Why Can’t I Find A County Property With Trees?

So if you tell me that you’re looking for a piece of property to build on or to own, and you want mature trees and a creek, or either of those, but you also follow that up with, “Absolutely cannot be in the flood zone,” you’re going to have a little bit of a problem.

And I want to explain to you why.

If you want to buy property in a rural area that is known for agriculture, like where we are—Wharton County, Matagorda County, and parts of Colorado and Jackson County—these communities are along the Texas coast, and they are farming communities.

So, if they could farm it or they could graze cattle on it, that’s what they did. That’s why you’re not going to see a whole lot of trees.

It’s this map. You see all this area right in here? That’s all farmland.

You see? You’re like, “Oh, there’s trees right there.”

So, this is the same map, but all the blue that you see is the flood zone.

I’ll just flip back a second. All that is trees and creek, and all this is agricultural property.

So, everywhere that there’s trees in this little area and a creek, it’s in the flood zone.

Or you want to have a place or live an hour, hour and a half outside of Houston, and you want to go west, northwest, or southwest. These are all farming, agricultural communities, kind of like El Campo, Texas, used to be.

If you’re looking for land to build, to move, and you love the idea of living in a farming, agricultural community, you need to understand: if they could farm it, if they could cultivate it, if they could graze it, they did it hundreds of years ago.

So, this whole area was prairies, and it has been settled.

But also, if you tell me, “Corey, I’ve seen plenty of properties over in that area that aren’t anywhere near the flood zone, but they have trees.”

There are a lot of property owners who have owned properties for generations, and they’re not selling anytime soon.

Like, “I want that property.”

I’m going to say, “Not happening.”

I wanted to do this video for buyers so when they call, I’m not trying to tell you not to move to this area. I’m trying to set clear expectations.

So, we don’t get three months, six months, a year down the road, and you’re going, “I’m so frustrated. Why can’t you find what I want?”

Before you say simply, “No flood zones,” you need to weigh the pros and cons whenever you’re talking about properties that might be in the flood zone, at least a portion of them.

Does the setting and the property outweigh the cost of the flood insurance or your mental block with the flood insurance?

That’s something I can’t answer for you, but that’s something you need to be thinking through.

It’s okay, risk versus reward. What do I want?

It’s no different than buying a property that sits along the Texas coast on the water, and you’re going, “Man, I can’t believe that it flooded.”

Risk versus reward. The setting— is it worth it?

That’s the thought process that you need to go through.

Okay, have a good day.

@cori.radley

Why can I not find a country property with trees? Why do the prettiest wooded properties in our area so often overlap with a flood zone? If you’re looking for rural acreage with mature trees, a creek or other natural water source, along the Texas Coast or in an Agricultural community – there’s a reason those features often show up in the same places as FEMA flood zones. #TexasLand #FarmAndRanch #FloodZone #buildingahome #texasrealestate

♬ original sound – Cori Radley | TX Real Estate