How To Be a DIRT-SMART Buyer of Country Property is a comprehensive, how-to book for everyone interested in buying rural real estate. Its 730 pages are divided into two volumes.DIRT-SMART shows a buyer how to find, research and purchase these properties in a way that strips out risk and protects both your heart and your pocketbook. Nothing is worse than being surprised or disappointed after a new purchase. DIRT-SMART shows you how to avoid both. Among the points discussed are: Setting goals for your purchaseScreening in and screening out candidate propertiesFarms and agricultural landsFarming, conventional and non-conventionalTax considerations for farmersFitting in to a rural communityFarm equipmentRecreational land for huntingInfrastructure for undeveloped property and a building siteSecond homes-different types, different considerationsBuilding from scratch and fixer-uppersEnvironmental issues-water, air, soils, toxics, endangered species, wetlands, aesthetics, conservation, light, noise, odors, viewsheds, floodplains, archeological resources, climate, agricultural wastes, etc.Minerals-resources, leases, royalties, issuesDealing with sellers-FSBOs, brokers, auctionsNegotiating strategies and tacticsSurveys and boundariesGetting knowledgeable about timber-how to determine value, beware of seller-supplied inventory and valuation, how to sell timber and manage timberland, financing, taxation, model timber-sale contract for landowner, etc.Country lawyers and other consultants Common messes-legal descriptions, acreage discrepancies, easements, leases, encumbrances, trespass etc.Tricks that sellers useBargaining and resolving disputesWriting a purchase-offer contract-strategies and tactics, model contractFinding purchase money-13 sourcesBorrowing money Sellers are interested, in DIRT-SMART, because it shows them how to present their property honestly and effectively to facilitate a sale without complications. DIRT-SMART is written in a non-academic, conversational manner. A huge amount of material is included, because I wrote it to be a one-stop, reader-friendly resource. I've written DIRT-SMART to have a long shelf life. The problems and issues discussed are not those of a particular moment. Buying rural property is much more complicated than it used to be. Federal legislation, zoning codes, environmental questions, financing concerns and lack of seller disclosure increase the risk for a purchaser, particularly a first- or second-timer. I wrote DIRT-SMART to protect the consumer. It is based on my more than 40 years of investing and 20 years of land consulting. I wish that I'd had this book when I made my first land purchase in 1971.More information on my work and contact information can be found at www.curtis-seltzer.com.
Curtis Seltzer has been investing in rural real estate since the early 1970s when he bought his first 60 acres for $5,000. He's owned undeveloped and developed land in seven states. Since the mid-1990s, he's run a consulting practice that works with buyers of farms, farmland, second homes, timber tracts, development properties and conservation investments. These have ranged from 50 acres to 600,000. He's consulted on purchases in about half of the 50 states, as well as Canada and Brazil. He has written more than 150 columns on land investing in addition to his self-syndicated, weekly "Country Real Estate" column that began in 2007. He has written six books, including How To Be a DIRT-SMART Buyer of Country Property and Land Matters, and is working on a novel, Point of the Pick. He has a B.A. from Oberlin College and an M.Phil. and Ph.D. from Columbia University. He was raised in Pittsburgh where he graduated from Peabody High School. Since 1983, he's operated a cattle-and-timber farm in Highland County, Virginia, which claims 2,200 full-time residents. His books, writing and contact information are available at: www.curtis-seltzer.com.
