Gatlinburg Cabin - should we buy???

Question

We have an accepted offer on our first cabin in the Gatlinburg area. It is in Sevierville by Evans Chapel which is 30 mins from Gatlinburg and 20 to Pigeon Forge.

It has a beautiful partial mountain view. It is a well kept second home with no rental history. It has a large king master bedroom and a double bed in the loft. There is no HOA fee. It's paved. It comes furnished.

Now for the concerns....

The cabin shares a well with another cabin that is a second home and the owner is not always there. We could not turn the water on during the inspection. Had to reschedule. We are contingent on a registered well agreement, however the fact that we have no real control over the water is a huge concern. We are going to ask that the seller pay for the well to be split so that he can shut his off without affecting us, however it will always be a concern since it will be out of our control.

The location is a concern. It's an absolutely gorgeous drive and all paved and can be done with any car. No 4 wheel drive needed. However, wondering if we can make the numbers we will need to make being a half hour away.

Thoughts? Should we bail or move forward?

Julie McCoy · Answer

That's a beautiful area, I think you'll have no trouble renting it.  Plenty of people want the quiet and a view and don't mind driving a little to get it.

As for the water, shared wells are extremely common in the area.  That said, I haven't heard of issues like the ones you describe - why was the water off during your inspection?  Getting to the bottom of that seems to be key - like you said, you want to make sure that the owner isn't just shutting it off!

Absentee owners are common.  I control shared wells on some of my properties, but if something happened I'd be able to call someone and address the issue quickly (and I've done exactly that before).  You definitely want the ability to contact the owner of the well AND know that, if there was need, a repair person could access the well equipment in the owner's absence (this is as simple as a key in a lockbox, but the other owner needs to make sure it's there/accessible).

So, I think this is very resolvable, but you're taking the right steps to make sure you don't get burned.  :)

Avery Carl · Answer

@Maria King I have a shut off valve in the crawlspace of one of my cabins that does control the neighbor's water. But I don't lock the crawlspace just in case it's ever an issue. If the neighbor is willing to let the seller pay to move it to the outside of the cabin then that's great! But these kinds of issues are VERY normal for transactions here and nothing to be afraid of, just do your due diligence and get to the bottom of why the water was shut off and how you can ensure that does not happen in the future! I think you're fine on location as well to echo @Julie McCoy

Avery Carl · Answer

@Maria King shared wells are very common out here and not a major concern as long as the proper legal documents are in place (a shared well agreement). When 2 cabins are on shared wells, they generally have the well on one property and the pump etc on the other as a sort of checks and balances system so that no one has complete control of the water. So are you saying that the neighbor has a shutoff valve that can keep the water from being pumped into your property?

As for location, I generally suggest staying within a 20 minute drive of either Pigeon Forge or Gatlinburg, there are definitely exceptions to all rules for the right property. How many bedrooms is it?

Julie McCoy · Answer

@Maria King That sounds satisfactory to me.  You have control/access to your water supply, he has control/access to his.  As you already know, a legal agreement is essential.

It's not an issue I've encountered before, as @Avery Carl said usually equipment is split so no one person holds all the power, but shared wells are very common and operate in harmony the vast majority of the time.

It sounds like you're making the right moves, just make sure everything you need to access/control your shutoff is in place before closing, and have contact info for the neighbor so if there's ever any equipment issues you can communicate on their repair.

Jay Fradd · Answer

I agree with most of the comments above. However, there is one thing to be cognizant of that could happen in a worst case scenario and happened fairly often during the rampant foreclosures about a decade ago.

When owners were facing foreclosure their power would often be cut off prior to the transition to being foreclosed. For properties on shared wells with the other cabin having the power supplying the well pump this can be an issue. Diverting the water shut off in this scenario is irrelevant because you can’t get water in the first place without electricity to operate the well pump.

Obviously if a proper shared well agreement is in place the owner can’t just cut off power to the well to the other party as they please. However, in rare situations such as foreclosure or a struggling owner that can keep their electric on it can be a concern that could shut down rentals to a cabin for a somewhat short duration until it can be resolved. In reality this hasn’t been a very common scenario recently, but is something to put in the back of your mind that, although not likely, COULD occur.

There are several elements of a shared well agreement that can be written to add a little more teeth and protect against things such as this. Some shared well agreements, in my opinion, leave a little to be desired in their language. While others are very well crafted. So I’d recommend making sure the way it is written protects your investment as well as possible.

Being 30 minutes away is right at the breaking point of being too far away from the action in my opinion. Cabins that have nice amenities such as a good view and privacy (and other desirable amenities) can overcome the location to some degree. It sounds like the setting of the cabin is ideal for someone who wants a true authentic cabin in the mountains environment with some privacy. Which is what a large percentage of cabins lack in our area.

Wish you the best in your shared well solution and cabin investment here. Any other questions I’m sure someone on here will have an answer so feel free to fire away with anything you can think of!

Chris Watson · Answer

@Maria King My Cabins are 23 mins out of PF and 37mins out of Gatlinburg and do outstandingly great.  You just have to make sure you are offering quality that far out.  The shared well is common, but I personally will not have a shared well (atleast not for long).

Maria King · Answer

@Avery Carl thank you very much for your time. Good info.  We can sleep a little easier tonight 😊

John Morgan · Answer

@Maria King

I have a STR cabin in Branson, MO and is a 25 min drive to part of the attractions in Branson. But only 5 minutes away from the amusement park and 10 min away from the strip..that is very similar to Pigeon Forge. I do get complaints online about being too far away. It irritates me that people would say that. They should look at that before they book it. Some people want to be 10 minutes away from everything. It’s in a quiet secluded area in the woods backing up to a creek. However, I wouldn’t buy anything further than 20 minutes out. And the well situation seems dicey. And can you make money off a 261k purchase? That sounds high for a seasonal rental. Just my 2 cents. Good luck!

Avery Carl · Answer

@Maria King Don't be nervous! You'll do great!

Maria King · Answer

@Julie McCoy great! Thank you for your time!

Gatlinburg Cabin - should we buy???

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