The decision to buy land is a big one and it’s important to do thorough research on the benefits and challenges of farming. While you might think that buying an agricultural property involves no major risk, there are several common mistakes that farmers make. Maybe you end up getting land that is overpriced or land that will soon be converted into a redevelopment project by the government.
No matter how much preparation you have done, buying agricultural land can be a stressful experience. You can avoid these pitfalls by following our easy-to-follow guide and asking all the right questions when buying for your next farm. Taking cues from some cases, we identified the top 6 mistakes that farmers make and how you can avoid them.
1. Not checking if the seller has all the necessary permission to sell
Make sure that the seller has all the necessary documents and permissions to sell his property. If he doesn’t, you might get into trouble later on as you will be asked to produce those documents too. The title of the land you are going to buy must be undisputed and clear of charges. You need to ask and verify with the seller if he has the legal right to sell the property. Ask the seller for the title document that clearly mentions his name.
2. Not going through the land laws of the state
The land is a state subject and thus every state has a different set of laws that govern buying and selling of land. For example, all the states in India, except Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala, require you to be a farmer or a person belonging to a farming family for buying land for agriculture purposes. If you do not satisfy any of these conditions, you will have to go through a separate procedure that differs from state to state.
So, if you are going to buy a piece of land in a state other than your state, don’t forget to go through the rules and regulations of that state.
3. Not doing soil testing
If you’re looking to buy land for farming, it’s important to test the soil before making a purchase. The type and quality of soil can vary from region to region so you’ll want to have it tested before growing crops there. You should ask the seller if you can take a sample of soil. Learn the right way of collecting soil samples for testing here.
After collecting your soil samples, you will need to send them to a government-approved soil testing laboratory. Here is a link for a list of approved laboratories in your state.
4. Not getting the land measured by a recognized land surveyor
Buying land is a big investment for any person, and thus it is essential to make sure that you get the right measurements of the land. The measurements on the map and those on paper might not match up exactly, so make sure to have a professional do it for you. If you don’t, you could lose money in the future.
5. Not getting the Encumbrance certificate
An Encumbrance certificate is a document that contains details of all the previous transactions done on the land for the last 13 or 30 years. Before buying land, you should also be aware of all the charges and taxes associated with it. You also need to know about all the loans taken on it in order to pay them off. If there is any outstanding loan left on it, you will have to pay that too! This is why getting an Encumbrance certificate is important.
You can get an Encumbrance certificate for the land from the sub-registrar’s office where the sale deed of the land has been registered.
6. Not doing your research
When you are ready to make a purchase, make sure that you do proper research about the prices of the place in the current market. It is also important to check if there are any government regulations relating to development in that area. Failing to do this may lead to buying overpriced property and then losing your sleep over it.
Buying land can be an exciting, but stressful time. There are so many things to consider when making the decision of what kind of land to buy, and how much to pay for it. It is easy for new farmers especially, to make costly mistakes when buying their first farm due to lack of experience. In this blog, we hope you have learned about some common mistakes and won’t make the same while buying your next agricultural land.