Determination of land value of property with existing old structure

Hello everyone,

we have been offered a property with an existing building in the Rems-Murr district. We are very interested in the property. It is being sold privately, excluding the public, and after a preliminary discussion, we have agreed that the sellers will set a selling price in the next few days. So that we can start negotiations, we would like to get a feel for the value ourselves and also find arguments for negotiation. The following information about the property:

Location:
- Town center, in the third row from the main street
- Orientation: southwest garden facing the street, north garden adjacent to a vacant property
- 5–10 minutes on foot to the regional train, which reaches Stuttgart Central Station in about 30 minutes
- Doctors and facilities for daily needs are within walking distance
- One neighbor is a church, but without a bell and reportedly very quiet according to residents

Property:
- approx. 800 m², developed
- The layout of the property is somewhat unusual. Rectangular towards the street, but with a rounded left corner. Narrows towards the back.
- Land value according to the community appraisal committee: €300/m²
- There is an old house on the site without central heating and with amateurishly installed electrical and water systems. It should be brick construction. Partly timber framing in the outbuilding, which apparently once served as a stable. I would want to demolish this house.
- Old tool shed on the site, as well as a few older walnut trees, some larger. I would partially like to fell these.

Other:
The development plan foresees a gable roof with a 30° pitch, two full floors are permitted. Distance to the property boundary 2.5 m. Otherwise no special restrictions, no contamination according to the community, land registry entry will be obtained soon.

How would you estimate the value? Regardless, depending on the offer price, I would want to commission an appraisal committee to assess the whole thing. Nevertheless, a rough estimate from you would be interesting. Especially given that there are unfortunately very few building plots in our region, let alone ones of this size and availability.

If you need any further information, just let me know, I have simply compiled what seemed important to me personally.

Thank you very much!

Best regards
mertmk3

Rough estimate: Plot size x standard land value minus demolition costs for the old house, roughly about €200,000. And if the plots are so scarce, then maybe even more.

Since the boundary reference values reflect a retrospective look at the selling prices of the past year, significantly higher amounts can sometimes be paid in desirable locations. Are there any value-reducing factors, such as easements, building encumbrances, or the like? Have you checked whether the church restricts you in the planning of your house? As a designated monument, it can indeed bring restrictions for the neighbors (e.g., excluding certain roof and facade colors). We also have a church as a neighbor in the new house and needed the approval of the heritage authority for the building permit application, as far as I remember.

Thank you for your answers.

According to the municipality, there are no value-reducing factors, i.e., no building encumbrances or rights of way. How do I check if the church restricts us? It is one of those modern churches, so definitely not a listed building. Still, good advice, which I will gladly follow up on. I will inquire with the municipality regarding this.

What else should I ask the seller? How high do you assess the risk that I will have to redo the house connections? Apparently, there is no soil report available. Does this have to be newly prepared before the purchase – does the seller bear the costs? Do I have to request a survey report?

Questions upon questions, but one does not want to get everything wrong already with the property.

Well, you are approaching this the wrong way in times of low interest rates and hardly any available building land... You have to determine for yourself what you can afford. The seller will then give you a price, and you can either live with it or not, or negotiate slightly. You have to pay for soil surveyors and surveyors yourself; there is a 90% probability that you will have to redo the house connections yourself and pay for them as well. You have to coordinate with the building authority about what you are even allowed to do there yourself, and preferably before the purchase. The significance of the land value standard is actually zero, and offsetting the demolition costs is rather wishful thinking. As an example from us: Small residential area, many 1930s houses, many houses are currently changing ownership here. The standard land value is 120€, the plots are mostly 1000m2 in size. The houses on them mostly can only be demolished, which about 2 out of 3 people do. If I were to apply the standard land value and demolition costs now, you should not pay more than 90,000 for the plots; in fact, it is 200,000-250,000. The houses are usually sold within a few days. So you cannot really negotiate - it tends to get more expensive if you take too much time.

Thank you for your response. I have already set an internal price that I could probably live with. I am now waiting for the offer. How and where can I find out if I need to have a survey done? I would like to roughly estimate the costs that will be incurred in addition to the purchase price.