How to Find the Best Country Homes Near You – United Country Real Estate | United Country Real Estate

How to Find the Best Country Homes Near You – United Country Real Estate

A home in the country can give the greatest comfort that you have been wanting for a long time, especially when you are tired of the hustle and bustle of city life. But finding a country home can be challenging, too.

You can look through hundreds of offices online that offer homes with farm acreage, land and farm, or acres of land where there is an existing country home.

Search for a Perfect Country Property

You can conduct customs searches in areas where country homes with a lot of land for farming are being built.

Search for a database of the best country home listings as well.  These databases are often available for potential buyers.  Your dream home in the country may just be on that list.

There are many things to consider in searching for country homes for sale or looking for attractive country homes that you can choose from.

Talk to a professional with an expertise in country home listings, so you will know what to consider and understand before you buy an affordable dream country home.

1. Exploring Financing Options

Buying a home in the country is very similar to buying a property in an urban area when it comes to financing.

When you get to complete listings of country homes, you will also come across several financing options for a country home purchase.

Country home buyers are typically offered financing by lending agencies with these rules:

• The home should be in good condition. This means it should have a good ‘remaining economic life.’
• A required appraisal which will determine the “residential lending value” of the property will let you know how much you will pay for your down payment. This value includes the value of the house itself, garage, and an average of 10 acres, as determined in the property appraisal.
• During the appraisal, outbuildings and excess acreage will be given ZERO value. Outbuildings include shops, barns, corals, additional garages, or any other buildings like a second house or Quonset.
• When the purchase price is more than the residential lending value, you will have to pay the difference, in addition to your down payment. However, if the purchase price is the same or less than the lending value, you will only need to pay a 5% down payment.
• You may have a harder time getting financing for acreages in very remote locations because they usually take a lot of effort to sell.
• Expect to pay at least a 20% down payment for acreages in excess of $1 mil.

What is the Popular Financing Option for Country Properties?

The most popular financing option for country properties is the USDA loan.

This type of mortgage offers country home buyers fantastic financing options, but you can explore other types of loans that a local lender can discuss with you.

The bottom line is that it is best for country home buyers to talk to a local lender and professional country estate agents when planning on how to finance country estate properties.

This will ensure that you get the best mortgage product and that the right information and excellent tips on what you will expect in the mortgage process of your country home.

2. Paperwork

When you process financing a country home real estate with lenders, you will most likely be required to submit the following paperwork before you get approval:

• Water potability certificate: This certifies that the water used within the property is safe for human consumption.
• Septic certificate: This certifies that the septic system complies with the requirements set by the locality.  You can ask for an inspection before you purchase the property.
• Well drillers certificate: This certifies that there is good water flow for existing wells or that new wells have an acceptable flow rate and that the water is potable

3. Assessing Local Amenities

Country estate properties should also have acceptable services that would provide comfort in living, even if it is a country cabin.

Make sure that the following services are available on the land and farm:

• Potable and clean water
• Good sewer system
• Electricity
• Garbage collection
• Internet connectivity
• Snow removal
• Road maintenance

All services should adhere to the requirements of the locality.   For example, local health agencies should have already inspected the water and septic systems on the land and farm.

4. Considering Homeowner’s Insurance

Insurance is another crucial consideration when buying country properties.  You will want to select a home in the country with insurance coverage that meets your needs.

The cost of insurance will vary depending on the coverage that you choose. More coverage will cost you more money.  But it is important that you get coverage for repairs and rebuilding your country home in the case of damage during a fire, a storm, a tornado, and other damaging elements.

Generally, farm home insurance covers the following:

• The structure itself
• Contents of the home like furniture, appliances and personal property
• Outdoor structures like garages and gazebos
• Liabilities from injuries to household guests

You may want to extend the coverage of your insurance, which can include trees, shrubs, plants, and lawns, fallen tree removal, debris removal, fire department service charges, sewer and sump pump backup, earthquake damage, and other features of the property.

5. Maintenance

How much time and effort will it require to maintain the country home you want to buy?  When you are considering acres of land included with the house itself, you may want to consider work that will need to be done, like lawn mowing, clearing debris, plowing snow during winter, and other needed tasks.

6. Zoning

Know how much property you really want when you plan to purchase country properties.  While it is a common thought that buying a country home may include a large area of land, there are small parcels of land that come with buying country estate properties.

With this thought, you should know the zoning regulations of the land you will purchase.

Zoning will help you know how usable the land is, so it is important that you contact the local zoning authority where the home is located.

7. Best Places to Find Country Homes

 The 15 best rural places where you can find a country home are:

• Rocheport, Missouri
• Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia
• Keystone, South Dakota
• Ellicottville, New York
• Jasper, Arkansas
• Medicine Park, Oklahoma
• Bell Buckle, Tennessee
• Helen, Georgia
• Silverton, Colorado
• Magnolia Springs, Alabama
• Talkeetna, Alaska
• Saugatuck, Michigan
• Augusta, Kentucky
• Cannon Beach, Oregon
• Taos, New Mexico

Find the Country Home of Your Dreams

Talk to country estate agents and ask about country estate market conditions, so you will have an idea where and how you can get the best deal when you buy a country home that will best meet your needs.

Don’t miss what life in country offers: tranquility, generous space, simple life, and many more.  Explore how you will benefit from owning a country home.

Talk to us  United Country Real Estate by calling 800-999-1020.