 Not everything is what it seems. This vacant lot right next to the Pacific Ocean and a nature preserve is currently for sale for less than $100K. In case you don't know.....that's a steal! There are land investors that would jump on this in an instant. But not you, right? You know better than that. You know there is a BARF (Big A*% Red Flag) just waiting around the corner. You just don't know what it is. It seems too good to be true....but is it?
Yes I was on my anniversary trip....away from the kids. Super nice, but it doesn't stop us from stopping and wondering....what's the deal here? Remember, there's always a reason a lot, especially like this, hasn't been developed. Turns out that this area has a serious water shortage. In fact, there is a long waiting list for water meters. In fact, the list was started in the 1980's and this lot in particular is number 423 on that list! This is a super small town by the way. How long do you think it would take to get to number 423? Oh, and by the way, there is a moratorium on right now where they aren't connecting anyone to water. What's interesting to me is that this has created a water meter black market in a sense. The town ordinance allows you to sell your spot in line to another qualifying lot. How much do you think that spot in line is worth? This is a beautiful town in the coastal wine country of central California. It isn't cheap I'm sure. Next time you find a dream lot, remember that it could be many others dream lot as well and there is likely a good reason that it's sitting vacant.
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When working with investors, I am often asked what kind of home builders an investor should look for to buy their entitled lot. There are a lot of options to consider but I often recommend going with a smaller custom home builder rather than the big names that you're used to seeing. Chances are that the project you're working on is too small for the big guys to consider. See the article in the link below from one of those kind of home builders where they talk about the difference between building on a rural lot versus an infill lot. I'm not advocating for this builder specifically, but these are the type of builders you should be looking for. These are your buyers! Get to know them well. https://www.turnerandsonhomes.com/blog/2016/02/rural-versus-raw-land  If you've ever wondered why building in a flood zone is a bad idea, take a look at these pictures from Nebraska that were taken when the Missouri River flooded during construction of these houses. You may wonder why the local jurisdiction approved this to begin with, but remember that you can build in some flood zones if you elevate the finished floor elevation. In this situation, the structures themselves may not have been that damaged but look at the rest of the story. Thought this would give all of us some good perspective.  It's my birthday (thanks to all of you for the kind messages and well wishes) and to celebrate, we've opened up our Entitle and Flip Coaching Program for new members to enroll starting NOW! I have had the pleasure of speaking to a number of people about this program over the past couple of weeks and I really do want to reiterate that my intentions for this group are to get a small group of like-minded individuals together that want to do Entitle and Flip projects. We have a number of members that have joined already, so if you're interested please let me know if you have any questions before joining. Space is very limited. Check out the details and sign up at tolosapropertygroup.com/coaching-program.  Would you love to do a subdivision project but think they’re too hard? I’m going to let you in on something….not all subdivisions are the same. Some require public hearings, public roadways and the extension of utilities. And then there are exempt subdivisions. Click on the link below for an example. You’re welcome! https://www.wakegov.com/departments-government/planning-development-inspections/zoning-subdivision/exempt-subdivisions  The below article discusses the proposed development of a 90,000 square foot industrial/logistics building. I’m posting this in response to some questions I received about developers asking for entitlement contingencies. The investor I was working with thought that it was odd that a developer would ask for this and was going to use it as part of their reasoning to not sign a purchase agreement. Two points:
 I spoke to someone just minutes ago who was looking to subdivide a 120-acre tract for sale to recreational users. He knows this type of user very well and believes that 5-acre lots are the ideal size for this buyer. Unfortunately, the zoning requires a 20-acre minimum lot size. His question for me was if there was any way to change the minimum lot size through a variance or something similar. Quickly, you can’t use a variance to deviate from minimum lot size requirements. So the only option would be to request a rezoning to a more intense zoning designation that allows for smaller minimum lot sizes. So the real question is if the property was a good candidate for a rezoning approval. In this case, likely not. And that has a lot to do with the zoning of the surrounding properties. This reminded me that this is exactly the kind of information and material that is covered in the Rezoning for Profits course found on our website at the link below. Check out that page and take a look at the quick video below to learn more and be sure to reach out with any questions. http://www.tolosapropertygroup.com/education.html Here is a really fun resource. Check out historicerials.com. For land investors this can prove valuable when researching historical land uses or if you need to see if there was ever a structure on the property, etc. I just looked at aerials of San Francisco from the 1930’s and 1940’s. You can see the Golden Gate about 15 years after it was completed and then on the other side of the bay, the Bay Bridge isn’t even built yet. I dare you to start down the rabbit hole and see how long it takes to get out.  Here’s a page from the inaugural edition of the Entitle and Flip Newsletter. We are focused on showing you how to add value to your land investments without even having to touch it. To get a free copy of the our first issue or to sign up for a monthly subscription for only $10 per month, visit our website at the link below. Happy investing! http://www.tolosapropertygroup.com/newsletter.html  Density is the measured as the number of dwelling units per acre (du/ac). A density bonus provides an increase in allowed du/ac, Floor Area Ratio (FAR) or height which generally means that more housing units can be built on any given site. This bonus is typically granted to a developer in exchange for the provision of affordable and sometimes age restricted (55+) communities. This doesn't just have to be for larger projects. It can be done for smaller ones as well. Another example of how unique entitlements can add value to an existing property  |
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