Subdivision Exemptions for Land or Real Property
Subdivision Exemptions:
With encouragement from my son, who has a very successful finance blog and without much else to do at that particular time, I decided to form the Land Development Realities blog in November of 2018. My son told me that I knew a lot about land and should pass on my experience and thoughts to others. Before we get going, take a look sometime at: Real Finance Guy - https://www.realfinanceguy.com/ to learn something useful about money, the management of it, equity compensation and more.
What really drove me to action for my blog are some of the creative ways that I have divided land into separate legal parcels without doing a formal short or long plat, in other words without a formal plat subdivision. I’ve since written posts on Testamentary Land Divisions and Simple Land Divisions, which are two ways. I also said that I would write about the use of Boundary Line Adjustments (BLA’s), not just to move lots lines, but to create new legal parcels. I am not going to do that one however, since the BLA loophole has been closed in all of the states that I have developed in, so it’s a waste of e-paper and our mutual time to bother with it.
I have written exclusively about things I have done myself, the things that have actually worked for me. If I have referenced something in a post that I have not done myself, but reliably know about, I have disclosed it to the reader. Today, though, I am going to look at a subdivision exemption that I have never used, but I thought I might try. Since it was a while ago I decided to pull up my home state’s subdivision laws and take an updated look. Sure enough, the exemption is still there as expected.
The real point of the example that follows is to encourage alertness and diligence for the property already owned, or one that is being considered for purchase. There is also a larger point in my conclusion, but first let’s look at the allowed subdivision exemptions.
Exemptions to subdivision laws in my home state:
Exemptions are allowed divisions of land or real property, but they are not subdivisions from a permitting perspective.
Burial plots - (I have not done.)
Divisions into lots above a certain size - (I have not done.)
Divisions "made by testamentary provisions, or the laws of descent". - (I have done with a client as described in the post:
Testamentary Division of Land: https://www.landdevelopmentrealities.com/home/2018/12/13/testamentary-subdivisionBoundary line adjustments (no additional lots created). - (I have done - before the loophole prohibiting additional lots was enacted.)
Divisions for industrial or commercial use when a binding site plan is approved. - (I have not done.)
Divisions for leasing lots for mobile homes when a binding site plan is approved. - (I have not done.)
Divisions where a portion of the property is developed as a condominium and certain other requirements, including a binding site plan, are met. - (I have not done.)
Ok, here goes - private cemetery
Alternative option - pet cemetery:
I am probably just about to lose a lot of readers right about here, but there is money in death. I was in a charity board meeting one time and spoke with a guy who was in the business and he did more than well. His businesses provided the whole menu - full-service mortuary, cremation, venues for services, monuments, headstones and private cemeteries.
As a land guy, it was the private cemeteries that got me to thinking. Some basic research at the time showed that public cemeteries were usually affiliated with either the military or a religious group. What I also found out is that a lot of them are really overcrowded. Overcrowding can mean no plots left to sell, or there are plots, but nowhere near other deceased family members. Public facilities are also unfavorably thought of in some cases, but certainly in not all cases, for maintenance issues.
If a guy with a fair chunk of land was fully permitted for a private cemetery and creative to boot - what the heck? People are so downright bleak about the idea of death, but guess what? - everybody is going there, including the people with bucks up front to spend. Of course the problem is that absolutely no one wants to think about it. Proof is how many dopes with significant assets are running around without an estate plan, durable power of attorney, or even a Will. Find out more in the article:
Do I Need a Will? - https://www.landdevelopmentrealities.com/home/2019/3/7/do-i-need-a-will .
How weddings and funerals are similar:
What I discovered right off the bat is that funerals are like weddings. Every choice is priced like the mini-bar fridge in a 5 star hotel. Prices are set by playing off high octane emotions. In the case of weddings, breathless anticipation of a once in a lifetime event. In the case of funerals, the bereaved families’ sense of loyalty and responsibility to send dear ‘ole dad off in the right way, or maybe plain old guilt for ignoring him up to that point. Either way the price point is humongous for a traditional event - wedding or funeral...
I knew the full service route like the guy I mentioned above would be too much of a learning curve, too employee intensive and licensing prohibitive, but what about plots for burial? Not only that, but I saw plots could be vertically sectioned, one on top of another, as well as adjacent laterally as is traditional. That seemed to me to be the opportunity, but I never took it further and still haven’t.
Conclusion - and the main point:
The main point here is a much larger one than the example of burial plots and it’s this: Virtually every one of the ways I have found to legally avoid subdivision requirements I have found myself by reading the laws that apply. Then I verified it with experts. Some of us have a tendency to rely on our attorney and engineer partners to flag opportunities and many times they do. That was not the case when I did the testamentary division with a sick client, where he saved a great deal of money himself, and me a ton of time in finishing the project after he passed away. The same is true for the simple land division I did for a client where he was able to subdivide 20 acres into four new 5-acre parcels with a simple administrative review. In both cases I was professionally advised, but no one saw it except me.
So, I challenge all of us to think about the last time we sat down and reviewed the laws pertaining to the improvement and management of our projects.
As developers, it is our money and our responsibility to lead the team as well as to listen and learn from them. Even if you think burial plots are the dumbest idea ever surfaced, who knows, you might just find some legal opportunity to manage and develop your land in a faster and more cost efficient way if you just take the time to look! Legal exemptions might be found, especially with rural land where special provisions are sometimes in place. Just make sure to check your comprehension of what you find with the right professional(s).
I’ve used “the book” of development laws and have found legal exemptions over the years, but I also make sure to move forward “by the book”! Be smart, thorough and fully legally compliant with all of your actions. Good luck.
