1. What motivated you in the beginning. How did you get started?
I lost my house when I got divorced, was living in Ohio where I was very unhappy, homesick for NM. I NEEDED a place to call my own. I knew I wanted to be in NM where my family is and where the sky is so spectacular. I worked it out so I could get $13,000 equity out of the house I had bought in OH with my partner, come back to NM and start looking for land.
2. What type of land and what area were you looking for when you started? Did your desires change as the process went forward? What were your criteria?
I wanted something rural and not too far from Santa Fe. In Santa Fe the houses are very expensive. So I started just driving around areas that I liked to see what was available. A friend told me about a piece she had bought in Abiquiu, which fit my criteria because it is half way between Santa Fe and the town my sister had chosen for her retirement home. So I looked at the land across the street from the land my friend had bought and decided to buy it on the spot.
3. (Optional) If you do not mind sharing numbers, How much money had you saved up for a down payment when you started looking?
I had the $13,000 from the house in OH, but I had to use a lot of that to get a truck and some tools. I only had to put down $2000 on the land so I had something to get started with.
4. Did you go through a Real Estate Agent? Auction? Personal Transaction? Other? Why did you make the choice you did?
My land was owner financed. I never would have qualified for any conventional financing.
5. Did you hire an attorney?
No
6. Did you get a survey?
Yes, and it was expensive, but out here you really have to make sure where your boundaries are and it was required for title ins.
7. Extremely important. WHAT MISTAKES DID YOU MAKE? Please highlight your mistakes. What would you do differently if you did it all over again?
I didn't make any mistakes buying the land. I made a few when it came time to put up the house. Many of you have followed my progress and know what I'm talking about.
8. Other than the purchase price of the land, how much money did you spend on fees and professional services.
I think the closing came to about $4,000 including the survey. The seller and I split it evenly (but I'm not sure if I remember the closing costs correctly).
9. How did closing go?
Very simply.
10. Please don't try to turn this thread into a sales pitch for a Real Estate company, or an attorney, or try to market a particular piece of land. Please speak in generic terms. This is intended to be a learning discussion about the land purchase process, not a sales pitch. (Papercreters is adamantly anti-spam.)
11. Please share as much detail about other factors or other parts of the process as you feel comfortable sharing.
Buying the land was a very simple process. I know I tend to be naive about things sometimes but I feel it is best to trust people and work with them. In my experience attorneys just inflate the cost of things and cause problems. I pay a higher interest rate for owner financing but as I said I never would have qualified for bank financing. This arrangement works for the seller and me because she makes a good amount on my land and I get a piece of land I wouldn't otherwise have. A couple of years ago I borrowed a little more money from her to put in a well. Last summer we refinanced to combine to two loans. It's been a pretty good experience for me.
12. A funny story or a joke about your situation is encouraged. Keep it light. I'd rather see us "laughing and learning" than "ranting and @#%ching".
I got a very good deal on my land, quite a bit less than others paid in my neighborhood. And the seller was extremely easy to work with. I knew she wasn't interested in men, but didn't realize she had designs on me until a long time after we sealed the deal. I have no romantic inclinations toward women but we have maintained a friendly neighborly relationship for the 4 or 5 years I've had the land. Not really a funny story but sort of interesting.
I encourage anyone to ask appropriate questions about the stories people post.
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Sincerely, Judith
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