Estate vultures

[grsthegreat]

i just got a new offer for the 10 acres accross the street where i let the horses roam and grow some grass hay. they have offered $452.000

well thats a first. usually everyone low balls it....like a quarter of this offer.

im actually stunned. if i needed the money i might just take them up on the offer

 

[ultrarunner]

I remember those days about 25 years ago when dad was getting real offers from Brokers knocking on the door for some residential zoned land in Oakland…

Let’s just say there has been zero interest in the last 20 years…

It always seems to come back to location…

 

[drssg]

i just got a new offer for the 10 acres accross the street where i let the horses roam and grow some grass hay. they have offered $452.000

well thats a first. usually everyone low balls it....like a quarter of this offer.

im actually stunned. if i needed the money i might just take them up on the offer

I would still be suspicious that it's even a genuine offer. The letters I've seen have some caveat language that basically says they aren't legally committing to the offer. Instead of taking the low-ball approach, I could see them making a better offer to see whether they can get a response from you. If you showed interest in selling, then the details would come out as to why they think it's really worth less.

My place has an unoccupied parcel that has a creek running through it, and it regularly floods. I have occasionally received an offer for it that would be consistent for residential building, but I would be surprised if a house could be built there.

 

[RayIN]

I get the land offers a lot. Land ownership is public record. They just use the tax rolls. The offers are ridiculously low.

Last one I looked at was about 2/3 of what we paid for the land alone 3 years ago. That doesn't include the house and barn at all.

There is a phone app named Regrid that shows a map with land boundries and listing the owners name(s). It's not too hard to obtain the street address and phone# after that.

 

[paulsharvey]

There is a phone app named Regrid that shows a map with land boundries and listing the owners name(s). It's not too hard to obtain the street address and phone# after that.

Im in the process of checking that app out. I used to use Basemap, but their yearly sub is upto $49.99; and it kinda makes me mad, i used a personal hunting app, 90% at work, and 10% at home; and i work for a international mega corp.... When you see, "We won a $2.5b contact in Texas" it makes you thing, "im not paying $0.02 to support these folks"

 

[drssg]

I don't see the value of purchasing an app, unless you need that type of information a lot and for a variety of areas. The local county auditor website has the information for free.

 

[RayIN]

I don't see the value of purchasing an app, unless you need that type of information a lot and for a variety of areas. The local county auditor website has the information for free.

The free version of Regrid is quite useful.

 

[paulsharvey]

I don't see the value of purchasing an app, unless you need that type of information a lot and for a variety of areas. The local county auditor website has the information for free.

I do. For work, I am always dealing with right of ways; and our work is limited to not entering private property. Just telling what is verse isnt right of way, seems simple, but really isnt. Im frequently in 3 counties, and cover roughly, after arguing with ChatGPT several queries, about 200 miles of centerline road, and about another 120 miles occasionally,

 

[Eaglesfate]

I have had several older members of the family pass, my folks and their kin delt with the estates. I remember many times that once the news got out that they passed that the thieves would crawl out of the woodwork and things would start walking off from their houses. Some by strangers, and some from individuals that were better known.

 

[MossRoad]

Dead relative 101...
- change the locks ASAP. You never know who has keys.
- install cameras that store the photos remotely.
- take a video camera and slowly walk through the entire house, open every door, drawer, closet, etc.. and get a slow pan of each space to document the contents of the house for insurance purposes.

 

[domin]

I have had several older members of the family pass, my folks and their kin delt with the estates. I remember many times that once the news got out that they passed that the thieves would crawl out of the woodwork and things would start walking off from their houses. Some by strangers, and some from individuals that were better known.

How do they get all the information?

 

[Eaglesfate]

How do they get all the information?

Outside the family, I can only guess the thieves would mind the newspapers for obituaries.

 

[paulsharvey]

Outside the family, I can only guess the thieves would mind the newspapers for obituaries.

Are we talking straight up B&E thieves, or dishonest, con artist, or entitled friends/family? If we are talking B&E, its not hard to spot a home that isnt actively lived in. No vehicle, or vehicle not moved in a week, good target. Lights off, no movement in day, good target.

The other type, social media, word of mouth, or actual friends/family.

 

[Eaglesfate]

Yes, they wedged open windows. Lose lip sink ships.

 

[paulsharvey]

So, besides just straight thieves, you also get people who think they are in the right. Someone's dad dies, and his brother comes and just loads up his tractor, or guns, or whatever. Mom dies, and the daughter or sister just takes the jewelry, because "that what mom always said she wanted". Its an estate; the entire estate needs to be liquidated, and then the proceeds distributed.

Ive know people on both sides of this. Guy goes a picks up passed dad's pick up, and doesnt consider that part of the "estate", too a son (and his brothers, different dad), show up to the estate liquidation, to find the dead dad's brother loading up a TLB, Before the auction...

 

[Eaglesfate]

So, besides just straight thieves, you also get people who think they are in the right. Someone's dad dies, and his brother comes and just loads up his tractor, or guns, or whatever. Mom dies, and the daughter or sister just takes the jewelry, because "that what mom always said she wanted". Its an estate; the entire estate needs to be liquidated, and then the proceeds distributed.

Ive know people on both sides of this. Guy goes a picks up passed dad's pick up, and doesnt consider that part of the "estate", too a son (and his brothers, different dad), show up to the estate liquidation, to find the dead dad's brother loading up a TLB, Before the auction...

Funny enough, yeah. had one case of a Ford tractor getting kicked and sold off, and a John deer in another case. On the other end of the spectrum I remember as a child my side of the family was in a will and were supposed to get some antiques, the other side of the family whom had up to that point been very pleasant and understanding decided that the will didn't matter and they sold off the whole lot. It was just stuff so I didn't have a horse in the fight, my father was less forgiving, My rub was all of the historical pictures I just wanted to get copies of and got told to go kick rocks. It is what it is.

 

[Highlandr]

I don't see the value of purchasing an app, unless you need that type of information a lot and for a variety of areas. The local county auditor website has the information for free.

Yep. Pretty much every county has a GIS website now.

 

[paulsharvey]

Yep. Pretty much every county has a GIS website now.

They do, but generally, not that usable in the field, and dont generally have the GPS function, to look see right at your location.

Its probably a niche thing, but I find it useful for work, multiple times per day, and multiple times per week personal.

Now, always a word of caution, sometimes it will show a utility easement along a property frontage as ROW, or other problems. There is no real replacement for a survey.

 

[Highlandr]

There is no real replacement for a survey.

Agreed. They're also usually available on the county website. Granted, some of those sites are far from user friendly.

 

[anomad]

They do, but generally, not that usable in the field, and dont generally have the GPS function, to look see right at your location.

Its probably a niche thing, but I find it useful for work, multiple times per day, and multiple times per week personal.

Now, always a word of caution, sometimes it will show a utility easement along a property frontage as ROW, or other problems. There is no real replacement for a survey.

With a couple tricks, free ESRI app, and some computer gymnastics you can extract the GIS data and display it on your device in the field. Without a fancy external GPS receiver you are looking at ~30 foot accuracy. If I sit at my picnic table in the yard my phone wanders all around. It is worse in the woods. Useful for getting in the ball park. But not going to get you down to the gnats bottom.

If you can get a georeferenced pdf of the area you are working the Avenza app is free and easy to use. A good GIS person at the county could spit one of those out for you in 2 minutes.

I was a GIS guy for 2/3rds of my career.