Answers · Buying & Selling Land
What due diligence should I do before buying land?
Six things fail land deals: water, access, soils, title, environmental history, and boundaries. Verify each with documents, not the seller's word — a state database check on the water right, a recorded easement for access, a title commitment, and a survey. Budget 2–4 weeks and low four figures to do it properly.
Water first, in any western state: confirm the right exists, its priority date, its permitted use and place of use, and that it has not been abandoned — most states have searchable databases. For wells, get the log and a current pump test. Second, access: legal access means a public road frontage or a recorded easement; a lane everyone has always used is a lawsuit, not access.
Soils and productivity: pull the NRCS Web Soil Survey and the county's productivity ratings, then walk the ground after a rain to see drainage in fact. Check FSA records for base acres, program history, and any wetland (Swampbuster) determinations that restrict drainage improvements.
Title and environmental: the preliminary title report shows liens, easements, mineral reservations, and leases — read every exception document, not the summary. Severed minerals matter more than buyers think. For ground with old dairies, shops, fuel tanks, or dump sites, a Phase I environmental report is cheap relative to inheriting a cleanup.
Finally, boundaries: on any parcel where fences and legal lines might disagree — which is most of them — a survey before closing costs less than a boundary dispute after.
The Turnrow angle
Turnrow's underwriting runs the same checklist — appraisal, title, water, access — in parallel with your diligence, which is how a closing fits inside 2–4 weeks.
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