Posted by David Krulac on July 13, 2005 at 06:12:57:
the price as is is way different from the developed price. that said the devlopmental costs could exceed the price of the property and could take years. In my experience appraiser will be low, as they can NOT appraise the property based on a MAYBE subdivision. The highest price possible would be for you to develop the property yourself, difficult for a novice. The second highest price would be to partner with an experience, and honest developer. You and your family need to decide if you want the fast buck or the last buck?
We have 25 acres of land in CT that we would like to sell. It is zoned residential, wooded, hay fields, an old summer house and has a good amount of frontage road. The local land office is very familiar with the property and is pretty sure it would be suitable for development. Anyway, we just aren’t sure where to begin (we live out of state). We’ve been contacted by a couple of real estate agents (some have been eyeing this property for years) and their “ballpark price” seems awful low to us (after doing a bit of research ourselves). Would it be best to get a professional appraisal? Of course, our aim is to get top dollar, and it seems that the real estate agents aim is to lowball us. Also, we really don’t want to pay 10% commission to an agent. Would a real estate attorney be a wise move? We just want to make sure we don’t get burned in this deal. All advice appreciated!!
Where in CT is the raw land located? Depending on the area I might be able to provide some help. I know a couple developers that might buy the land without an agent and avoid a fee or it can go on the open market to see if you can top dollar less a fee.