W. Pawlet VT/Hebron NY Question
Here I am in Central Mass and I get a call from a guy who wants to sell a post and beam former barn that has been half converted to apartments; in W. Pawlet VT/Hebron NY. The price seems reasonable at 60K for two 1000 sq/ft rentals that are 80% complete. They could alterantely be configured as three rentals. Here’s the bonus: there is an 18 acre plot that can become part of the deal if it is acted on quickly. This is sub-dividable into as many as thirty house lots.
I know that in W. Pawlet VT/Hebron NY we’re talking rural with a capital R. Thirty house lots may not be useful for forty years; or 100 years. And apartments may not rent for beans.
So in effort to “act quickly” I am beginning with our fair website. Does anyone out there know the W. Pawlet VT/Hebron NY area? Does this sound like it’s worth pursuing?
Thanks for any insight you may have.
wgheisler
Here's my take. If you could finish the apartments and rent them for enough to cover the expenses and debt on a 100% financing deal its a good deal. That land has got to be worth something someday.
This is actually the kind of deal I work on these days (Note to John Locke, anything other than this is a hypothetical, really). If you can control chunks of vacant land with little or none of your money and break even by the rental of a portion of the property then, over time, you have a money maker.
So the questions are, how much to finsh the apartments? Are they rentable? At what price?What will it take to manage them from where you are? I'd take out an ad in the local paper to try to rent the units even though they are not done-- a few bucks for market research is always well spent. Might even spring for a local phone number forwarded to my out-of area office. While your their looking at the property and placing the ad get a contractor to walk the place and give you a price to complet the work.
Thanks commercialking,
Yes, I am starting the market research as you suggest.
I was hoping that someone familiar with the region might chime in...and as I do the research and lay the groundwork I would still love to hear the opinion of someone who knows the VT/NY border area that we're talking about.
wgheisler
I am not familiar with that area.
However, concerning the 18 AC parcel, what is your basis for concluding it could be subdivided into 30 lots? Did you conclude that from the current zoning? Why did you say the 30 lots wouldn't be "useful" for 30-40 years? Does that have anything to do with availability of public utilities or is are you saying there wouldn't be demand for this housing for 30-40 years?
The area you are referring to is almost the only area left near Manchester, VT. Values in Manchester are ridiculous, and get slightly better as you get outside of town ( 30 mi radius). Determine if the land is in VT or NY. NY taxes are high, and the area is very redneck. The VT side seems very trendy to investors, and would be worth checking out. Not much out there, so a perc test will be needed to determine the # of lots allowed.
FYI, I grew up in this area and know it well.