Where would you even start?

[Andrea Castor]

I'm not finding a ton of info here on BP about land development so I'm not even sure if this is possible. We are personally looking for ANYTHING in a small town close to our home called Waynesville. The schools have become some of the top in our area, but are still very small (less than 100 kids per grade). Lots of people looking into the area, BUT, not a lot of real estate going on. There has been quite a bit of development of streets with 2-5 acre lots but houses are not attainable to the "typical" family and are over $400k+. There is one main builder in the area that is booming but again, custom builder $300k + lot.

Anyway, long story short, there is a farm house currently available for $850k. Comes with a horse barn as well as 66+ acres. This is way out of my price range for a typical home and way more land than I would need. But to make it attainable, I'm wondering if there is a way to divide off the land and sell/develop. Where would I even start?

[Amber Bellin]

I know in my area you would start with the city to see if the property is dividable. Find out what the zoning is and that will give you an idea of how small you can make the lots. Then once you make the purchase you would work on getting the house onto its own smaller lot and work on the rest to sell separately. You would need a survey etc... Different cities, even in the same county, have different rules. But the city zoning office is a good place to start.