# Another One!



## sunny225 (Dec 4, 2009)

I just spotted another property that sounds promising.
3.2 acres, off grid 2 bedroom, 1 bath. Pond & fenced.

Price reduced Today Off the Grid 3.2 Fenced acre steel building home!


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## PaulNKS (Jan 11, 2009)

It has a shared well... not a good deal.

It's one thing to be off-grid but, why is it off-grid. Is it because it was never finished? or is there some problem? If it's off-grid, is it plumbed? If not, how hard will it be to meet code on either plumbing or using composting toilet, outhouse, etc. What are the regulations?

It's obvious he needs money since he wants an immediate closing. I would still require it go through title company and make him at least pay half for title insurance. This is one of those deals that sounds too good to be true. There has to be a catch somewhere.


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## joshcheney (Feb 2, 2011)

PaulNKS said:


> I would still require it go through title company and make him at least pay half for title insurance. This is one of those deals that sounds too good to be true. There has to be a catch somewhere.


This.

Also, if the well is shared, then the property lines may be close to other infrastructure as well, and it might be worthwhile, if there is any doubt, to do a Mortgage Loan Inspection (a mini-survey, basically) to ensure that the septic system, driveway, and any buildings are within the property lines (and any required setbacks).


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## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Shared well = deal breaker!


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## Newlife (May 27, 2012)

Just curious why people find a shared well to be a deal breaker?

We are looking to start our homestead in a year; but the property we have right now doesn't have a well or a house; so we are always keeping our eyes open for another place that might save a bit of work.

Maybe someone can explain the issues of a shared well? 
Thanks


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## Tinker (Apr 5, 2004)

I would not share a well for several reasons:

Who would be responsible if the pump goes out?
Well capacity is limited--if they use tons of water, you might get mud, or nothing at all.
Who would be responsible for treatment?

These 3 would be my biggest concerns, but I am sure there are others.


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## Newlife (May 27, 2012)

Good points. Thanks!


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## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Newlife said:


> Just curious why people find a shared well to be a deal breaker?
> 
> *50/50 Ownership = 50/50 Financial responsibility, and what normally happens? :viking: Very few folks can agree on upgrades needed, repairs, etc..., then usually one has more $ than the other, yikes :fussin:*
> 
> ...


I already gave you a few above, otherwise, the well is on one property or the other. Say one Owner doesn't pay his electric bill; the water pump is electric, oooops! That actually happened with some neighbors of ours. The Property Owners, owning the property the Well was physically on, were separated. Both of them moved out, got divorced, and let the home go back to the bank. Neither paid the electric bill, of course. It was shut off, so the other Property Owners had NO WATER. They had to get this transferred to their bill, so they would then be paying the bill. When the new Owners moved in, found out about it, they set up a 3rd Electric Bill just for the Well. Fortunately, both Owners pay the expenses. 

Another issue? Water output is very critical, even here. We have a Well with an output sufficient for (3) properties, but that isn't very common. If the Well output is barely sufficient for (2) properties, a Shared Well, than those Property Owners will have to be very sparing with water use. That wouldn't work out so well for Homesteaders... The main reason to have a Well is to have control over your own water!

We have (26) fruit trees, 3,500 sq feet in garden areas, now expanding to 5,000 sq ft more. If we had to share our Well, the other property Owners wouldn't be pleased with our usage:fussin:


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## joshcheney (Feb 2, 2011)

Newlife said:


> Just curious why people find a shared well to be a deal breaker?
> 
> We are looking to start our homestead in a year; but the property we have right now doesn't have a well or a house; so we are always keeping our eyes open for another place that might save a bit of work.
> 
> ...


Other folks have outlined some of the risks pretty well. For the most part, if there isn't a problem (with the well) then there isn't a problem (with the situation). As with any shared piece of infrastructure, the devil is in the details of how you will handle problems with the well to keep it from being a problematic situation.

The way that we handle it around here is to do the following:
1. Have a deed drawn up that grants the second property an easement over the first property for the use and maintenance of the shared well. 
2. Have a survey done to define the easement for recording with the deed.
3. Draw up a maintenance agreement that defines who is responsible for paying what sorts of expenses, up to and including removing the well and the easement should the arrangement no longer be necessary. This gets recorded in the registry of deed as well.

In all, around here that would cost in the vicinity of $1,000, which is almost half of what it would cost to have a well put in. 

Generally, a shared well is an artifact of when two related families owned the two properties, and they just wanted to lend a hand. Maybe one family sold, and there was no clear definition with the new owners as to exactly what the agreement was. The above steps will prevent that from happening, but for the most part, it isn't something that we see a lot of with new construction, simply because the cost of a well is not that much more than (cost of well + cost of doing the sharing properly) / 2.


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## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Sad reality is, regardless of Well Agreement, despite everything done legally, there are Property Owners who will NOT comply. I have seen this over and over in Real Estate, unfortunately. Also, the great cooperative neighbor can eventually sell, and who do you get next?

Good info above, too!

Wow, only $2K to put in a Well? Around here, a LOT more than that!


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## Newlife (May 27, 2012)

That's what I thought about the price of a well...just $2K???

I've been looking in the Missouri side of the Ozarks and what I'm hearing is about $10/foot with an average well going 350'. That's just the drilling cost.

Hmm, maybe it is time to take a harder look at Maine?

Oh, to keep things somewhat tied to the original intent of this post; my opinion is that the house being advertised is a deal that might work for someone; but my inclination is to RUN!!! There's just something about that place and the apparent demands and desperation that leads me to suspect there are some more serious issues that are just not being advertised.

Thanks to all for the info regarding the shared well


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