Been looking off and on at dirt out in the WY / CO area, found a parcel I would like to make an offer on. Would be my first time buying raw land, what do I need to know and consider?
Neighbor on 120 acres has already pulled power to his property from the county road. Wells seem to flow 5gpm at 400 feet. Beyond that I know nothing other than dirt good, HOA bad.
Congrats on the purchase. I purchased a similar size property in East Texas a few years back. It’s primarily hard and softwood timber with about 5 acres of pasture.
I don’t know what your topography is like, but the first issue I had to tackle was reliably getting in and out of my property, and that meant cutting trails and building roads. Getting power to your property will be another issue and an expense. Sounds like you have the water situation covered, but if you want water elsewhere on the property, then you will have to trench lines or use a tote setup.
Depending on how far the property is from your residence, you’ll need a place to stay while you’re working on the property. The cheapest option is probably tent camping or putting a travel trailer out there, but eventually, you may want something permanent.
With my property being woods I had to purchase an ATV just to get around the place. When it rains, the mud is a major issue. Even a 4wd vehicle has difficulty getting around, hence the need for a gravel road in my situation. In your situation, snow might be an issue to consider.
Ultimately, my largest expense was the equipment I purchased to develop my property. It started with an ATV and a tractor. Eventually, I bought a mini excavator, skid steer, and a dump truck. Now I need a shipping container to keep equipment and tools on site. This also means tools to maintain your equipment in the field. What I spent on equipment was more than the purchase price of the property.
All of this isn’t necessary, but it makes life easier for me when working at my place. Good luck on your purchase. Please keep us updated.
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Same. I got my property and a run down house for a bargain. I spent 1.5 times what I spent on my 96 acres on a bunch of used equipment. Luckily my son and I are really good at repairing old stuff and running it. One of my friends is an excavation contractor and over beers he’s admitted that I’ve saved a ton of money doing my own work vs. hiring him. The dirt work so far has almost paid for the equipment and I have lots to go.
My land is tough, though, and requires lots of work. I’ve been to parts of Wyoming and Montana that I could have towed a camp trailer right into the middle of 40 acres without even having to build a proper road. My brother has 20 acres in Texas and he pulled his 40’ fifth wheel camper onto it after just a day of brush cutting with a skid steer mounted mower.
I’m up in “NOT WYOMING, Jackson Hole”
If you’re in the flats around I80. It’s incredibly windy down there, Look at the truck grave yards around Rawling on I80.
On a Positive note the Medicine Bow Nat. Forest is incredible.
Second the Equipment issue., Skid steer to start bucket and forks maybe a mini excavator at a later date.
You’ll save a lot doing the work yourself
Congratulations, Wyoming is a beautiful state. I have in-laws there and love to visit them.
What part of WY? SW water can be iffy, move over 10’ from a strong well at 300’ and nothing but dry hole, If you are going to full time you have to consider the snow, what’s on that County Road, is it a priority for plowing or something they get to when they have the time. And remember if you build in the middle that means you have to plow a lot of driveway to get to the CR.
I have 40 acres outside of Laramie lakeside on Lake Hattie. I’m about a mile or so from the edge of Medicine Bow.
Water can definitely be an issue.
What do you want to know?
How much does that lake level vary? It’s a reservoir, right?
Having grown up fishing on lakes all over the mid-west, I really miss water here in CO. A house on a lake, and not even a big one is over about $1m for a condo and $1.8-4.0m for a house. And often those are reservoir s that vary. Getting closer to retirement, I’ve started looking for cabins on a lake back in the Midwest, and take the ‘extra’ money to pay for flights or a plane for my son who is working towards being a pilot in commercial aviation. Though, nothing is cheap anymore.
It is a reservoir. Lake levels don’t really change a whole lot. All the information in the world on this particular lake is available online. It has world class fishing, but I am not a fisherman so doesn’t matter to me. It’s not the biggest lake around either.
Anyway, I wish you luck on your endeavors.
Congrats on finding a parcel! Don’t forget to research zoning, access to utilities, environmental factors, and water table regulations. Also, get a thorough site inspection and consider consulting a rural land expert. Good luck with your offer!