Check if community or city water and sewer connections are available on the land or lot you are interested in before you buy.
If sewer hookups are not available, be sure to make your offer to buy the land or lot conditional on the ability to install a septic system rated for the number of bedrooms you require.
Determine if other contingencies are advisable for the land or lot purchase. For example, in some areas water rights do not transfer with land ownership, which means you could not dig a well to get water.
Find out if phone service and electricity are available at the property.
Also look into cable service if that is a priority.
Find out if the land you are interested in purchasing is accessible by a public road. If it is not, verify that a road maintenance agreement is in place. This document asserts that everyone on the road agrees to help with its upkeep.
For land that is not accessible by a public road, make certain that there is a deeded right-of-way in place. This deed should give you and future owners the legal right to access the land.
If you plan to build on the land or lot, be sure to go over the property's deed restrictions to ensure that the type of residence you plan to build is allowed. Some areas do not allow manufactured homes for example.
If the land or lot is in a development, be certain to get a copy of the restrictive covenants. They will inform you of restrictions, such as the minimum size residence allowed, how many homes may be built on one lot, whether other structures are allowed, what type of construction the homes must (or must not) be, and any other limitations.
Inquire with the city or county if any zoning changes are anticipated for the area. Also find out if there are any plans to widen existing roads or build new roads .
Find out if there are any environmental hazards on the land (e.g., old buried gas or oil tanks, contaminated soil from mine tailings). If there are environmental hazards present, decide if you are willing to be responsible for their cleanup, or if you want the seller to be responsible for their removal and cleanup.
Surveys are not required in all areas, but are standard in some places. Getting a new boundary survey is nearly always a good idea, so decide if you want one or not.
If you are planning to build a home soon be certain to talk to lenders about construction loans.
Try not to be turned off by terms such as 'subdivision' or 'development.' Although you might associate both words with side-by-side homes and small lots if you are from a city, in rural areas a subdivision lot might be over 10 acres in size.
Read restrictive covenants carefully so you know exactly what is and is not allowed. They are established to help protect home values by requiring structures to conform to specific standards.
Be sure that you study the deed to find out if other people or tracts of land have been granted easements to use the land or lot in any way.
