How to make an offer to the seller when it is a Church

[Mariel DeVito]

Hello BP Friends - I put in an offer on my first multi family home (duplex) which happens to have a vacant lot next to it.  In looking at the deed, it appears that it was deeded to the church which is across the street twenty years ago as a vacant land.  It is still a vacant land.  I am interested in acquiring it.  Any advice on what to even offer the church for it?  It is 0.23 acre and the assessed value is about $38K.  It is not worth $38k to me.  Thoughts on how to make this deal work?  I'm sure that the church could use the money instead of the vacant land.  I can possibly swallow a $10k payment each year for three years, worst case scenario.

[Don Gouge]

First, what are your plans for the property? I say that it is probably unlikely that the church will do anything with it and if they do it will probably just be used as a parking lot. A big question to ask is if the church is growing, stagnant, or shrinking? If its growing they might want to keep it for future parking. If they are stagnant but in good financial shape,they are unmotivated. If you sense the collections are lagging, they might be willing to sell. Just contact one of the elders and ask if they would consider a sale.