Hidden expenses of an oversized lot

[Hedy Kromer]

I'm in contract on a house in Atlanta (Stone Mountain).  I just noticed that the lot size is listed as .6 acre (25,000 sf), which is huge.  I looked at how it's parceled, and it has a regular sized back yard with backs into a richly forested area, which I had assumed was owned by the city/park.  However, it turns out, I would own it.  So my concern is, are there hidden expenses that I should be concerned about with owning so much land.  It's a forest, so I wouldn't do any landscaping to it.  But my concern is that the city may require that I do some sort of weed abatement every year or so.  Does anyone have any experience with this?  I'm hoping that there likely wouldn't be any additional expenses of owning that forest, although there's no guarantee.  But what's the likelihood?

[Carolyn Helmle]

Yes, there could be expenses associated with weed control, or fines levied with failure to keep the weeds down.  There might also be the fire hazard due to weeds or having brush and trees close to your house, which might affect the cost of your fire insurance.  It might also be a safety hazard, since thieves often like to access through areas that are sheltered by brush or trees  because there is a lower risk of being spotted by neighbors.  This might impact the insurance rates for tenants or yourself when the home is vacant. Just considerations that occurred to me, some from experience.