Posted: 10/5/2025 7:58:06 PM EDT
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Some of you might remember back a few years ago when we were looking at land in your awesome state, but those plans got put on the backburner. Now we're sliding the pan up to the front burner. Specifically, we're looking for 10-30 acres in a rural area/town that is about 50/50 or slightly better on the conservative side. This way, if we end up building a home, our votes will be worth more than being in a super solid red town. We spend some time north of the White Mountains over the last week and a few towns that jumped out at us were Errol and Milan. I don't know the political makeup of those towns, but they were beautiful and rural. So, anyone have any suggestions on places/towns to look? Thanks in advance. |
Grandfathering weapons only puts off until tomorrow what tyranny cannot accomplish today.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
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tag as I'm in this county, but far south west from Errol. I'm pretty sure that entire county except for Gorham went to Trump in 24 and dependent upon what Berlin does for the special election this year, will still have all red representatives. See Excel by town in Coos here: https://www.sos.nh.gov/2024-general-election-results Bought a gun at LL Cote in Errol on election day last year. Keep an eye on shopping hubs for essentials. Parras Ace in Groveton and Carons in Berlin for building junk. Gorham Walmart or Colebrook IGA for groceries. A few more options in the SW of the county like Lancaster's Shaws(meh). How many freezers do you have, how far you're willing to drive, you know the deal there. Health care is a pick and choose thing, but you know the deal if you're looking rural. It's a good place to live IMO. |
Peace has always been the reign of mediocrities, and pacifism the bleating of a herd of sheep which allow themselves to be led to the slaughterhouse without defending themselves. ~some dead French guy.
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I need to get back up there and go shopping again. As a note, they're a SS dealer with a kiosk. IMO, that's kind of moot though with Capital Armory shipping right to your door now. Also, their gunbroker user name is whitemoose if you want a semi accurate inventory check. I also need to hit Colebrook to try out Coos Brewing and Black Bear Tavern. New owner of the Black Bear came in from Idaho and is supposedly a car builder/classic car fan. Honestly that whole stretch Milan to Errol is nice. Quiet with the only real industry being timber. Stark, parts of Stewartstown/Clarksville area might have some potential too. Kind of that whole general area. Getting closer towards civilization, parts of Jefferson could work, but it's dominated by US 2, hikers, and a golf course. There are rural corners in many of the towns in the county, but the parts you were in are truly rural. I'd avoid Randolph. Vocal libs there. If you drove through, you already know that Berlin is a dead mill town with all the dead mill town problems. Towns with drama(what town doesn't have drama): Northumberland/Groveton: Select board chair was taken over, then he died, then the court had to appoint a new member as nobody could make up their mind. Entire PD moved to other towns/retired and the town admin quit. Whitefield: Decent folks on their select board, but reports of high assessments, shoddy planning with town projects(library, sewer, etc), and as a huge red flag they tried to shut down a local backyard meat processor. Dalton: No zoning, no permitting, no nothing, do as you please. Google Dalton and landfill(there is no landfill) and you'll see a vocal minority of screeching shitlibs-most not in Dalton, but Dalton is the catalyst. Led by a shitbird from NY that took his wife's name and some smarmy cockbag from NJ who wants to remind everyone he meets that he is a Dr. He never got the lesson that you shouldn't have to keep reminding folks of your credentials. Other than that, it's a thrifty town that is pretty well run for something with only three full time employees. Things to watch out for: OHRV trails. No big deal, but try to locate trails. Might even be a plus for you. Snowmobile map. One of several ATV maps. All the clubs have some sort of social media presence and have events throughout the year. Freight rail service starting back up in Twin Mountain, Whitefield, and possibly Dalton across the bridge into VT. Current line comes into NH from VT around Stratford, and then meanders south kind of along rt 3 before zigging east from Lancaster to Whitefield. I think is is a positive for an economically depressed area. Usual suspects such as the rail trail folks do not. Area papers: Free: Colebrook Chronicle. Published on their FB every Thursdayish. Covers most of the county, into northern VT/southern CA with a prime focus on the towns nearest to Colebrook. Paywall: Caledonian Record. Based out of Littleton. Detailed well written coverage of SW Coos, NW Grafton counties, and then into VT. Paywall: Berlin Daily Sun. Only read them once when they were discussing the county budget. Now I simply read the meeting minutes from the county. For giggles, here is a county wide FB page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/cooscountypolitics Quiet now that this session hasn't heated up yet. Admin is a good kid-very active in the state. Pretty sure it's public, so no need to join. I'm in the SW, so if you ever need insight on Dalton, Lancaster, or Whitefield properties, just scream. Active dairy farm in Lancaster with all sorts of support hay/corn fields in neighboring towns getting the yummy manure treatment a few times a year. One of their manure lagoons is on the VT side down a little dirt road with a sign saying "Biden Pond Rd". Edit-typo |
Peace has always been the reign of mediocrities, and pacifism the bleating of a herd of sheep which allow themselves to be led to the slaughterhouse without defending themselves. ~some dead French guy.
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Dude, that was a perfect write up. Exactly what I am looking for. I'm scouring Realtor.com for land and dwellings and have a bunch saved. The best looking piece of property for what we want to do is way up in Colebrook, which is further north than we want, but the acreage looks great for a small house. I'll post some properties when I get to go through my saved ones and weed out the stuff that is either out of our budget or has some other disqualifying features. Thanks again. |
Grandfathering weapons only puts off until tomorrow what tyranny cannot accomplish today.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
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Originally Posted By Wobblin-Goblin: Yesterday we ate at the restaurant right across from LL Cote. Food was ok, service wasn't.  I'm just going to say this: That is not surprising, considering who the owner is, and who he has working there. |
Remember kids, the first rule of gun safety is to have fun.
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Originally Posted By Wobblin-Goblin: The best looking piece of property for what we want to do is way up in Colebrook, which is further north than we want, but the acreage looks great for a small house. Colebrook is a haul. It's an hour due north from me and still in the same county. It does have a small hospital, so that's convenient. Pretty sure @Jmo371 lives on the east side of the county, so he will have some better insight on what goes on over there. For Colebrook, watch this area--random strip club down a side road. Not exactly wholesome/family friendly. NO, I haven't gone and have no desire to go. Attached File |
Peace has always been the reign of mediocrities, and pacifism the bleating of a herd of sheep which allow themselves to be led to the slaughterhouse without defending themselves. ~some dead French guy.
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Originally Posted By Jmo371: I'm in Gorham, and Love it up here. For peace and quiet, Milan and Dummer/Errol would be a no-brainer. Don't write off Stark or Groveton either. You'll find it's like stepping back in time up here....in a very refreshing way. We stayed at a place just over the line into Maine in Bethel, but spent a little time in Gorham and ate at J's. |
Grandfathering weapons only puts off until tomorrow what tyranny cannot accomplish today.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
Joined:
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NH, USA
| Wife grew up in Whitefield. We used to visit there all the time when her grandparents still lived there. Don't know what it's like after about 10 years ago, was a sleepy little town. I know that the house her grandparents sold was bought by NY liberals, so they may have dug in there too now. |
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Originally Posted By Wobblin-Goblin: We stayed at a place just over the line into Maine in Bethel, but spent a little time in Gorham and ate at J's. Milan/Dummer or stark would be my personal choice....close enough to gorham/berlin but quiet and peaceful...not that berlin/gorham is busy lol. For groceries Market basket in Conway is the way to go for meats/veggies....for boxed stuff walmart is fine, or doing a Bjs membership with the flat rate shipping is helpful. Fresh food up here can be a challenge, and pricing is a bit stiff....sort of the price you way living out of the way. |
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Originally Posted By Jmo371: For groceries Market basket in Conway is the way to go for meats/veggies....for boxed stuff walmart is fine, or doing a Bjs membership with the flat rate shipping is helpful. Grocery choices is the thing I miss about living in Holderness where I had a Walmart, a Market basket, and 2 Hannafords within 15 minutes. Now when I want a good grocery shopping experience, I'll hit the Gorham or Woodsville Walmart. Shaws in Littleton & Lancaster kind of blows. |
Peace has always been the reign of mediocrities, and pacifism the bleating of a herd of sheep which allow themselves to be led to the slaughterhouse without defending themselves. ~some dead French guy.
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Originally Posted By ShoulderNips: Wife grew up in Whitefield. We used to visit there all the time when her grandparents still lived there. Don't know what it's like after about 10 years ago, was a sleepy little town. I know that the house her grandparents sold was bought by NY liberals, so they may have dug in there too now. Trump won 753 to 682 there in 24. Still sleepy-ish IMO, but with an 'upscale neighborhood'(someone else's words) going in behind Mountain View Grand. Have talked to two people building there and they were conservative. Major fumbling of their 4ish million dollar library renovation. Tried to use a historic driveway that was collocated with the railroad tracks. The state has shut them down for now. Primary reason--the town doesn't own the land they were trying to put a driveway on. To be charitable, I can see how a small town overlooked that as it used to be the entrance to their town offices but it's a major oversight for a big project. Them trying to shut down a meat processor was a red flag to me. Yes, I can understand how neighbors might complain, but way too many layers of government for a small town. AI is getting good. Attached File |
Peace has always been the reign of mediocrities, and pacifism the bleating of a herd of sheep which allow themselves to be led to the slaughterhouse without defending themselves. ~some dead French guy.
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Originally Posted By Jmo371: Milan/Dummer or stark would be my personal choice....close enough to gorham/berlin but quiet and peaceful...not that berlin/gorham is busy lol. For groceries Market basket in Conway is the way to go for meats/veggies....for boxed stuff walmart is fine, or doing a Bjs membership with the flat rate shipping is helpful. Fresh food up here can be a challenge, and pricing is a bit stiff....sort of the price you way living out of the way. |
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Originally Posted By memory_leak: I've got an Originally Posted By memory_leak: Originally Posted By Jmo371: Milan/Dummer or stark would be my personal choice....close enough to gorham/berlin but quiet and peaceful...not that berlin/gorham is busy lol. For groceries Market basket in Conway is the way to go for meats/veggies....for boxed stuff walmart is fine, or doing a Bjs membership with the flat rate shipping is helpful. Fresh food up here can be a challenge, and pricing is a bit stiff....sort of the price you way living out of the way. I think everyone's assessment doubled during the last reval cycle. Tax rates were cut in half as a result in most cases. We did ours a couple years ago. Funny thing about buying vacant land and building during a reval is they had no sales price to go off of other than the vacant land. Worked out in my favor with a low assessed value for a new house. They'll catch up with me eventually I'm sure. I took 1.95 out of CU to build on. I think I'm using half that and am still 300' off the road with four additional structures besides the house. That said--that's an effing insane assessment for an acre. What do you have, a mountain view, an ocean view, along with a lake front property, and a producing oil well all in one? That's nuts. Mine is 36k for one acre, 3300 for that .95, and then the rest is in CU. Tax bill will likely be sub 6k for the year. Random wooded parcel on a paved road. Can see Vermont when the leaves are down. |
Peace has always been the reign of mediocrities, and pacifism the bleating of a herd of sheep which allow themselves to be led to the slaughterhouse without defending themselves. ~some dead French guy.
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Originally Posted By Jmo371: helluva-lot cheaper than Berlin or Gorham lol That's nut. 
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Peace has always been the reign of mediocrities, and pacifism the bleating of a herd of sheep which allow themselves to be led to the slaughterhouse without defending themselves. ~some dead French guy.
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Originally Posted By FDC: That said--that's an effing insane assessment for an acre. What do you have, a mountain view, an ocean view, along with a lake front property, and a producing oil well all in one? That's nuts. Just checked, it's $1600 'feature' added to land value. I do have about 1/2 mile of water front, but most of that is inaccessible eta: all the shenanigans aside, Stark is a good place politically. I'd still buy land here, but probably a place that already had a house. |
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Originally Posted By memory_leak: eta: all the shenanigans aside, Stark is a good place politically. I'd still buy land here, but probably a place that already had a house. In the course of my searching, I'm also seeing a few properties like that (house/cabin/shack on land), but the structures leave A LOT to be desired. At least with my budget.
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Grandfathering weapons only puts off until tomorrow what tyranny cannot accomplish today.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
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Did a random look the other day on realtor.com. Seems like their aren't too many listings up now. That new 71 acre parcel in Stark seems a bit high at 5.9 an acre even with the work done on it. Then again, I haven't shopped for awhile. It's below your size, but avoid the 21 acre lot in Dalton on White rd. It's been listed forever and is in a flood zone. No idea if the permits they got expire, but since they were obtained in 2018 I'd bet they are close to it. Looking at the flood overlay on realtor.com is funny with that one.
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Peace has always been the reign of mediocrities, and pacifism the bleating of a herd of sheep which allow themselves to be led to the slaughterhouse without defending themselves. ~some dead French guy.
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Originally Posted By FDC: Did a random look the other day on realtor.com. Seems like their aren't too many listings up now. It's below your size, but avoid the 21 acre lot in Dalton on White rd. It's been listed forever and is in a flood zone. No idea if the permits they got expire, but since they were obtained in 2018 I'd bet they are close to it. Looking at the flood overlay on realtor.com is funny with that one. Yeah, I noticed that right away (the wetlands/flood zone thingy). |
Grandfathering weapons only puts off until tomorrow what tyranny cannot accomplish today.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
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Originally Posted By Wobblin-Goblin: In the course of my searching, I'm also seeing a few properties like that (house/cabin/shack on land), but the structures leave A LOT to be desired. At least with my budget. Houses over this side of the County are all old and French....nothing is square, everything is in some sort of disrepair. The temperature fluctuations are really hard on houses/structures, and the methods of repair over the years up here are hilarious. |
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Originally Posted By FDC: Pleasant St in Littleton say hold my beer on house repairs. https://i.postimg.cc/j22gKR7b/IMG-4422.jpg Burgess Street in Berlin lol |
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Originally Posted By Jmo371: I'm in Gorham, and Love it up here. For peace and quiet, Milan and Dummer/Errol would be a no-brainer. Don't write off Stark or Groveton either. You'll find it's like stepping back in time up here....in a very refreshing way. Stark and Groveton are gorgeous. I'm in Twin and whenever I've headed up to Berlin or Erroll, I enjoy that ride immensely. |
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Originally Posted By FDC: Did a random look the other day on realtor.com. Seems like their aren't too many listings up now. That new 71 acre parcel in Stark seems a bit high at 5.9 an acre even with the work done on it. Then again, I haven't shopped for awhile. It's below your size, but avoid the 21 acre lot in Dalton on White rd. It's been listed forever and is in a flood zone. No idea if the permits they got expire, but since they were obtained in 2018 I'd bet they are close to it. Looking at the flood overlay on realtor.com is funny with that one. It's a buyers market right now. Shitty time to be selling. |
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Originally Posted By Praimfiya: It's a buyers market right now. Shitty time to be selling. Not even close. The flatlanders are still holding onto their covid second homes and Air B&Bs.... 5 years ago you could have bought a 3 bedroom 1.5 bath in Berlin for like 80k. Now they want 200. I dont know where these people think we make money, but we ain't buying their inflated garbage... The market is stale. |
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Originally Posted By Praimfiya: It's a buyers market right now. Shitty time to be selling. Hardly. I'm scrolling through listings and it's a steady stream of crazy prices for everything, whether it's houses or just land. |
Grandfathering weapons only puts off until tomorrow what tyranny cannot accomplish today.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
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Originally Posted By Wobblin-Goblin: Hardly. I'm scrolling through listings and it's a steady stream of crazy prices for everything, whether it's houses or just land. Originally Posted By Wobblin-Goblin: Originally Posted By Praimfiya: It's a buyers market right now. Shitty time to be selling. Hardly. I'm scrolling through listings and it's a steady stream of crazy prices for everything, whether it's houses or just land. Some of those contingent lots are decently priced. |
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Originally Posted By FDC: Some of those contingent lots are decently priced. Exactly what does "contingent" mean in this instance? |
Grandfathering weapons only puts off until tomorrow what tyranny cannot accomplish today.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
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Originally Posted By Wobblin-Goblin: Exactly what does "contingent" mean in this instance? Originally Posted By Wobblin-Goblin: Originally Posted By FDC: Some of those contingent lots are decently priced. Exactly what does "contingent" mean in this instance? Purchase and sales agreement has been signed by all parties. Earnest money provided. Waiting on closing. Could fall through if their finances don't get sorted out or they don't like something about the lot. I put two contingencies on my lot. 1. The MLS documents listed a recent survey. I requested a copy of it. 2. I arrange a perc test. I waived that contingency though as I had already walked the land, knew there were recent septics in the area, knew the soil survey was similar, and knew that SOMEWHERE on these 39 acres I could put a drain field. The thing with perc tests is they have to be where the drainfield goes. Would have been a waste of time/money to do it pre closing as I didn't know where the drainfield would go. Web soil survey: https://websoilsurvey.nrcs.usda.gov/app/WebSoilSurvey.aspx Septic plan search: https://www.des.nh.gov/onestop-navigation One stop basic search will give you well records etc, see below that for septic. I can do a walk through if needed. Just pulled septic plans for Stark, and there are 4 as of 1 Jan--things like that can be useful info sometimes when making judgement calls. Also it provides you with who is doing most of the design/install work in your AO if you decide to GC it yourself(I did not do that). Another handy map tool: https://www.fws.gov/program/national-wetlands-inventory/wetlands-mapper |
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Originally Posted By Jmo371: Not even close. The flatlanders are still holding onto their covid second homes and Air B&Bs.... 5 years ago you could have bought a 3 bedroom 1.5 bath in Berlin for like 80k. Now they want 200. I dont know where these people think we make money, but we ain't buying their inflated garbage... The market is stale. Originally Posted By Wobblin-Goblin: Hardly. I'm scrolling through listings and it's a steady stream of crazy prices for everything, whether it's houses or just land. You two are both right and I stand corrected. I never thought of myself to be a real estate expert lol last time I checked, house prices are down from where they were last year, even if they are still inflated. Just goes to show you what covid did to the market.
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Two questions: 1. Is it a big deal to put land that is not in Common Use into CU? 2. How is Lempster for a town? I see it's a small town and that Trump won it last year 435-318. |
Grandfathering weapons only puts off until tomorrow what tyranny cannot accomplish today.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
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Originally Posted By Wobblin-Goblin: Two questions: 1. Is it a big deal to put land that is not in Common Use into CU? 2. How is Lempster for a town? I see it's a small town and that Trump won it last year 435-318. |
For a people who are free, and who mean to remain so, a well-organized and armed militia is their best security.
Thomas Jefferson
"He didnt punch anybody. He punched an idea." DrFrige
Thomas Jefferson
"He didnt punch anybody. He punched an idea." DrFrige
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Originally Posted By Wobblin-Goblin: 2. How is Lempster for a town? I see it's a small town and that Trump won it last year 435-318. minutes eta: hot link |
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NH, USA
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Originally Posted By FDC: Purchase and sales agreement has been signed by all parties. Earnest money provided. Waiting on closing. Could fall through if their finances don't get sorted out or they don't like something about the lot. I put two contingencies on my lot. 1. The MLS documents listed a recent survey. I requested a copy of it. 2. I arrange a perc test. I waived that contingency though as I had already walked the land, knew there were recent septics in the area, knew the soil survey was similar, and knew that SOMEWHERE on these 39 acres I could put a drain field. The thing with perc tests is they have to be where the drainfield goes. Would have been a waste of time/money to do it pre closing as I didn't know where the drainfield would go. Web soil survey: https://websoilsurvey.nrcs.usda.gov/app/WebSoilSurvey.aspx Septic plan search: https://www.des.nh.gov/onestop-navigation One stop basic search will give you well records etc, see below that for septic. I can do a walk through if needed. Just pulled septic plans for Stark, and there are 4 as of 1 Jan--things like that can be useful info sometimes when making judgement calls. Also it provides you with who is doing most of the design/install work in your AO if you decide to GC it yourself(I did not do that). Another handy map tool: https://www.fws.gov/program/national-wetlands-inventory/wetlands-mapper Cost me $4k to get the perc survey done for a suitable location and plan fee when I had to do a leach field. That was before the state permit fee, which I forget how much that was, but at least another $2k for that. $6k or so before they even started digging the hole. |
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Originally Posted By ShoulderNips: Cost me $4k to get the perc survey done for a suitable location and plan fee when I had to do a leach field. That was before the state permit fee, which I forget how much that was, but at least another $2k for that. $6k or so before they even started digging the hole. Originally Posted By ShoulderNips: Originally Posted By FDC: Purchase and sales agreement has been signed by all parties. Earnest money provided. Waiting on closing. Could fall through if their finances don't get sorted out or they don't like something about the lot. I put two contingencies on my lot. 1. The MLS documents listed a recent survey. I requested a copy of it. 2. I arrange a perc test. I waived that contingency though as I had already walked the land, knew there were recent septics in the area, knew the soil survey was similar, and knew that SOMEWHERE on these 39 acres I could put a drain field. The thing with perc tests is they have to be where the drainfield goes. Would have been a waste of time/money to do it pre closing as I didn't know where the drainfield would go. Web soil survey: https://websoilsurvey.nrcs.usda.gov/app/WebSoilSurvey.aspx Septic plan search: https://www.des.nh.gov/onestop-navigation One stop basic search will give you well records etc, see below that for septic. I can do a walk through if needed. Just pulled septic plans for Stark, and there are 4 as of 1 Jan--things like that can be useful info sometimes when making judgement calls. Also it provides you with who is doing most of the design/install work in your AO if you decide to GC it yourself(I did not do that). Another handy map tool: https://www.fws.gov/program/national-wetlands-inventory/wetlands-mapper Cost me $4k to get the perc survey done for a suitable location and plan fee when I had to do a leach field. That was before the state permit fee, which I forget how much that was, but at least another $2k for that. $6k or so before they even started digging the hole. That's another reason I waived the perc. I was just searching for land and had zero clue who the area's dirt work folks were. I wanted to find a reputable builder/GC to handle all that and send me the bill. Looks like the budget bill that got rid of our car inspections finally raised the septic permit to $450. Mine was all rolled into the dirt work costs and I didn't see it--it was somewhere in that first $13K check I cut. |
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Originally Posted By machinegunseabee: Tag as I am also looking, longer term proposition but the inside scoop is always the best. Seeing that you are from Virginia, let me just say that your state is among the most beautiful I've ever seen. The countryside there is breathtaking in many areas that I travel and it's a shame it's turning blue on you guys. If it was red (or even light red), I'd consider land there, but not the way it is politically now. |
Grandfathering weapons only puts off until tomorrow what tyranny cannot accomplish today.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
The only people made safer by gun control are criminals and tyrants.
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I think I found the listing. A bit smaller than you wanted, but a dude could be comfortable there and smaller land means smaller(less expensive) equipment to manage it. Fish and Game WMA right up the road. Looks bird hunting primarily. Keep an eye on what looks like a sand pit nearby and I assume that place on the main drag leading to that road was just having their place cut and it isn't a full up log yard type thing. Could be a noise maker or could be one heck of a resource. |