Raw Land for a first deal

[Kim Pham]

Hi BP Community!

Would love to get your guidance as I think this might be my very first deal. 

-FSBO priced at $80K (free and clear)

-Owner is an elderly man who purchased the lot for $60K nearly 20 years ago through a foreclosure sale. He lives out of the area and is motivated to get rid of it.

-Property is 1/2 acre raw land. 

-Property profile report shows the property use is residential/vacant

-Located on block with single family homes valued $500k-$700K with same lot size. 

This might be my first deal and I'm so nervous. I told him I'd get back to him on Tues/Weds. Does this sound like an okay deal guys? Raw land? I am completely clueless on what I need to do next. Do I find a lawyer to help me fill out a purchase agreement? I'm sorry for sounding like such a newbie but any guidance would be very much appreciated. :)

[Karen Margrave]

@Kim Pham You can probably go onto the website for the City, and look at an interactive map that shows zoning, etc  Depending on where in San Jose the lot is, it could be worth far more than you are thinking, as a 1/2 lot can be split, depending on the minimum lot size allowed in the neighborhood. 

As to the value ratio @Christina R. those are for some areas of California, not all, and things like that are definitely local, so you need to find out for your area. In some areas of California we have to pay ridiculously high prices for land, other areas of the country are sometimes lower. 

When a builder is looking at land, we are looking at zoning, location, topography (is the land flat or is it going to require a lot of excavation, retaining walls, etc.) where are utilities in relation to the lot, are there any utilities that will need to be relocated, put underground, etc. What is the minimum lot size, etc. Type of soil (that's more a concern when you are in coastal areas or have sloping lot, etc.) 

If you want to send me the address of the lot in a private message, I'd be happy to look it up on google earth an give you a quick opinion of the land, the neighborhood, etc. You don't want to put too much online until you get it tied down.  Once you have that done, there's some builders here on BP that are in your area that may be interested. 

Sounds like a great opportunity though.