What the records keep telling us.
Short, specific write-ups from real parcel research — the patterns that repeat, the costs that surprise people, and the checks worth running first.
How to underwrite a land deal: what a parcel is actually worth
Land has no rent roll to analyze. Underwriting a land deal is mostly subtracting — costs, constraints and time — from what the end product could sell for.
Read postHow to read a survey plat: bearings, monuments and the notes that matter
The most important part of a survey plat is usually the paragraph of notes in the corner that nobody reads.
Read postLand survey vs title search: what each one actually finds
Buyers often pay for one and assume they got the other. They answer completely different questions.
Read postDo I need a land survey before buying land?
Sometimes the survey is the only answer. More often it is an expensive way to ask a question the records already answered.
Read postBuying land for the first time: ten mistakes we see every month
Houses come with a lender, an appraiser and an inspector checking the work. Raw land comes with none of that. Here is what first-time buyers miss.
Read postBuying land in California: what's different from other states
In California the permit, not the deed, decides what a parcel is worth — and the permit answer sits across four different agencies.
Read postBuying land in Florida: what's different from other states
Wetlands jurisdiction, land-use designations and flood exposure decide most Florida parcels — the listing photos never show any of it.
Read postBuying land in Colorado: what's different from other states
In Colorado the water doesn't automatically come with the land — and that one fact reshapes the whole due diligence process.
Read postBuying land in Pennsylvania: what's different from other states
Clean and Green rollbacks, Marcellus-era gas severances, and township-by-township rules — Pennsylvania due diligence is its own discipline.
Read postBuying land in Texas: what's different from other states
Minerals, rollback taxes, rule-of-capture groundwater, and counties with no zoning — Texas plays by its own rules.
Read postBuying land in New York: what's different from other states
New York runs land deals its own way — attorney closings, layered wetlands rules, and taxes that vary by school district.
Read postHow to read a deed: legal descriptions, grants, and exceptions
Everything a deed takes away from you lives in one section most buyers never read. Here is how to read it.
Read postWell and septic on rural land: what to check before you buy
On rural land, the two systems a listing never mentions are the two that decide whether you can live there at all.
Read postWhat is a plat map, and how do you read one?
The recorded plat is the cheapest document in land research and the one buyers most often skip.
Read postBuying land at a tax sale: what the auction listing will not tell you
Tax sales are the cheapest way to buy land and the easiest way to buy a problem you cannot resell.
Read postWhat is a conservation easement, and what does it mean for a buyer?
A conservation easement does not expire when the property sells. It runs with the land, forever.
Read postHow to tell if a piece of land is buildable before you buy it
"Buildable" is not a listing adjective. It is the result of six specific checks, all of which you can run before closing.
Read postBoundary survey cost in 2026: average land survey prices by acre
A survey is the most expensive check most land buyers make — and often the one they order too early. Here is what each type costs and why.
Read postCan I build on this land? The zoning and permit checks to run first
Owning a parcel and being allowed to build on it are two different things. Here is how to confirm the second one.
Read postEasements on land explained: the types, and how each one limits you
An easement is someone else's right to use your land. Which type it is changes what you can build and where.
Read postWho owns the mineral rights to your property, and how to find out
In much of the country, someone else can own what is under the land you just bought — and has the right to come get it.
Read postLandlocked property: can you build on it, and can a neighbor deny access?
A track to the property line is not access. What the law actually requires, and what it takes to fix a landlocked parcel.
Read postHow to find property lines without a survey (free methods that work)
County GIS, plat maps and the deed will get you close for free. Here is how to read them, and where they stop being reliable.
Read postWhat is a perc test? Cost, process and what happens if land fails
The single test that decides whether a parcel without sewer can ever hold a house. Here is how it works, start to finish.
Read postHow much does land due diligence actually cost?
Real numbers for records research, surveys, perc tests and title work, and which ones you can skip early.
Read postOwner financing on raw land: what to check before you sign
When there is no lender, nobody is checking title but you. That is the entire trade you are making.
Read postWhat a land survey does not tell you
Buyers often treat a survey as proof the parcel is fine. It answers one question well and stays silent on the rest.
Read postFive red flags we find in cheap land listings
A parcel priced far below its neighbors is priced that way for a reason. Here are the five reasons we find most often.
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