I called Tax Office Lady back (anonymously) and had
two more questions for her to answer before I could breathe again.
Since a new survey would cost over $500, and I did not have a spare $500
at my disposal, would it hurt anything to just ignore the situation for
now? She told me the only way it could hurt anything is if the
neighbors changed their minds regarding their lot lines. OK, I can
ignore a situation. I have had years of practice learning to
ignore things I can't change at the moment.
My second question was since "my friend's" land was
obviously larger than described, once I (I mean "she") (sheesh) got
around to surveying, would "she" owe back taxes on the land "she" didn't
know she had? Tax Office Lady was quick to reply (lending more
credence to the belief that this happens more often than you'd like to
think), "No, but she will have to pay taxes on the newly surveyed piece
once it's registered in the tax office". Fair enough.
Years later, we were faced with tackling some large
projects that we were neither young enough nor skilled enough to handle.
These included new siding, a new roof, heating ductwork, and attending
to electrical issues. We had done everything we could on our own
and paid as we went, but these were buggers. By the time we could save
up to do the siding, the roof would've fallen in. By the time we
could save up for the roof, the house would've burnt down from an
electrical fire, and by the time we could save up for the electrical
work; we would've frozen to death from lack of adequate heat.
(Except for that few toasty minutes it would've taken for the house to
burn down.)
We bit the bullet and got ourselves a Home
Improvement Loan.
Have I regretted getting the loan? Yes.
Have I fully appreciated the things we were able to
do to our home with that money? Yes.
Are we repaying it as quickly as humanly possible?
You betcha. The POINT of admitting to getting this note is that we
needed to get a survey in order to do it. (And also to let others
know that sometimes we do things we don't want to do, and it's OK.
There is a lot of talk about striking out to the country "debt-free" and
I admit that that's the way to go if you are diligent, plan well and are
very very lucky. Do not consider yourself a Homestead Failure if
you need a mortgage to get you to a place of your own. Just get
the best deal you can, the best rate you can, and work like the Devil to
pay it off as soon as possible. Paying an extra $100 each month on
the principal can decrease the term of your loan by up to 50%)
Back to the POINT.
Our survey cost us about $800 and once registered
with the county raised our taxes exactly zero dollars, since the land
area was correct in the legal description, but the measurements were
what were wrong.
We are now correct, recorded, and most importantly,
our house is firmly planted on our land.
Now that we are looking at new land to move our house
to, we are finding it exasperating that 10 times out of 10, the realtor
will NOT KNOW WHERE THE LOT LINES ARE on a parcel.
How the heck are you supposed to be expected to make
a serious offer without that knowledge? I guess if you are just
looking for a hunk of land to plunk a McMansion down on, it doesn't
matter how many trees there are, if the ridge or valley are part of the
property or if that surface water is shared with another landowner.
It matters to me.
A lot.
Although I will not overlook a piece that states "no
current survey available", if I got really serious about it, the seller
and I would have to have a talk about getting one, and not at my
expense.
A current, accurate survey is good insurance, both
for the buyer and the seller. It is not a good feeling to stand at
the end of your land and peer at your house floating independently of
it. Knowing EXACTLY what you are buying provides peace of mind,
and in the world of homesteading, between learning new skills and the
fickleness of crops and livestock; we need all the peace of mind we can
get.
