These include checking to ensure the title on the land is clear, that you can legally carry out your plans for the land, and whether it's hooked up to municipal utilities or not. Vacant lots that aren't close enough to water and sewage lines will need wells and septic systems to gain access to these two utilities. Need to install a septic system for sewage maintenance? On some land, you'll have to drill a well or iva definition install a septic system before home construction.

Need to drill a well on the property for water? That means added expenses and added hassle, as you'll need permits for drilling a well and installing a septic system. You could end up requiring a septic system and a well to handle those basic utilities, which will add to the construction costs. Whatever kind of land you're looking for, the costs can add up quickly even before you start construction. If you buy a house, it's probably so you can live in it; but with land, you could choose to build your own house, use the property as a long-term investment or even to start a business.

Is it better to buy vacant land first and build later? When you look at property boundaries on a map (in real estate, often called a plat) it won't be immediately evident how those boundaries line up with the land itself. When you look into buying a piece of property, it's possible a survey has been done recently. There's no public road with direct access to the property, and the only way to access it is via a private road owned by your would-be neighbor.

If your neighbor isn't too agreeable about negotiating an easement, things can get tricky. If your property is landlocked, the typical solution is to make an arrangement with a neighbor for guaranteed access via a private road through their land, known as an easement. The nature of your easement will vary by situation. For instance, certain areas will clearly be zoned residential. Areas in Flood Zone A have a 1 percent chance of annual flooding; flood insurance is required for building here.

Past research on the land may well have done your work for you already by mapping out the property's elevation and determining potential flood areas. The construction process is laden with permit requirements, from plumbing to electrical work. It's a sad fact of real estate life: Just about everything you build is going to require a building permit. You'll need a permit. It's possible you won't need a survey done on land you're interested in buying.

If you're aiming on starting up a business, don't buy land completely isolated from potential customers. But if you're already planning a business, you should have that in mind already. If land truly isn't accessible via public roadways, it might not have access to city water or sewage.