Need some help locating property

[bjk389]

I haven't posted in awhile...so, I'll give a little background.  We are in VA, currently looking for property around Gillette.  We are looking for max 1/2 hour drive time to Gillette, 40+ acres, house would be nice.  We have made two trips, probably looked at 20 properties and put bid on one(what a disappointment).  I know two trips is not alot, but, I'm beginning to wonder if we have the wrong real estate agent.  We started looking for property with house, now we are considering land with/without house.  The one we put a bid on was in Adon and we were going to tear the house down and rebuild.  My house here in VA goes on the market in 4-6 weeks.  Anyone got any ideas?

[MamaLiberty]

The reality about real estate agents, in my experience, is that they do not really give much time or attention to anyone who is not actually here. Trying to deal with them on line or even by phone was terribly frustrating for me in '05. It's a seller's market here right now, and they can afford to ignore those who might be just  "looking." It's poor business, and will come back to bite them, but there it is.

I suspect that some of the FSW folks now in Gillette and Moorcroft can help you in at least talking to them. Moorcroft would be a good place to look, I think. Prices in and around Gillette are pretty high now, even when there is something available. Newcastle, where I am, is about an hour or hour and a half from Gillette, depending on weather and how fond you are of paying for speeding tickets. <G> Prices are better here, and it's a nice friendly town. Might be worth looking at. I'll be glad to help in any way possible.

Call and talk to Vera at Home Place Realty. http://www.homeplaceusa.com/  Tell her I referred you to her. (She knows "MamaLiberty) She helped me buy this place and was terrific. She only lists things nearby, but she is a full realtor and can help you with anything that is listed.

Another problem is that not everything is placed on the multiple listings. Many realtors here maintain some exclusive properties, and many of those are the real "deals." You just have to be here and make the rounds to find them.

The best idea, far as I'm concerned, is to buy or rent SOMETHING, anywhere you can and GET HERE. Once you are here you can look for that perfect place you really want.

Good luck!

[manfromnevada]

Dear bjk,
I agree with most of what ML says above.

Gillette is in a energy boom and there are folks staying long term in motels just to have a place to stay while they work in the energy industry. I've HEARD that this has pushed prices up and availability down. Imagine that! A free market! Maybe we can get the feds to help out here (JUST KIDDING!). I'm not familiar at all with Gillette re: housing. I live out near Devil's Tower and it's about 60 miles and over an hour to Gillette from here. All of the contractors I've used on my home project here have come from SD because they are looking for work rather than being short of time.

In case you don't know, Gillette is in Campbell County whereas Moorcroft is in Crook. Crook itself has no zoning, land use, inspections, or permits. Towns are different. Campbell has all the above even in the county I believe. Not sure. Depending upon your mindset this could make a difference. You could always get some land outside of Moorcroft and put a nice new manufactured home on it.

Mac

[colonial shooter]

BJK, I too just got here from the Old Dominion. I found mine through Rocky Mountain Timberland, out of Bozeman MT, but they also have an office in Wheatland WY. They have done good by me, try them out. BTW where abouts in VA?

[Paul Bonneau]

I'm beginning to wonder if we have the wrong real estate agent.

Let's see, where have I heard that before? 

The deal with real estate (as in many other things in Wyoming) is that agents have their priorities - hunting and fishing usually being high on the list. Also, as with so many other professions, real estate may be one of several hats that realtors wear. One realtor I know spends a fair amount of time fixing fences and feeding horses for someone on a big ranch, keeping up his own homestead, and training for rodeo.

Bottom line, you just can't expect "professional" realtor behavior like many of us are used to from big cities. Goes with the laid-back territory, and you just have to get used to it or Wyoming will not be for you. The upside is that people generally are very easy to get along with here. Not much of that "type A" behavior (is that what it's called?)

Many leads on real estate come via word of mouth. Like Susan says, you have to be here. Many places are not even listed, just "someone heard that his friend's nephew was thinking of selling a piece of land," that sort of thing. You can save on realtor commissions that way...

[vonu]

If you go to realtor.com all you need is a zip code to access the MLS.