Water Options in the Desert

Hello, this is Rachel Gibson, REALTOR®. A couple days ago I told you about how water hauling works and how easy it really is to haul your own water. Today I would like to talk about the use of water wells on properties. A water well is a hole drilled into the ground to access water from an aquifer, a layer of water-bearing rock or sediment. Wells can be dug, driven, or drilled, and they come in different shapes and sizes depending on the material and how much water is being pumped.

More than 42 million people in the United States use individual or private wells to supply water for their families every day.

I often have people ask me about how much it costs to dig a well. The first consideration is how deep is the well going to have to be…the deeper the well, the more costly, the more shallow the well, the less expense. The price of a well install has gone up significantly in the last few years. The last well quote I got was for $58k to dig about 1000 feet…another quote I just heard about was for $40k to dig a well about 600 feet. Just like with anything else, you need to shop around to find the best prices. Brown Drilling is well known around Kingman for drilling wells. Search “water well installers” to find more options and to get multiple quotes.

Wells are the ideal way to go when it comes to living in the desert. With your own well you can literally create an oasis in the desert. I live on water haul myself so I really appreciate what a well has to offer. Water is life. Without water you won’t be living in the desert long. With a well at your disposal, the sky is the limit. Unlimited water supply of your own with no water bills? Who could beat it? Grow trees, grow food, build a swimming pool! What can’t you do with a well?!

If you can afford the $30k plus price tag to install the well, I highly recommend it! Water in the desert is life! Signing off.

Hello, everyone. I'm Rachel Gibson, REALTOR® here in Kingman, Arizona. Today, I'm excited to bring you a land market update. Today is August 7, 2024.

Let's dive into the numbers. Currently, we have a 12.98 Months Supply of Inventory in Kingman. This means that it would take approximately 12.98 months to sell all the homes on the market if no new listings were added. Over the last 12 months, we have seen a decrease of -7.42% in Months Supply of Inventory, indicating a more competitive market for buyers.

The List to Sold Price percentage in Kingman is 89.1%, showing that sellers are able to negotiate prices closer to their listing price. The Median days on market is 60, meaning that land is selling relatively quickly in our area.

the Median Sold Price. In Kingman, the Median Sold Price for land is $16,750. This number does not really tell you much b/c land comes in all sizes. I can tell you though in the last 30 days, Kingman sold 42 lots as low as $200 per acre up to $2600 per acre. It depends on lot size and location but you can see the price per acre is all over the map. The key indicators are does it have power, water, and paved roads? That makes all the difference!

Whether you're a buyer or a seller, it's important to stay informed about the real estate market in Kingman. If you're thinking about buying or selling land or a home, now is a great time to make a move.

Stay tuned for more updates from me, Rachel Gibson, REALTOR® in Kingman, Arizona.

Hello and welcome to my podcast. This is Rachel Gibson, REALTOR®.

Today I want to talk about the land buying process in AZ. It’s fairly simple so I wanted to give you the step by step process.

Once you find a lot you want to buy the first thing you need to do is contact your real estate agent. It does not have to be the listing agent selling the land. You can talk to any licensed agent in the state you are looking to purchase but I am talking specifically about Arizona.

Is there water access? Electricity nearby for hook up? Legal road access? Etc…these are the basic questions you want to find out. Also, what is the zoning? Is it residential or commercial?

Once it passes your basic criteria you want to put in an offer. Never feel like you have to offer full asking price. It is always better to put in a lower asking price offer and allow the seller to counter you. This will help you get a better idea of their bottom dollar amount.

Once your offer is accepted by the seller you will pay your earnest money, usually $1000 for land, to show your seriousness about purchasing. Now Your “inspection period” or “due diligence” period begins. This can be anywhere from 10 to 30 days at the buyers request. Standard time is usually 10 days for the inspection period. In this time you want to confirm the lot has legal access and any other items on your list you deem as important. This is actually your job as the buyer and not the real estate agent so be warned not to rely on your agent to confirm utilities or any other criteria that is of importance to you.

Regarding surveys, this always comes up… Buyers ask if they should get a survey done. In general the answer is no…it all depends on your intended use for the property. Most people do NOT get a survey until they begin construction in which the builder is more likely to include the survey costs into the building fees.

Once your inspection period is almost up, you need to sign a document whether you accept or reject the property. This is very important b/c if for any reason you do not accept the property during this inspection period, you simply sign the document and your earnest money will be returned to you. If you accept the property, your earnest money will now be applied to the balance due at time of closing.

Assuming all has gone as planned and you accept the property, now you have given the green light to the title company to finish closing the deal. You will pay the rest of your money or down payment, depending whether or not you did an owner will carry purchase agreement or a straight cash agreement. The title company will transfer the property into your name at the county level and now the property is owned by you, the buyer. It’s really that simple to purchase land in Arizona.

If you have questions or would like to start the land buying process here in Mohave County Arizona please feel free to reach out to me any time. Thank You, Signing off Rachel Gibson REALTOR®.