She inherited a lot in St. Johns County, Florida. The first offer she received was $8,500. She had already looked it up online and seen a much higher number. She called us and asked, plainly and fairly: are you trying to cheat me?
That is one of the best questions a seller can ask. It means they are paying attention. It means they care about getting a fair deal. And it means they deserve a straight answer.
This is the post we send to every seller who asks that question. Here is the math, written out the way we would do it on a napkin if we were sitting across the table from you.
First, Let's Talk About That Online Number
Before we get into the offer, we need to talk about where you got your number. Because if it came from Zillow, the county assessor, or any automated online tool, we need to have an honest conversation first.
Zillow's estimate tool is built for houses. It works by analyzing price per square foot, neighborhood sales, and tax assessment data. None of those inputs work cleanly for raw vacant land. There is no price per square foot for a dirt lot. The algorithm knows this, which is why Zillow does not even publish estimates for most vacant parcels. When it does, the number can be off by 50 percent or more in either direction.
County assessed values are calculated for tax purposes based on bulk assessments, often done years apart. They are not designed to reflect what a real buyer would pay today in an active market.
The only number that actually matters is what comparable parcels in the same county, with similar acreage and access, have sold for in the last twelve months. Not what they were listed at. What they closed at.
That is the number we work from. And in most cases, it is meaningfully lower than what sellers expect going in.
Meet Property X: A Real Example From St. Johns County
Here is a real example from St. Johns County, Florida. We have kept the address private out of respect for the seller.
Property X is a 1.25-acre vacant residential lot in the Flagler Estates area of Hastings, Florida. Road access off a paved street. Zoned residential. No HOA. No CDD fees. Dry and buildable.
In practice we typically pull around ten comparable sales to get a reliable median. For the sake of keeping this readable, here are five representative comps from the area over the last twelve months.
Comp 1: 1.14 acres, paved road access, dry lot, no wetlands. Sold for $24,500. Comp 2: 1.14 acres, similar zoning, electric nearby. Sold for $23,950. Comp 3: 1.25 acres, comparable access and zoning. Sold for $25,000. Comp 4: 1.14 acres, rural zoning, road frontage. Sold for $22,500. Comp 5: 1.20 acres, residential zoning, no HOA. Sold for $24,000.
Median comparable sale price: $24,000.
That is the real market value for this property. Not a Zillow estimate. Not the county's number. What actual buyers paid for similar land in the same area.
The Seller's Side of the Napkin: What the Traditional Path Actually Looks Like
Before we explain our offer, let's look honestly at what this seller would net if they listed Property X with a real estate agent and waited for a retail buyer.
Starting asking price: $24,000
Here is what comes off the top before the seller sees a dollar.
Agent commission on land (land agents typically charge 8 to 10 percent, higher than houses because land takes longer to sell and requires specialized buyers): minus $2,160 at 9 percent.
Seller-paid closing costs including title insurance, document stamps, and recording fees: minus $480 at 2 percent.
Property taxes while the property sits on the market. Vacant land in this area taxes at approximately $350 per year. If the land sits for twelve months, which is typical for vacant parcels in most markets, that is another $350 out of pocket.
Price reductions. Vacant land almost always requires at least one price drop before it moves. A conservative 10 percent reduction on a $24,000 parcel brings the sale price to $21,600. All the percentages above now apply to the lower number.
Revised net to seller after a typical retail path: approximately $18,000 to $19,000, after twelve or more months of waiting, and only if it sells at all.
That last part matters. A lot of vacant land never sells through traditional channels. It just sits.
Our Side of the Napkin: Where the Gap Actually Goes
Our offer on Property X was $8,500. That is about 35 percent of the median comparable sale price. Here is where the rest of that $24,000 goes, and why.
Direct mail to find this seller. We send thousands of letters to locate motivated sellers. The cost per closed deal, when you factor in printing, postage, and response rates, runs between $800 and $1,500 per acquisition.
Title work and defect clearing. Land titles are complicated. Boundary disputes, easements, heirship issues, and tax liens are common, especially on inherited and long-held parcels. We absorb those costs.
Closing costs on our purchase. We pay all of them. Title insurance, recording fees, transfer costs. The seller pays nothing.
Holding costs while we find a buyer. We pay the same property taxes the seller would have paid, plus our cost of capital for every month the property sits in our inventory.
Resale marketing. We list on LandWatch, Land.com, and Lands of America. We pay for photography, sometimes drone footage, and we manage the listing and all buyer inquiries.
Risk premium. Land does not always sell for what we project. Sometimes it sells for less. Sometimes it takes longer than expected. Occasionally a deal does not work out at all. We carry that risk so the seller does not have to.
Gross margin. Land investors typically operate on a 20 to 30 percent gross margin to keep the business viable. Without that margin, one title issue or one slow parcel wipes out the profit on several good ones. That is not greed. That is how every cash buyer business in real estate works.
What the Seller Is Actually Trading
Here is both sides of the napkin, side by side.
The retail path: approximately $18,000 to $19,000, after twelve or more months of waiting, price reductions, agent commissions, closing costs, and the real possibility that it never sells.
Our offer: $8,500, in your account in approximately two weeks. No agent fees. No closing costs. No showings. No uncertainty.
The gap is approximately $10,000. That is real and we are not going to pretend it is not.
But here is the honest truth about what fills that gap: time, certainty, simplicity, and the elimination of risk. The seller is not giving up $10,000. The seller is trading $10,000 for twelve months they get back, a guaranteed outcome they can plan around, and the freedom to stop thinking about this piece of land.
For some sellers, that trade is absolutely worth it. For others, the extra money matters more and the wait is manageable. We respect both answers completely.
We are not the highest offer you will ever get. We are the most certain one. And for the right seller, that is worth more than the gap.
When You Should Not Sell to Us
We mean this genuinely.
If you have time, you are not under any financial pressure, you enjoy managing the listing process, and you are comfortable waiting a year or more for a retail buyer, list it with a land-specialized agent. You may net more money. That is the honest answer and we will tell you that directly if it applies to your situation.
We are the right fit when certainty matters more than maximum price. When you are done waiting. When you want to close this chapter and move on to whatever comes next.
We Will Show You This Math on Your Property
Every parcel is different. Different county, different comps, different costs. But the formula is always the same and we are always happy to walk through it with you before you decide anything.
Tell us where your land is and what you know about it. We will pull the comps, run the numbers, and show you exactly how we got there. No pressure. No obligation. Just the math, on a napkin, the way it should have been explained from the start.
Ready to See the Numbers on Your Land?
Fill out the form below and we will get back to you within 24 hours. Bring your questions. We are happy to answer all of them.