Having been in the Real Estate Business for several years now, I have found myself in the position of listing properties for heirs of successions. The newly enriched heirs become very vulnerable at this point. Chances are, the recipient of this new asset has no or very little idea of the financial history of the property they have just inherited. Back in the day, a lot of sacrifices were made by Granny and Pappy to buy the land you may now own. Years of timber management building up until the right moment to harvest was likely their intended retirement. Land is one of the most sought after assets and usually the last asset to be sold.

OK. You just inherited the property. Use the old survival adage. STOP. S means Stop. T means Think. O means Observe. P means Plan. First, don’t be in too big of a hurry to liquidate. Good land is hard to come by. People go through different stages in their lives. You may not be interested in the property now, but you might later on. Next consider the investment. Do you need to spend this money right away? If not, what would you do with it? Remember, land is a great investment and (like money in the bank), so don’t sell the land just to replace it with an investment with no better advantage. Next, figure out how much your land is worth. Take nothing for granted. The numbers on the succession or what someone told you 3 years ago may not be accurate. If you are sure you want to sell, DO NOT SELL TO THE NEIGHBOR RIGHT AWAY. Chances are that the surrounding land owners know about your land and want it. They have called and made you a “Country Offer”. They want to pay you what they paid for their land………30 years ago!! While you may be flattered by the fact you could get instant cash. Do not give in. Think first. Get professional help. Get the crop or timber cruised, Find out the volume and market. See what comparable land sells for.

Heirs to land are taken advantage of by savvy investors. This is where a real estate professional comes in. We are here to help you. We will not let you get taken advantage of. I get most aggravated when I learn that an heir sells property to the first eager investor for say, $ 1,800 an acre, and I know that same property will sell easily for $ 2,500 per acre.

Please don’t give away the assets your parents or grand parents worked so hard for.