looking at property to buy

With in this last year I have been looking at property want to move to another place because the town I live in is taken over mine. I started to look at homes up in Bishop and Benton Ca. area. Found out in some areas they have what we call a flood area. It appears where the white mountains area during the winter it gets a heavy snow impact and threw the spring to the snow brings a lot of water to these areas. I want to find is a property. That has about an acre or more, well, and a septic. With a nice house on it and a two car garage. Room to put up a shop in the back for the tractors I have and a place to work on them. Prices are cheap in a flood zone area I wonder why L.O.L. I have found one I think is nice it is close to a lot of farms just before I get in to Benton ca. My hobby I think would go good in this area because there is tractors and farmers around me if I get to buy it. I should not have to worry about neighbors complaining about my hobby working on tractors. The concept is simple take the money from my property from my old place put it to my new place which if I do it right it will be all paid for when I buy it.

For a house, a well, a septic system, a shed/shop, a few trees, enough room for a driveway and parking a few things, you really want at least 2.5 acres. That happens to be the minimum my county allows to split off for a house, but it really is true, you need some Sheraton on the well and septic, and room for the other stuff. An acre is mighty small once you get all the good stuff set up.

Paul

Is it true that leach lines on the septic should not have any thing built on top of them. Does this affect the leach lines in doing there job with the septic tank. Most people keep that area as a lawn, garden. or for horses.

Possibly look further from town you could find a few acres for the same $$. I would think 3-4 acres would be a min. for what you want to do. I would be concerned about being in a flood plane too. If the are has flooded in the last couple of hundred years it is possible your house, shop and tractors could be flooded. What a mess that would be to clean up.

Brent,

I wish you well in this search. I have to ask, are you really tied to this area in CA? I suspect if you are willing to move to another state you can get much more for your $ and also a reduction in your tax load. Just food for thought.

Larry

I have found out this past year the problem with land is that there is a lot of people who have horses. I looked at a place three weeks ago that was 3 acers but when I got my place sold in Riverside the place was already bought. I feel like the horse people have more money than me right now. I really need land for tractors and plan to service equipment but those people who have horse are wining on the land.

Look the property over closely and see what you can do to avoid flooding. Check with the appropriate local government agency and see if you can dike the property, or put in a drainage ditch, or a pumping station. or raise the buildings up above flood level. All will cost some money, but you may be able to do something about the flooding. If that won't work, keep on looking.

My house is in Riverside Ca. That is the problem the University told me to take there offer to buy or see them in court. I just could not afford the court fees and the lawyers fees so I took there price. My grand parents helped built the town and so my parents did but all they want is progress ( they can have it). Ca. is still home to me I guess. I like the Bishop and Benton area. I can still enjoy the out door world and have a place to breath. So yes I do like Ca. what do you have in mind may I ask.

Remember New Orleans a few years ago?

Before you take any money for your old place,talk to somebody about doing a 1031 Exchange. If you don't,you're going to pay a good portion of what you get from the old place,in capital gains tax. You can never have possession of the money. A lawyer or accountant can explain all the details,but you'll be kicking yourself for the rest of your life if you don't do it right. Just selling one place and buying another one in the same tax year doesn't cut it. You have to do the 1031 to beat the taxes.

AZ has quite a few "county islands" where you can buy property not subject to city codes. Just have to air condition the shop to work in there in the summer.

You will have no capital gains on your home under $500K if you are married and 250K if not. Unless California has some off ball rule a 1031 exchange is not used for primary residences. If you have already sold your property and have banked the profits your in a perfect situation to purchase your next property. You have already learned a valuable lesson on if you see it and want it lock it down. You can always back out if something is found during the property inspection/title search. Good Luck.

Pete in NC

Leach lines should not have any 'permanent' structures built on them. Obvious reason is that the gravel for the leach lines is only a few feet down. You also don't want to compact the soil over top of them. Probably a county code violation in most areas too. In my county you can't build anything within the 10,000 sq ft. septic area + 20 feet outside of all the way around. My leach lines were put in 20 years ago with no problems yet, knock on wood.

Well your compressor will float in a flood ,the rest of the tools ,not so much.

Find the FEMA flood plain map, look it over closely, be sure you understand it, find the floodway, the 100-year and the 500-year. Understand what they mean.

I really did not have anything specifically in mind. This is a quandary that my wife and I wrestle with. You know what you like and dislike. I might suggest a search first for a list of states that have the lowest tax rates (especially for retirees). There are huge differences in states and even in locations within that state. For example, here in Ohio some school distracts and municipalities have separate income tax assessments that in my view are just ludicrous. So, do an initial search on-line, you can use tools like realtor.com to search for your criteria (size of home, age, location, acres, etc. Once you do that you will start to get a feel for pricing for that area. Once you settle on an area you might be interested in, I bet there is someone on this site that knows the local area well enough that can steer you toward or away from certain areas.

From past experience, someone moving from California or the east coast has a hard time spending all the money they earned from the sale of their property there to purchase a property here in the Midwest. To give you an example, here in Ohio $100,000 to $150,000 will buy you a very nice home with 3 - 5 acres with at least one very nice outbuilding suitable for your tractor hobby. I'm biased, but generally, we also tend to be nice to transplants from other parts.....
Good luck!
Larry

Brent, I would [b:68a6174e54]strongly[/b:68a6174e54] incourage you to look outside of CA. I grew up in San Diego, lived in Orange, Simi Valley, Bakersfield, Petaluma, San Jose, and Sonoma. I've been all over the state, and it's a great place. However, there are coming infrastructure problems that may cause you to be on the hook for the financial burdens that might make a huge difference in your way of life.

I have property in NM, CO, TX, and still some in CA. I live most of the time in TX, but also spend a lot more time in northern NM.

As for being in a flood plain, is it defined by the FEMA people? Because, they have the craziest flood plain maps in the world. I have a home at 6500' on a hill and FEMA says it's in the 100 year flood plain. Are they kidding? Anyway, take a look at some historical records about actual flood or water damage. Also, if you have a couple of tractors, you can build yourself a mound for the structure, or even put it on piers(except the shop).

Anyway, keep looking and widen your horizon outside CA. I think you'll be shocked there are other nice places in the country.

I would call their bluff. They are no better than government...

Or at least counter with something high.

I would advise leaving CA. Elsewhere you can buy a place for much less and save the extra profit. I know a couple who sold a house in CA for $850,000, moved to TX and bought a bigger house for $250,000. That $600,000 looked pretty good to them in the savings account.

No garden, only grass, those lines are only a foot down.