Anyone own land in the US?

[xxclaro]

Talking to a couple of friends the other day, naturally the weather and how we like winter less as we get older came up. Turns out we've all been thinking about possible ways to escape for a while in the winter. We talked about the possibility of maybe buying a little piece of recreational land somewhere down south, maybe Texas or New Mexico, something like that. Curious if anyone here has done this? I don't know what's involved or how hard it would be, but any experience or advice is appreciated. Truth be told I'd even be open to looking outside the US, if there are good opportunities in other countries, provided they are politically stable.

Wife and I will have this place payed off in under 5 years, and we've been talking about buying a different place with more land and a bit nicer house. However, we both find the winters rather long and dreary, and are considering just keeping this place and maybe buying something somewhere warm, a place we can escape in winter, and who knows maybe retire there someday! Just speculation for now but I figure it's worth looking into, if anyone here is knowledgeable on the subject.

[SageValleyOutdoors]

Hi, we have a piece of land in Montana... not as a winter retreat to escape the cold, but as a summer recreational property. Raw land with no utilities or buildings, we just park our trailer, and enjoy the woods, creek and area lakes.

Anyway, land is MUCH cheaper down there than it is up here, though the exchange rate was much better when we bought than it is now.

We couldn’t get a mortgage for a foreign property, and with no US income, couldn’t get a mortgage down there since we work and live in Canada. We wound up paying cash for the property, using funds from our line of credit. Had a realtor and US lawyer to handle all the paperwork and it was a smooth transaction. The biggest issue currently (and i would imagine having a house with utilities would be worse) is the bills and taxes are all in US funds. We get screwed on the exchange, but keep a US account specifically for this purpose.

[xxclaro]

Ah perfect, exactly what I was looking for. I would probably want raw land to, maybe pick up a camper down there. Would pay cash so no mortgage worries, very glad to hear it's a possibility.

[vinny]

Originally Posted by SageValleyOutdoors

Hi, we have a piece of land in Montana... not as a winter retreat to escape the cold, but as a summer recreational property. Raw land with no utilities or buildings, we just park our trailer, and enjoy the woods, creek and area lakes.

Anyway, land is MUCH cheaper down there than it is up here, though the exchange rate was much better when we bought than it is now.

We couldn’t get a mortgage for a foreign property, and with no US income, couldn’t get a mortgage down there since we work and live in Canada. We wound up paying cash for the property, using funds from our line of credit. Had a realtor and US lawyer to handle all the paperwork and it was a smooth transaction. The biggest issue currently (and i would imagine having a house with utilities would be worse) is the bills and taxes are all in US funds. We get screwed on the exchange, but keep a US account specifically for this purpose.

We did this is Montana as well. Pretty much word for word as above. Very easy. Never met a realtor or seller face to face. Did everything online. Raw piece of land with a trailer for now. Planning to build a mainly off grid cabin in the not too distant future.

[Big Grey Wolf]

You probably missed the gravey train for US property. Few years (10) back they were giving away brand new homes with swimming pools in Arizona for $125,000.
Our dollar was on par with US $ at the time.

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by xxclaro

Talking to a couple of friends the other day, naturally the weather and how we like winter less as we get older came up. Turns out we've all been thinking about possible ways to escape for a while in the winter. We talked about the possibility of maybe buying a little piece of recreational land somewhere down south, maybe Texas or New Mexico, something like that. Curious if anyone here has done this? I don't know what's involved or how hard it would be, but any experience or advice is appreciated. Truth be told I'd even be open to looking outside the US, if there are good opportunities in other countries, provided they are politically stable.

Wife and I will have this place payed off in under 5 years, and we've been talking about buying a different place with more land and a bit nicer house. However, we both find the winters rather long and dreary, and are considering just keeping this place and maybe buying something somewhere warm, a place we can escape in winter, and who knows maybe retire there someday! Just speculation for now but I figure it's worth looking into, if anyone here is knowledgeable on the subject.

You obviously want to buy some place warm so Texas, Arizona, Florida, New Mexico, Hawaii and Nevada are pretty much the choices. DO NOT buy in California , the list of issues and problems is far too long to put here. Pick the area you prefer then start doing a ton of research. Property taxes can vary from near zero to $20,000 a year on the same $500,000 property within a few miles of each other. Also, some areas charge non-resident owners as much as three times the local rate.

Check in detail the zoning and development laws, unlike Canada many areas give you no protection from having a large industrial plant built right next door, or a gas/oil well etc put in.

Inspect the house carefully and look in detail into the build quality. U.S. building codes are generally far more lax. Many houses in Texas have almost no insulation. Also, things like termites, rats and other pests are very common and can be expensive to deal with.

Do not buy in an area close to the Mexican border, near large prison installations (many family and friends of inmates move to communities close to these prisons) or in the same towns with large amounts of slum areas. Check out the crime stats, and types of crime for the immediate and surrounding areas within 50 miles. You want to find places that have homogeneous higher end housing, stable industries, low crime rates, low taxes and good municipal services. Remember, location, location, location.

Buying property in the States can work out very well but you have to be prepared to do extensive research on your own so you know exactly what you are getting into.

[Whipper Billy]

Globe & Mail
May 14, 2018
David & Matt Altro
Snowbirds, will there be tax to pay

Just one source I saw
Just check out US & Canadian taxes when you sell