Feeling like we just got kicked in the gut .....

After several months and one failed sale, we finally found a motivated buyer for our farm. He is a young, active duty Army soldier and his family transferring to the base nearby. They are very excited about buying the place as it is what they were really looking for.

Our farm shares a well with the neighbor next door and the well is on their land. We currently have a shared well agreement that basically tells us that all parties would pay half of all repairs and that we pay them a certain amount of $$ per month to cover electrical costs etc.

It doesn't say in the well agreement that it is transferrable if we decided to sell. Here is where the problem lies ....... now that we are down to the short strokes of the sale, the well owner tells us that he has no intention of doing a shared well with the new people and that there will just have to be a well drilled on our place if we want the sale to happen.

Since the buyer is financing using a VA loan, the rule is that the water supply has to be taken care of, either an owned well or shared with an agreement tied to the deed, and not something that I can promise to have put in later with the money from the sale of the house.

I tried to negotiate with the well owner to get a better agreement in place that would cover him in the event that the new buyers turn out to be bad neighbors and abuse the agreement ..... but he came up with a plethora of reasons why it won't work and is just forcing my hand to pay to put in a well. I don't have $4-5K lying around to waste on something that doesn't even need to be done !! Wife is fixin' to strangle someone .

There is nothing wrong with the way the agreement works as is ... plenty of water for both people and the system seems pretty sturdy. The only downfall is that his water pressure tank is directly under his bedroom (under the house) and wakes him up if it kicks on in the night. He is worried that people will be showering or doing dishes at all hours of the night and keeping him awake.

Long story ... but I need some solid advice on how to handle this. If I don't get the house sold, I can't move my family down here with me in Houston. We have already been seperated for a really long time due to military commitments and now the civilian jobs ... like 5 years worth. I'd like to have a family again .

I have thought about leasing it out ... wouldn't have to renegotiate the agreement. Leasing doesn't appeal to me at all ... from 3 states away. Not sure what kind of quality we could get in a property manager or tenant anyway.

Any thoughts ???

Cheers,
SERIOUSLYPISTOL'DOFF

 

Drill a well. Best solution.

 

Drill the well, and increase the purchase price enough to cover the cost of the well. If that won't work, maybe you and the buyer can split the cost, and increase the purchase price by 50% of the cost of the well. Might be worth eating some of the cost to accomplish you objective, especially in this market.
Best of luck.
Colby

 

Tell your neighbor with the well one more time the reasons you want to transfer the agreement. When he repeats the objections to you make him aware his biggest objection is the possibility of the pump running in the night time hours.

Then, let him know if he does not come to an agreement with the well arrangement you will not be able to sell the property and you WILL lease it.

He then will have to deal with who ever you choose to be his neighbor.

Might be better to relocate the pump/holding tank from under his sleeping area. Offer to help to relocate it, or build a pump house further away
.

 

I think D2 got it right. Be reasonable with him and let him know if both parties can't agree, you will be forced to rent the place out and you will not have good control over who you rent it to and their water using habits. It might just scare him enough to settle on an agreement.

 

I would seek legal chancel, before I give in to the other choices. My thoughts is the water rights have been for the farm to use and not just for a particular owner of the farm. And if the water has been used by your farm after legal number of years, the water rights can become part of the farm with or without any written aggreement .
If you successful in winning this disagreement, I would offer to pay for a new storage building for the tank.

 

I appreciate all the input ........ I don't imagine he would be real happy if I moved in a family of chinese immigrants to lease the property, would he ?

We are going to see if we can find a lawyer who deals with real estate law and see what comes of that. Our opinion is that if an agreement for two neighbors to share a well is put on paper and if that paper doesn't say whether it is transferrable or not ... that it should be assumed to be transferrable to the next "person in title" who would buy either place so that someone doesn't get left without water. That this agreement should stay in place until BOTH parties agree that a shared well is no longer necessary or desired.

When the previous owner of the neighbors property, who also sold us our property, sold to this guy ... noone called and asked us if we had an opinion one way or the other ... it was just done. The agreement transfered and everyone still had water, uninterrupted. I don't really see why it makes a difference now other than he feels that it may make his property less desirable (they are selling too).

Shame it all comes to this. Overall, I think we have been darned good neighbors to them. We let them graze cows & horses on our land (for only the price of fence repairs), gave them a bunch of chain link fencing matl. for free, gave them a big 9 horse trailer to either sell for scrap or turn into a goat barn or something.
They have done good turns in kind to us too over the years, so this all breaks even. Just didn't expect them to pull this crap at the last minute.

Cheers,
PISTOL

 

The both of you bought your properties with this agreement in place. He does not have the authority to cut your property out of the agreement. If he is unhappy with the aggreement, he can buy your property and change the agreement to suite him or he could dig you a new well, but only if it ok'ed by you.

 

Nothing new here, people have been fighting over water rights for centuries.
Your neighbor has legitimate beefs, and the pump coming on in the middle of the night is the least of them.
He's most likely concerned about the new people using too much water, or not paying their share for repairs.
Anytime lawyers get involved, the only people benefiting are the lawyers.
I would not buy a place with the well on the neighbors property, and I can understand your neighbor's concerns.
I would get a home equity loan ($5k is nothing, if you can get it done for that) put the well in, add the price of the well to the property listing.
I'd bet you'll get a lot more people interested in your place if it has it's own water, there is no telling how many people were scared away by the fact that there was a shared well, and that the place did not have it's own well.

 

Seems like I remember this well being a problem in the past. I would at least LOOK into a new well.......

 

Good memory ....... we did have an issue before but it turned out to be something totally different that what we thought.

I sent them a suggestion to let them put together an agreement that suited them and if the new buyer accepts it ... great.

If not ... then we lose the sale and will pursue leasing it until someone will agree to it ..... and continue paying the small monthly fee.

Cheers,
PISTOL

 

My Good friend!

please keep the emotion out for any legal issue decision, despite wanting to %$^&*( the guy over this situation.

dig the well, period. cheaper, less headache. property that is habitable has to have a sole confirmed source of potable or altered potable water.
nuff said.

rent to own to current buyer. half of well cost is put in raised house cost (what is the assessment on the place? make sure it is below or no funding from VA) please please ask a lawyer to peruse the situation, not hire for defense or action. office cost is worth it. you are paying for the advice, not a search or legal determination. leave the neighbor alone.

(he may contact your seller to purchase his place instead)

this can be done in writing and ease of mind!!!! your tax break will support the cost of new water to a house that needs an improvement to be sold, increase health to non toxic, or new green (ugh) renewable resource. all tax benefit/deductions. good luck, do not worry it is a practical solution!!!

PM me, call me whatever- anything I can do but offer legal advice over the internet, this is just suggestions from experience. been there, feel as frustrated!
Heidi