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Personal Finances / Buying or Selling a Home


Subject:  land zoning question Date:  9/29/2012  8:47 PM
Author:  FoolinSC Number:  124318 of 127815

I've been presented with information and a possible opportunity to purchase a property for sale (3 acres with a 2400 sq ft modular home)that has supposed commercial potential in approx 5-10 years even though it is currently residential. The property is basically half of a street. It's located in an area of town that's growth has been exponential over the years. The seller is an ex gf of a friend of mine and I'm told she's desperate to sell it for personal reasons. The friend is telling me this with no expectation other than she believes this would be a great investment opportunity because it is sure to be worth a lot in 10 years because it's likely to be a commercial area at that time. It might be but who knows? I don't. Do planning commissions forcast these areas based on commercial growth? My question is, if I were to purchase this property, how does land like this go from residential zoning to commercial zoning? Would it be a scenario where someone could potentially want to purchase it years from now and then apply for a commercial rezoning for it or does the purchase of land in the area for commercial purposes change the zoning of the property due to there being other businesses around it and thereby the zoning commission rezones the property? I had a conversation about this with a friend of mine who's a realtor but he tells me that the planning commission is difficult to get answers from. Any information on this would be helpful.