What are Land Brokers Really Worth 10%? Really? (LA 1258)

Transcript:

Steven Butala:

Oh here, Steve and Jill here.

Jill DeWit:

Hello. [crosstalk 00:00:04]

Steven Butala:

Welcome to the Land Academy Show entertaining land investment talk. I'm Steven Jack Butala.

Jill DeWit:

And, Jill Dewitt, broadcasting from sunny Southern California.

Steven Butala:

Today, Jill and I talk about what are land brokers really worth? 10%? Really? Before we get into it, let's take a question posted by one of our members on the landinvestors.com online community. It's free.

Jill DeWit:

Molly wrote, I am still new and I have a few lots on the market, and I'm getting the question on these lots if they have water and septic. So what is the best way to find out this information and what are other things to know about the properties other than topography access and comps? My first question is, when you bought the property, did you not cover this? As I'm going into buy a property, I kind of have all the answers. I need to know that as part of my acquisition. So as I'm finding that out, I get it ready for my posting, every time I'm buying it. But to more specifically answer the question, let's just say you inherit, who knows, whatever. However, you got these lots, the first thing I would do is call the county. I also research, too, similar lots in the area and see other people's information that they have collected. You look like you have something to say.

Steven Butala:

It's not so much that I have something to say. I'm just kind of waiting to answer the question, how I would answer it.

Jill DeWit:

Excuse me.

Steven Butala:

What I do on every single first step of every single thing that I research, whether it's buying a new company, starting a new company, or researching a market that I go into, I would go look at other successful people who have done it already. I would start with LandPin. I would go then, not so much to the MLS, but maybe Land and Farm, and I would look at, especially one of the values of being in this group, is you can look at successful people already doing it, which is really what this is all about.

Jill DeWit:

Your peers are members.

Steven Butala:

Yeah. And I would go look at the sites. I would look at 10 or 20 people's, the way they're doing it on their own sites. Start at LandPin because that's our site or LandStay, that's going to address all these issues. And, that posting template that we use didn't happen on accident. It's a result of 25 years of posting property incorrectly. And I'd like to think now it's correct. So, there will be some day when you don't get any questions on any property and people just buy it and call it, because you answered all the questions. So, that's the way to start everything, is to go look at people who are already successfully doing it.

Jill DeWit:

And you'll dig and you'll find it. Sometimes in Neighbor Scoop when you're looking at some of the information, you might find some information in there. Not every county puts it in there accurately, or just even lists it, but sometimes they do. So, you'll get good, especially when you start learning areas. It's so funny, this question threw me for a second, because I thought, guy, I haven't thought about that one for so long because I'm so good at the areas that I'm in, I know them so well, I kind of already know. And I already kind of know based on what I'm looking at, too.

Jill DeWit:

For example, I already know based on experience when I'm looking at a property and it's a paved road, there's a house on each side, pretty sure right there at the lot line, there's going to be power and water and things like that. Guess what? And for a lot of these, we do this all the time on our weekly member calls, we'll zoom in and we can know what the utility boxes look like. From Google Earth street view, we can see it. I can see the power lines. I know what's going on. So I know what's possible. And so that's again why it threw me.