I bought my first piece of land in a tax auction, how to develop?r

[Austin Snyder]

Hello all,

I have previous experience with real estate, but first timer with both raw land and tax auctions in Texas and I'm realizing now just how little I know when it comes to land. I'm hoping I can get some tips or pointers from anybody with experience in land development or buying land off tax auctions. The property I bought is about 7,200 sqft in a gated subdivision near a lake/boat slip with many other plots of land nearby that are around the same size. Houses built in the area are in the $1-2 million range. 

The extent of the research I did was that I saw the previous owner bought the land in 2007 for $37,500 and I bought it for $7,000 cash. I know bare minimum I could turn around after the redemption period and just sell it for a higher amount. However, I don't know if there's been soil tests, building plans, I don't know if there's utilities in place underground, if it's in an HOA, etc..

My question was this, to save time and money, is there a place I would be able to see if a previous soil test has been done, building plans, anything? Would the county have record of that, or a 3rd party website maybe? Should I try to get in contact with the previous owner? Any suggestions are greatly appreciated as I'm hoping to buy a lot more property through tax auctions but I'm a young padawan with much to learn on this strategy.

P.S. Also open to any recommended resources or people who are knowledgeable on Texas tax auctions. Thanks so much in advance!