If I was to buy a piece of land in the US {probably Orlando} what am I allowed to do with that piece of land?

Question

And how could I buy a piece of land in the first place; who should I go to.

Just Asking

Answer 1

Either way, thePlease believe me, I don't mean to discourage you. This is not an easy job to do. Its very demanding, takes A LOT of time and it takes a lot of money to find the piece of land you want for the purpose you want it for.

There are zoning laws and ordinances. This means there are certain uses for certain pieces of land. You come to the U.S. and go to Orlando. You find THAT PERFECT piece of land. It JUST so happens there is a “FOR SALE” sign on that land. You call the number on the sign:
I’m going to make this very simple for everyone. There are AT LEAST two ways to look at this situation:
EXAMPLE 1: Your 1st Question: “I’m interested in that property on Front & Main. Is it still for sale?” Agent: Yes, it is!
Your 2nd Question: “How much is it?” Agent: “It‘s $1,500,000.00! [$1.5 Million].”
Your 3rd Question: That’s perfect. When can I come in to talk to you about it? Agent: “RIGHT NOW!”
You go in to the office. You are “HOT TO TROT” YOU WANT THAT LAND! You fill out the papers and make the deposit of One Hundred Fifty Thousand [$150,000.00] Dollars. You sign the papers. The Seller signs the papers. . AND YOU ARE HAPPY!!
BUT [oh-oh] YOU CAN’T use that piece of ground for what you THOUGHT you could use it for.
You can’t split that ground into smaller pieces. In fact - THAT piece of ground you JUST paid $1.5 Million for CAN ONLY BE USED FOR AN AIRPORT! Why? Because that’s what the Mayor and the City’s Officers thought that would be the best use for that land. YOU JUST BOUGHT a $1.5 MILLION “Pig-in-a-Poke”. Its worthless to you. YOU ARE STUCK with it! Why? Because you didn’t investigate anything about that land. You thought you could use that land for anything you wanted, any way you wanted. YOU WERE WRONG! PERIOD. END OF STORY!

EXAMPLE 2: [This time you have a pretty good idea what to do.] You call about that same piece of land. Your 1st Question: “I’m interested in that property on Front & Main. Is it still for sale?” Agent: Yes, it is!
Your 2nd Question: “Could you please tell me what its zoned for?” Agent: Sure! It’s zoned for an airport.”
Your 3rd Question: “Is there a possibility to split it up and sell smaller lots?” Agent: “Oh. You mean sub-divide it?”
Your 3rd Question: “Yes! That’s it! Sub-divide it! Can I do that?” Agent: “Gee. I JUST don’t know. I guess that’s something YOU are going to have to find out.”
Your 4th Question: “OK. Thank you. Could you please tell me where City Hall is?”
Agent: “Sure. It’s at Broad & Market. Would you like directions to get there?”
Your 5th Question: “Yes please. Would you do that?” And the agent gives you directions.

THEN YOU go to City Hall and find out the information you need. You are told the ONLY USE for that land is an airport. It can’t be sub-divided. What do you do? [If I have to tell you, . . . ]
EVERY state is different.
EVERY county in that state is different.
EVERY municipality in that county in that state is different.
EVERY piece of land in every municipality in that county in that state is different.

I can think of many, many different circumstances.

AND FINALLY, how could I buy a piece of land in the first place; who should I go to.
When a person, partnership or other business groups wants to buy land: in the beginning and for the first two, three or four projects, the financing is very, very hard to get.

What usually happens is the Buyer pays cash for the land. THEN the Buyer is the Owner and the Owner sets-up a construction loan. During the time the land is under construction, many times, the lender wants monthly payments. WHEN the project is finished, everything is put together in a mortgage.

The very best way to properly learn the business is working for a good, reputable, honest builder and management team -
preferably one whose name is recognizable in the area you‘re interested in investing in..

Doing this should help put you "in the field" to get the necessary exposure, knowledge and experience you'll need when you decide to do this on your own.

You should learn the proper and right way to run and manage the business. You should ask your bosses and supervisors what books and periodicals they get and read to stay up-to-date with current trends and building codes.

You should also learn what not to do.

You should keep a career and vocational journal on your computer. Update it each and every day. It makes things a lot easier - especially when you may need some information about how a particular problem or situation was resolved or "dusted off" to refresh your memory sometime in the distant future.

Now for some "Nuts and Bolts":
1] You'll be dealing with raw, unimproved [no water, sewer or utilities] land. This means there are no roads - other than the roads and highways which border or possibly divide the land you're interested in developing.
2] You'll need money to buy that land or at the very least, money to buy the option for that land.
3] You'll need money to make your presentations before various local and county governments. You may even have to state your case before a U.S. government agency.

This does not mean you'll automatically get approved for the project you have in mind - be it residential, commercial, industrial or special use.

The citizens and residents in that area will also have the opportunity to present their points of view for and against your particular project[s].

You'll find some folks will be dead-set against your ideas and projects from the very start. Why? Here are just 3 reasons:
A] One or more of the citizens could possibly believe their piece of land - which you never talked with them about selling - would be more suitable for your particular project.
Because you didn't even ask them about selling their land to you, they could feel they lost a lot of money.
B] One or more of the citizens could feel the area doesn't need your idea developed at all. They like the open spaces in their area. They're very happy the roads aren't crowded with cars and trucks. They like the rural environment they're currently living in AND they want to keep it that way.
C] They don't want to pay any more real estate taxes (or for that matter any more taxes at all) for more municipal services [meaning employees, police force, fire department] - including schools - your development could bring to that area.
AND those are ONLY 3 reasons. Believe me, there are many more.

THEN you'll need more money for surveyors, impact studies and many other types of projects and obstacles - too many to mention here.

AND you haven't even had your "ceremonial ground-breaking" ceremony yet. After that ceremony, this is when the heavy equipment comes in and starts grading for the roads and the lots and the improvements - water, sewer, gas, electric, telephone, fiber-optics, etc.

THE MAIN QUESTION: Are you prepared - mentally, physically and financially to do this?
ANSWER: You may be prepared mentally and physically, but financially, you'll probably have to borrow a lot of money and/or form a corporation and sell shares in the corporation to raise that much-needed.

Either way, the lender wants to be paid on a regular basis &&&& YOUR shareholders deserve a fair return on their investment, don't they?

I KNOW I provided quite a lot for you to think about and consider.

Thank you for asking your question. I enjoyed taking the time to answer your question. You did a great job - not only for your information, but for every other person interested in reading my answer.

I wish you well.

VTY,
Ron B.

Answer 2

I am an agent in Orlando, born here and sold real estate for almost 30 years.

Here is your answer:
It depends on where it is, what the zoning restrictions are, if there is an HOA, county and city ordinances.

The best thing to do is decide exactly WHAT you want to do with the land, then use an agent to look specifically for area's where you can do that.

I would recommend you use a REALTOR, they know the laws, restrictions, legal paperwork, etc. You can also search sites like trulia or craigslist, but that won't help with WHAT you can do with it. Do you intend to build and move here later? Is it for investment purposes only and you will sell later?

If you'd like to chat about it, I can point you in the right direction. This is not a plug to use me, as I am for the most part a listing agent, not sales agent, but as I said I can point you in the right direction.

Paula Bean
[e-mail]

Answer 3

Depends.
what is the land zoned for?

that is the big thing. also what are the CC&Rs?
Covenets, conditions, and restrictions.

What is your purpose for the land? Are you going to build or use it as investment?

Depending on your aswers to those questions i would find an agent that specializes in land.

or for really great deals you can buy them at auctions. Just look in your local paper under real estate land sales and they list them all the time.

Answer 4

Louisiana Purchase Gadsden Purchase

Answer 5

What you can do will depend upon the zoning laws in place. Local, State & Federal environmental laws can affect allowable use as well.

Start with a Realtor or look in the local newspapers.

Answer 6

What you can do with the land depends on zoning. You would see a real estate agent.

Answer 7

Do not buy in Orlando! As the recent Forbes.com and Yahoo articles reveal, Orlando is one of the riskiest markets to speculate in. Please read the attached article for details.

Answer 8

It depends on the county and city(if its in the city) laws in the area you buy it.

Answer 9

i would prob say whatever you want to do with it, it is yours in the firt place,.....good question =)