller pays his share of taxes pro-rated in arrears on a calander year basis to date of closing. Example, you close on June 1, he would pay the taxes up to this time and you get a credit or check at closing for his share and when the taxes come due then you pay the whole bill. If a survey is needed or requested, this normally is paid for by the buyer. If the buyer wants or feels a need for any structural inspections, electrical, or mechincal inspections these would be his expense. Are there any mineral rights? This also should be part of the purchase agreement, who gets them, the buyer, or does the seller retain them. A seller disclousre statement should be filled out by the seller, this covers questions about the roof, well, septic, heating system,,etc. and any problems that may have occured with these areas and others. You should hire a good real estate attorney as much as I hate to say it to help you close the deal and any problems that may arise along the way. You may also want to get an appraisal on the property, or at least a Fair Market Value Opinion on it, any realtor or appraiser could do this for you. Hope this helps a little, there is still more, but this covers the basics, I must add I'm not giving you any legal advice nor am I representing anyone in anyway, just giving some simple answers. If you make an earnest deposit, make sure it is refundable if the deal does not close for any reason. Thanks, and good luck.

[spooled]

Make sure the Title is clear. It would be extremely wise to get some title insurance. Make sure there are no liens on the property. Basically cover your #####. There are are lot of things that can go wrong in a transaction between 2 private parties. Some are unintentional. Just make sure that you are protected. An ounce of prevention ai worth a pound of cure.

[MK]

As an appraiser, I'll offer a couple of suggestions, things I look for when I appraise bare land. These are all based on the assumption that you are talking about a bare lot.

1. Check zoning regulations thoroughly. Make sure that you can build there. This may sound elementary but there are un-buildable lots. Too small, narrow, etc.

2. Check for building set-back lines. These will tell you where you can build on the lot, i.e, how close to the lake, the side property lines, etc. And don't assume that just because the neighbors cabin or house is located close to the water that yours can be. Regulations change over time and the other houses may be "grand-fathered" in under older regulations.

3. Check with the local board of health or similar agency about septic system if needed. I've seen lots that look nice but you may be able only to build a house of a certain size due to soil types, drainage, etc.

4. Have a title search done not only to check for outstanding liens, etc. but to determine lake access or easements across the property. There may be a easement of some type (access for a neighbor, water line, natural gas line, power line, etc.) right where you want to put your house.

5. Get a survey. Don't assume that some stake that's been in the ground for 20 years is the property line. This will tell you if your property line goes to the water or stops short of the shore line.

6. Find out about homeowners association or lake association and their particular rules/regs/fees.

A good appraisal will tell you most of these things, not just the value. To do a thorough appraisal, you need to know all of these items in order to estimate value. There's a big difference in value between a building lot and a piece of surplus land that can't be built on.

Good luck and I hope this helps some.

[AREA-LAKE]

GET A SURVEY!!! Yes I am shouting. Years ago, my mother bought a lake front cabin (229 ft of beautiful frontage) from a nice elderly lady. The next year the state of Wisconsin sent my mom a letter that told her to move 2/3 of the cabin off THEIR land. The seller had received the same letter prior to putting it up for sale. By the time the seller was tracked down the nice elderly lady had passed away:'(

[ChuckD]

Great suggestions here! I am possibly transfering to Fergus Falls, MN (60 miles from where I live now, so I am not in a mad rush) and looking for land/rural residential (if anyone here knows people who would like to sell). That means I would have to sell my home, to which I am debating hiring a realtor or selling myself.
Anyone have any tips for me....for sale by owner?

[hgmeyer]

Get professional help...period, end of story. Unless you are in the habiit of performing dental work, heart surgery, etc on yourself with the aid of a swiss army knife and a mirror...you are already in the habit of using professional services. The horror stories could fill the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian if you gather them all...boundary, survey, title liens, road access, taxes, zoning, deed restrictions, utilities, well, septic...the list goes on and on....

Spending several hundreds...or even more, for a solid deal that ends up being a good deal for you is a whole lot better than saving a few bucks and ending up in a nightmare.

[T-Mac]

I bought some land, and sold a place with no realtor.
I just had a title company do the deal. A realtor has to use them in most cases anyway.

[Skillz]

Saw your post and had to give you my $.02

I have yet to buy any property, so please take this at face value and accept that I probably don't have any idea what I am talking about.... however, I am in the same situation as you and the advise I got seemed pertainent to your situation.

When there is something to be bought- car, lake house, etc... it is the agreed upon price of buyer and seller. Period. It doesn't matter what they are asking if you are willing to pay, and vise versa. (I don't want to get into economic ethics or anything here..) If they are asking $1000000000000 for the property and you agree to pay this much. Property exchanges hands. If you don't think this is reasonable, then it doesn't change hands. If they are willing to settle to sell for $10, same situation...

I have my eye on a couple nice areas and houses, but alas, on my salary, I must save for the next thousand years or so. Good hunting and hope all works out for the best!!!

skz



Good Fishin'!!!!

[Dreamer]

Hire a realtor!

Dreamer
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[hgmeyer]

A title company is concerned only with those things that are pertinent to their assumption of an insurable risk. THEY DO NOT INSURE YOU AGAINST ALL PERILS...matters of survey, adverse possession, zoning and building codes, well and septic issues as well as many more are of no concern to them....This is not a "Grab Bag" purchase down at the bait shop...what you don't know about can hurt you bad...I hope you were lucky...or are wealthyu enough not to care about how it all works out in the end

[bountyhunter]

SO NOW THAT YOU HAVE ALL THIS EX SPERT advice .DO WHAT I SAID HIRE AN AGENT TO GET DONE RIGHT. all the talk won't help it's gotta be on paper .jim

[Mckoz]

Another .02 - I am in the process of buying a large chunk of land from a man who did not use a reputable realtor to buy some lake property. Long and short, he did'nt do his research and paid huge $$'s for lake property which turned out had no access - he is now in a huge financial mess and I was able to help him out by buying some of his other property - so he can turn around and buy another piece from a next door neighbor. An extremely costly and messy situation.

Living in what is termed "The Lake Country" area here I can tell you a dozen more horror stories of lake deals gone bad - lots of old easements, lake rights and boundaries which are still fought over.

I generally would not use a realtor - but with a lake property I would hire a specialist in the area as well as an attorney.

Good luck, I hope it works out for you.

Mike

[Wallygetter]

Where do you go when you have a toothache,Dentist. Where do you go when your sick,Doctor. Where do you go to buy insurance, Ins. Agent. Please do youself a huge favor and hire a Realtor, there are good ones out there yet. You can hire one as a Buyers Agent and they will do everything right, no backdooring, and buy all means close with a Title Co.

[MK]

Don't assume just just because someone is a Realtor that they know what they're doing.

If you hire a realtor, make sure they know your lake well and that they have been in the business for several years.

Around here, all you need is a pulse and 54 hours of night school to become a realtor. And in the class, all they teach them is how to follow the state laws. They teach nothing about selling real estate.

Get one that has sold plenty of lake property specifically. There are many aspects of lake property that aren't involved with off water property.

[T-Mac]

I am sorry I upset you.

At both of those closings, the "standard" real estate contract of choice of the title company involved, was used. My financial loan representative (banker) was present, and the paper work which was drawn up by the title company and the bank was all signed. (There was a lot of it.) The title work was done, title insurance was paid for, and all the particulars were attended to. (Plot maps, covenants, abstract, deed, taxes, mortgage, etc.)

In a couple of other Real estate transactions I participated in with a Realtor involved, the Realtor was also present at the exact same type of closing.

In those instances, the realtor was at the meeting because I had used his services to find me a property that I ended up purchasing. He was working as my agent.

I have nothing against Realtors. They provide a valuable service when needed.