The risks on an acreage property are usually the ones that cannot be seen from the driveway. Buyers naturally assess the house, because that is what is presented. The land and its services are where the expensive problems tend to sit.
Power supply is worth confirming, particularly on blocks at the end of a line where capacity may be limited. Water quality from a bore ranges from good to unusable, and testing costs very little compared with discovering the answer later. Drainage behaviour in heavy rain is hard to assess on a dry inspection day, though the ground and the neighbours usually tell the story.
Zoning catches people most often. Rural and special rural zonings carry different rules about what can be built, subdivided or run as a business on the land, and assumptions made before settlement are difficult to unwind afterwards.
Acreage is not a riskier purchase for these reasons alone. It simply needs someone looking past the house before an offer goes in.
Transcript
The big risks on an acreage property are usually the ones you can't see or you just miss. Buyers naturally just focus on the home, but I'm looking at things like power supply, water quality, drainage, zoning, is it rural or special rural? They are the details that make a great property a great purchase or an expensive lesson. Before you buy acreage, make sure someone's looking beyond the house.
