Quote Originally Posted by Jim Becker View Post
She's also be annoyed at the cost...it's kinda a sad situation because the folks who bought the property (a local neighbor) did so to rehab the home that was on the land and resell it. Unfortunately, they did not look carefully enough at the condition of the home. (really sad because the guy is an experienced builder but let his desire to help the neighborhood cloud his eyesight) Since it was an "as is" sale, they were then stuck with a building that couldn't be salvaged due to excessive water damage, mold and some significant structural issues. Oh, and a layer of asbestos in the paster. They bought for a low price, but the cost to remediate the asbestos (even doing the labor themselves) was "yuge" and the cost to demolish the structure, haul off the 'stuff' and then regrade the property to presentable was considerable. I helped with the land work and with a little of the pre-demolition. I don't believe anyone would just come off the street and buy the lot for what they have to ask for it to break even, so it will have to be a "build to suit" to ultimately sell it. The guy, while being a great builder, has some major health issues so that's not going to happen anytime soon. Meanwhile...I have a lovely .375 acre lawn next door to my own half acre that I mow and keep in a park-like condition.

Well it's great to have the extra land next to you until it's bought and built on, and you don't need to even pay the taxes for it. I actually suspect the taxes where you are are about 1/2 what I pay. The actual cost of the land/house would most likely be comparable +/- a bit from where I am in Central NJ. I almost fell on the floor when i saw a few houses sell in our neighborhood. They are closing in on 3 times what I paid for it my house in 2002.