Going to the Country

My team and I have been involved in the procurement and sales of an increasing number of rural properties of late, and it bears mentioning that there are some important added variables that need to be factored in when deciding on a home in the country.

The obvious ones have to do with the physical aspects of the property’s location, like its views and topography, level of privacy and noise impacts, amount of sunlight and usable land, proximity to commute and desirable locations, the nature of the immediate neighbors, and its access to utilities and good roads. 

There are also factors which are less visible, but no less important—having to do requisite daily needs for the modern world, like having decent cell phone reception, and the availability of high-speed internet for anyone seeking a place where they can work from home, or access their favorite shows and other media sources whenever they want. 

Equally important are the costs of basic services of water and waste disposal, on top of meeting the basic point-of-sale requirements. Costs of water supply can vary widely depending on the public or community water system, and properties served by shared and private wells alike can have vastly differing rates of flow and water quality. Property owners in some Summit County Service Areas pay hundreds of dollars per month for water brought in through sources like the Monte Vina pipeline, while others pay hundreds more to have their water trucked in. Similarly, costs for engineered septic installations can easily run into the six figures, with annual monitoring fees for the life of the system.

People buying a property with a shared private water source often find themselves having to update existing well agreements to satisfy the requirements of their lender or title company. And for properties on a private road, there is an additional layer of diligence to research legal access, road agreements, maintenance costs and level of participation amongst those sharing it.

Perhaps the most dramatic change in recent years for rural property selection is how insurance has become a driver as rates vary wildly from one house to the next. Depending on their location, we have seen quotes for otherwise similar homes run from less than $5,000 to more than $25,000. In fact, the delta has become dramatic enough that it has become routine practice to get an insurance quote or ask owners what they are currently paying as part of our initial market analysis. On occasion, we are even starting to see low insurance rates mentioned as a selling point for some homes! 

Add to these factors the requisite research around things like the geology, zoning, property lines and history of permitted and non-permitted improvements and you end up with a pretty exhaustive process along the way, but when you do find the right place that checks all the boxes—and manage to sidestep any number of potentially undesirable realities that would have awaited you had you picked one that wasn’t quite right—you’ll be glad you and your agent did all the extra due diligence in the end.