San Luis Valley - want to buy land there - need advice (Denver: 2015)

[bubba-bear]

Hello folks my name is Ben but my friends call me ‘Bubba’.

I am looking for a land purchase with about 40 to 80 acres. I am looking for peace, low stress, undemanding and getting away from ‘keeping up with the Joneses’ attitude. I want to chill by myself and I am way OK with that… I am not interested in trying to impress other people with my belongings or status. I want to drink my coffee in the mornings to views of the big mountains and drink wine at night with all the stars and no light pollution. I am going to be retiring from the Air Force in a year and a half and looking to settle in the San Luis Valley area. I am single so don’t have to check with anyone about my plans. I am currently living in Ogden Utah area and grew up in Tucson, so I am ok with a desert climate and understand living in the cold. I have saved enough to buy some of these advertised plots of land with cash, but, I think to myself, then what? I am concerned about the cost and feasibility of getting the basics: water, gas, and electric. Some of the properties say ‘electric at the road’. I can understand having a propane gas tank on the property, no problem. So my questions, folks, are: (1) What will it take to get water on the property? and (2) What will it take to get electricity on the property? Will it be so expensive that it ruins my dream? Open to any and all advice you might have for this guy... thank you in advance... ~Bubba

[sunsprit]

suggest that you take the time to research all the related threads on this forum about the experiences that other folk have with the SLV area with similar concerns.

Don't know what your budget is, but if you're thinking that it will be "inexpensive" or "cheap" to bring a piece of raw low cost land up to a livable condition with housing, water and utilities, you may be on the wrong track. Remote and isolated here does not equal inexpensive.

As well, if you need a job for supplemental income in your retirement, you may have a conflict with location vs opportunities.

PS: as always, I suggest that you visit the "cheap land" that you're considering buying a couple of times before you make any decision about spending money on a purchase. Visit in the "nice" weather months, then visit ... if you can ... the sites in the winter months. There's a reason why the land in some of those subdivisions is so inexpensive. Also, understand that the associated views and wonderful scenic pictures that accompany a lot of 'net marketing for these places are "in the area", but not necessarily at where you're buying acreage. A tip-off that you may be looking at a problem parcel is if it's a "contract to deed land purchase" with the note carried by the seller/developer. Further, before you buy any parcel in a subdivision there, check out the secondary market ... the acres that folk who bought there already are trying to sell their places for, and see if they are actually able to sell them without taking a bath on the deal. Typically, folk default on these places when they encounter problems and the seller still owns the property, doesn't need to foreclose on a note like a bank lender holding a mortgage; you just walk away from your down payment and any monies you've paid for the place. Could be less expensive than the loss of trying to sell it.

[beezle1]

Contact well drillers that serve that area and they can tell you the approximate cost to put in a well.

[bubba-bear]

Thank you... would the REA be willing to give an estimate for the approximate cost to get electric on the property?

[Lost Roses]

From the Denver Post today.

View "As newcomers move to desert, growing pains" article at
As newcomers move to desert, growing pains

[Mike from back east]

Originally Posted by Lost Roses

From the Denver Post today.

View "As newcomers move to desert, growing pains" article at
As newcomers move to desert, growing pains

Excerpt from the article: "...drawing residents who arrive with little but plans to make a new life..."

Sounds like the refugee crisis in Europe....

[sunsprit]

Originally Posted by bubba-bear

Thank you... would the REA be willing to give an estimate for the approximate cost to get electric on the property?

the utility providers will usually give you a quote to get power to a remote property and a repayment terms offer. Don't be surprised if the cost is mid-5 figures and the repayment is 20 years of monthly payments for this service, it's one of the reasons why folk try to live "off-grid" when their original intent was to have a very low cost of living.

the utility provider may want to see some security or form of creditworthiness before providing the service; after all, they do need to be repaid for the capital investment to get power and a meter to your site. A prospective lien on many of the property sites wouldn't be enough value to cover the service, so they may want you to put up a significant down payment or pledge some other assets.

perhaps the "best way" to get isolated rural electric service is to get a number of neighbors together to sign up so that the line install costs can be amortized over a larger group of people.

[Rainbow Demon]

The electric company may be able to zone in somewhat on average costs/etc. How far is the dig?

Cost to Dig Trench - 2015 Cost Calculator (ZipCode based) lists average cost to dig a trench. We just extended an EXISTING service line about 300 ft and the cost to do so was approx. 3K with materials. (conduit and wire) So I'd say figure at LEAST $30 per foot to dig + whatever materials/transformer/pole/system costs they tack on.

And keep in mind...as more folks come rolling in with the same idea ("this will be a cheap place to live")...the prices rise as the folks who do the work get busier and busier. Make a few calls, you'll see what I'm sayin'. The difference between last year and this year in the construction field is staggering/night and day. Can you say BOOM?

best of luck