Selling Land in Richmond, VA: How to Sell a Lot or Acreage for Cash

Land is a different animal from a house. There’s no kitchen to update or roof to replace, but there’s also no easy way for a buyer to picture what it’s worth. A wooded parcel in western Chesterfield, a leftover lot in the city, a few acres a parent left behind in Goochland or Hanover: each one raises the same questions. What’s it worth, who actually buys land, and how do I sell it without it sitting for a year?

I’m Joe with Richmond Property Buyers. We’re a family-owned company, I’ve been in real estate since 2010, and we buy land as well as houses for cash in Richmond and the surrounding counties. This post covers what drives the value of land around Richmond, what to check before you sell, your realistic options, and how a direct sale works if you’d rather keep it simple.

Who buys land around Richmond?

Land buyers fall into a few groups, and each one looks at your parcel differently:

• Neighbors. The owner next door is often the person who cares most about your lot, whether to add space, protect a view, or keep it from being built on. It’s worth a conversation before anything else.
• Individuals who want to build. These buyers usually need a lot they can get a loan on and build a home on soon, so access, utilities, and septic approval matter a lot to them.
• Builders and developers. They look at zoning, utilities, road frontage, and how many homes or units the land could hold.
• Investors and cash buyers like me. We buy land as it sits, including parcels with question marks a retail buyer won’t take on, and we close without bank financing.

What makes land worth more (or less)?

Two parcels the same size, a few miles apart, can be worth very different amounts. These are the things that move the number the most:

• Access. Does the land front a public road, or do you reach it through a private easement or someone else’s property? A parcel with no legal access is much harder to sell.
• Water and sewer. Public water and sewer at the road is a big plus. Without them, a buyer needs a well and a septic system, and that depends on the soil.
• Septic approval. In Virginia, septic permits go through the Virginia Department of Health, and a soil evaluation (people still call it a perc test) shows whether the ground can support a system. A lot that’s already been evaluated is easier to sell than one that hasn’t.
• Zoning. Agricultural, residential, and commercial zoning each allow different uses. Every county around Richmond has an online GIS map where you can look up your parcel’s zoning.
• Floodplain, wetlands, and streams. Low ground, creeks, and wetlands can cut down how much of the parcel is usable. In many localities around Richmond, land near streams and wetlands also falls under Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act rules that limit building close to the water.
• Shape and slope. A long, narrow strip or a steep, rocky lot is harder to build on than a flat, square one.

Comparable sales are also thinner for land than for houses. There might be dozens of recent home sales in your neighborhood and only a handful of land sales in the whole area, which is one reason land pricing feels like guesswork.

What to check before you sell your land

A little homework up front saves surprises later, whichever way you sell:

1. Find the deed and any survey. Older rural deeds sometimes describe boundaries by landmarks that are long gone. A recent boundary survey helps any buyer, but you don’t always need one to get an offer.
2. Confirm who owns it. If the land came from a parent or grandparent, title may still be in their name, or it may be split among several heirs. Everyone with an ownership interest has to sign. If that’s your situation, my post on selling property with multiple owners walks through the basics.
3. Check the real estate taxes. Vacant land is easy to forget about, and back taxes add up. If the taxes are behind, you can still sell; the balance is usually paid off at closing. I cover how that works in my post on selling to settle back taxes.
4. Ask about land use taxation. Many Virginia counties offer lower assessments for land in farm, forest, or open-space use. If your parcel is in one of those programs, a change in use can trigger roll-back taxes. Call your county’s Commissioner of the Revenue or assessor’s office before you sell so you know what applies.
5. Note what’s on the land. An old shed, a falling-down farmhouse, a junked car, or dumped debris doesn’t stop a sale, but a buyer will ask about it.

Your options for selling land

List it with an agent

An agent who knows land can market your parcel to builders and individual buyers. That can work well for buildable lots with road frontage and utilities. The tradeoffs are commission, a buyer who may need financing or a septic evaluation before closing, and time. Land with any complications can sit.

Sell it yourself

You can put up a sign, post it online, or talk to the neighbors. You save the commission, but you handle the pricing, the questions, and the paperwork, and you’ll want a Virginia real estate attorney or title company handling the closing.

Sell it directly to a cash buyer

A direct sale trades some top-end price for speed and certainty. There’s no listing, no waiting on a buyer’s loan, and no commission. It tends to make the most sense when the land has a complication (no septic approval, unclear access, several heirs, back taxes) or when you just want it handled. If you want to weigh the two side by side, my cash offer vs. listing comparison lays it out.

How selling land to Richmond Property Buyers works

The steps are the same ones on my how we buy houses page:

1. You reach out. Call (804) 293-0208 between 7 AM and 7 PM, or fill out the short form below. The address or tax parcel number and the rough acreage are enough to start.
2. I do my homework. I look at the parcel’s zoning, access, utilities, and the county map, and I’ll ask what you know about it.
3. I walk the land. You don’t need to clear brush or mark the corners.
4. You get a written cash offer. There’s no obligation, and I’ll show you how I got to the number. Depending on the property, owner financing may also be an option.
5. We close with a title company or closing attorney. There are no commissions or fees, I pay the closing costs, and we can close in about seven days or on the date you pick.

We buy land across the area, including Chesterfield County, Henrico, Hanover, and Goochland, along with houses, multifamily, and commercial property.

Common questions about selling land

Do I need a survey before I sell?

Not always. A recent survey helps, but plenty of land changes hands with the existing deed description and a title search. If a survey is needed, we’ll talk about it before anyone spends money.

Will you buy land that hasn’t passed a perc test?

Yes. I buy land as it sits, and my offer accounts for what’s known and unknown about the soil.

What if the land is landlocked?

Call me anyway. A parcel without clear road access is harder to sell on the open market, but it isn’t worthless, and sometimes there’s an easement nobody has looked up yet.

Can I sell inherited land that’s still in my parent’s name?

Usually, yes, once the estate is sorted out and the right people can sign. A Virginia estate attorney can tell you what’s needed, and we’ll work around the estate’s timeline.

Ready to talk about your land?

If you own a lot or acreage around Richmond and want a straight answer on what it’s worth as-is, request a cash offer, fill out the form below, or call me at (804) 293-0208.

This post is general information, not legal or tax advice. For questions about ownership, an estate, zoning, or taxes on a specific parcel, talk with a Virginia attorney or your county’s offices.