received the closing docs for the vacant land we contracted to buy.
the General Warranty Deed has this little statement in it:
“This conveyance, however, is made and accepted subject to any and all validly existing encumbrances, conditions and restrictions, relating to the hereinabove described property as now reflected by the records of the County of XXXXXX.”
i don’t like that.
also, on the closing affidavit one of the clauses to be initialed states that “Buyer acknowledges having received and reviewed a copy of the preliminary Title Commitment issued in connection with the above-referenced transaction and understands Buyer’s Owner Policy will contain the exceptions set forth in Schedule “B” of the Commitment, together with any additional exceptions to title resulting from the documents involved in this transaction.”
i have not received this preliminary Title Commitment with a Schedule B. on this closing affidavit, it has a statement about a Schedule B and states:
““RIGHTS AND PARTIES IN POSSESSION”. Within the meaning of this exception, “possession” shall include open acts or visible evidence of occupancy and any visible [[[editing]]] but this exception does not extend to any right,claim, or interest evidenced by a document recorded in which the Property is located. BUYER agrees to be fully responsible for inspecting the Property to determine the rights of any party in possession.”
on my settlement statement - i am paying for title insurance, but it is not clear what that title insurance covers…
The statement “This conveyance,…” basically means that the property is still going to have any and all restrictions, codes, etc. that it currently has. You buying it is not going to change anything. For example, if the property is in a flood plain, it’s still going to be in a flood plain and unbuildable. If it is a state or federally mandated toxic dump site, it’s still going to be one when you buy it. If it’s restricted to only building high-rise condos, then it’ll still be restricted. If it’s…well, you get the picture. Be sure that you know what those encumbrances, conditions and restrictions are before purchasing.
Don’t sign (or intitial) until you’ve actually received what you are supposed to have received.
If this transaction is not going through a Realtor, then I strongly suggest that you hire an attorney to review all documents before committing to them. Check with a local REIA group to get some referrals for lawyers.
in july, the lot was not in the flood zone, but i was told that rezoning would put it close to it. it would still be buildable, just that it would require flood insurance for any future developer who considers purchasing it. next you’ll tell me that texas is having a hard time with insurance carriers for houses near water…
You need to know everything that you can about the lot. What is the current zoning, emcubrances, easements, etc. and what is the possible zoning, emcumbrances, easements, etc. that may be affecting it in the future.
Some examples: I bought a lot in a great neighborhood (personally, I think the best lot left), to hang on to until the area was sold out which should greatly increase the value of the lot (1st mistake, speculation). However, by buying that lot, I also allowed the current homeowners to start a HOA (3/4 of lots sold) which now costs me additional money every year and additional headaches of maintenance and even selling as the HOA basically gets to approve any sell/build in the development. I should have read the fine print.
Great big huge house on 1 acre in a good neighborhood (though at the entrance off of a main road), listed for an already discounted price. Very little rehab needed, mainly cleaning. Should be a no-brainer, right? WRONG! County had already slated a proposed widening of that main road which would take over half of that 1 acre lot and put the main road within SIX FEET of the side of the house!!!