Before You List Vacant Land

A current survey, a soil evaluation, and title work are out-of-pocket expenses with no guaranteed return, spent before anyone has offered you anything. On a small, ordinary lot in a subdivision with clear records, some of it may be unnecessary. On anything rural, irregular, or inherited, it is usually cheaper than the discount buyers apply to uncertainty.

A current survey establishes boundaries, acreage, and encroachments. Old deed descriptions, especially ones written from landmarks, are a frequent source of disputes that surface after a contract is signed and kill it.

If a neighbor's fence, drive, or outbuilding crosses the line, you want to know before a buyer's surveyor tells them. That is a solvable problem with time and an unsolvable one at day 25 of a 30-day contract.

Have the recorded document that gives the parcel legal access — deeded road frontage or a recorded easement — and know whether it is maintained, by whom, and whether it is wide enough for the use a buyer has in mind. If access crosses someone else's land without a recorded easement, fix that before listing. It is the single most common reason a land deal falls apart in diligence.

• Water: public tap availability and cost, or well information for the area.
• Sewer or septic: public sewer availability, or soil evaluation results and their date.
• Power: the distance to the nearest line and, if you can get it, an estimate to extend service.
• Internet and gas, if relevant to buyers where you are.

• Zoning designation and permitted uses, confirmed with the county, plus any restrictive covenants.
• Property tax amount and any exemptions or agricultural classification that would change for a new owner.
• Title work ordered early: heirs, old liens, and mineral or timber reservations take time to resolve.
• Flood zone status and any wetlands delineation you have.
• Photos that show what matters: road frontage, the entrance, the buildable area, and the terrain. Aerials with the boundary drawn help buyers understand a parcel far better than ground-level photos of trees.

With the file assembled, a land-experienced agent can price against what is genuinely comparable instead of guessing at your parcel's unknowns. That is the entire reason for doing the work first.