Purchasing vacant land? If you are buying land in Sequim or Port Angeles, you might find this checklist helpful. Buying a city lot is quite different than buying rural land, and issues of potential concern are not the same in all counties in all states.
Perc Results | Fire Protection |
Soils Report | Environmentally Sensitive Areas |
Bluff Stability | Test Flood Plane |
Toxic Waste | Test Wildlife Habitate (Owl Nests) |
Buried Fuel Tanks | Industrial Noise |
Road Work, Road Maintenance | Open Space/Forest Designation |
Clearing Bypass/Freeway Construction | Agricultural Designation |
Survey Removal | Airport Approach |
Exact Size of Property (corners) | Final Plat Recorded |
Power/Hook-up Fees | Timber Clause |
Water/Hook-up Fees | Telephone Access/Cost |
Escrow Note Collection | Well (private, community, utility) |
Legal Access to Property | Release Clause/Partial Reconveyance |
Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions | Possible Land Use Change |
Re-Zone, Variance, Conditional Use | Financial Statement From Buyer |
Zone Compatibility w/present use | Shoreline Management Act |
Comprehensive Plan & Zone Change | Talk to Neighbors |
Irrigation Ditches (run all/partial year?) | Timber Cruise & Value of Timber |
Wet Lands | Geotechnical Report |
Last Updated on November 26, 2008 by Chuck Marunde
Man this is so key to look at before buying land or investing in a house. My brother in law almost got robbed in a house deal because everything looked fine but the house actually had a very poor utility line. Make sure to check into these things!
People do not understand how important the message you posted really is. We have a potential flooding situation in Green River Valley area affecting Kent, Renton, Auburn, and Tukwila Washington. Currently only 2% of the population has flood insurance even though the area was a flood plain before a dam was erected in the 1950s. Now there is a problem with the dam and the Army Corp of Engineers is predicting there is a 35% chance of floods this winter but the population still is not very concerned. I hope more people reading postings like this and prepare themselves!