When a note comes in, I do not start with the price. I start with a list. Every land note I look at goes through the same checks in the same order, and by the end I know what I can pay, or whether I can buy it at all.
If you see your note the way I see it, two things happen. You know what a fair offer looks like before anyone calls you. And your next note gets written to sell for more. Here are the eight checks.
What Does a Note Buyer Check First?
The paperwork: a promissory note with a recorded deed of trust or mortgage, and the deed in your buyer's name.
If the deed never transferred to your buyer, it is a land contract, not a note. We do not buy land contracts at any price, because a default turns into a legal fight instead of a foreclosure. We also need first lien position and, on a closed loan, the original ink signed note in your hands. A lost original is fixable, but it slows everything down.
How Much Did Your Buyer Put Down?
This is the biggest driver of your price: 20% or more down, and at least $10,000, puts a note in the full purchase range.
The down payment is your buyer's stake. Someone with 30% in the land does not walk away over a rough few months. Someone with 5% in can stop paying and lose almost nothing. That is why the price climbs with the down payment.
| Buyer down payment | What it does to the price |
|---|---|
| Under 20%, or under $10,000 | Needs a buyback from you, or we buy a partial |
| 20% | Qualifies, typically 80 to 84% of balance |
| 30% | Strong, typically 85 to 88% of balance |
| 40% or more | Top of the range, up to 90% of balance |
The full breakdown is in what is my land note worth.
What Is the Land Worth, Not What Did It Sell For?
We run our own valuation, and the most we pay is 65% of that value.
Sale price and value are not the same thing. A parcel that sold for $60,000 with easy terms might be worth $45,000 cash. If your buyer stops paying, the land is what protects the money, so the value is what counts. The property has to be worth at least $50,000, and the balance has to be at least $25,000.
That 65% cap is called investment to value, or ITV. On a $40,000 balance, paying 85% means $34,000. If the land is worth $55,000, that is 62% of value and it works. If the land is worth $45,000, it is 76% and the offer has to come down.
Selling a land note?
We buy land notes with our own money for 80 to 90% of balance. Written offer in 24 hours, close in as little as 7 days.
Get a Free QuoteWhat Is My Note Worth?Will Your Buyer Keep Paying?
We look at the payment history, the buyer's credit, and who collects the payments.
No seasoning is required. We buy notes at the closing table. But a clean record helps. A year or more of on time payments says more about your buyer than any score. Credit matters most on new notes, and it is weighed against the down payment:
| Buyer credit score | Down payment that prices as standard |
|---|---|
| 690 or higher | 20% |
| 630 to 689 | 30% |
| 601 to 629 | 40% |
| 600 or lower | 50% |
A professional servicer collecting by ACH also helps. It means a clean payment record exists and nothing depends on you remembering to check the mail.
Is the Note Itself Written Well?
A 10% or higher rate, a term of 10 years or less, and no short balloon make a note worth more.
A buyer is paying today for money that comes in over years. A higher rate and a shorter term mean that money comes back faster. A balloon due in under 3 years is a warning sign, because many buyers cannot refinance raw land when it comes due. When a balloon is short, a partial is the likely offer.
Can the Land Be Resold if Something Goes Wrong?
The land needs legal access, 2 acres or more, no real wetlands or flood zone, and a passed perc test if it is under 10 acres.
If the note goes bad, the land is how the money comes back, so it has to be land someone else will buy. Landlocked parcels, steep or odd shaped land, a failed perc, or land next to a landfill or junkyard all make a note hard to sell no matter how good the buyer is. The full list is on our note buying criteria page.
Does the State Matter?
Yes. We buy in 43 states, and the state sets how long a foreclosure takes.
We do not buy notes in California, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, or Pennsylvania. Everywhere else, the foreclosure process changes how much time and cost sits between a default and getting paid. Our state foreclosure timelines page has all 50 states.
What Happens if My Note Misses a Check?
On most risk misses, you still get an offer: a partial of 12 to 60 payments at an 18% yield, capped at 40% of value.
Low down payment, a balance under $25,000, value under $50,000, weak credit with a small down payment: none of those end the conversation. We buy the next run of payments for cash now, and the note comes back to you after our last one. See partial note purchases for how that works.
A few things are still a flat no: land contracts, land under 2 acres, a failed perc, commercial property, and the seven excluded states. Non performing notes are priced case by case, typically 50 to 65% of balance.
| Check | What we want | If it misses |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Paperwork | Note plus recorded deed of trust or mortgage | Land contract: no |
| 2. Down payment | 20%+ and $10,000+ | Buyback or partial |
| 3. Value | Our offer at or under 65% of value | Lower offer or partial |
| 4. Payments | On time, matched to credit | Lower offer or partial |
| 5. Note terms | 10%+ rate, 10 years or less | Lower offer; short balloon means partial |
| 6. The land | Access, 2+ acres, perc, no flood | Usually no |
| 7. State | Any of our 43 states | No |
| 8. Performing | Buyer is current | Case by case, 50 to 65% |
How Do I See My Note the Way You Do?
Run it through the note grader, then the calculator, then send it for a written offer.
The land note grader asks ten questions and gives your note a letter grade with what each weakness costs. The note value calculator turns that into a dollar range. When you want a real number, send the note details and you get a written offer within 24 hours. Once the documents are in, closing takes about 7 days.
Want a written offer from the company that will wire the money?
Get a Free Quote →Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most important thing a note buyer looks at?
The down payment. It is the buyer's stake in the land. With 20% or more down, a buyer fights to keep the property; with 5% down, walking away costs them almost nothing. It moves the price more than anything else.
Does a note buyer use the sale price as the value?
No. We run our own valuation on every note. If the land sold for more than it is worth, the value we use is lower than the sale price, and the most we pay is 65% of that value.
Can I sell a note that fails one of the checks?
Often, yes. When a note misses on a risk item like a low down payment, a small balance, or weak credit, we offer a partial: we buy 12 to 60 of the next payments at an 18% yield, capped at 40% of value, and the note comes back to you after.
What makes a note impossible to sell?
A land contract instead of a note with a recorded deed of trust or mortgage, land under 2 acres, a failed perc test, commercial property, or a note in a state we do not buy in: California, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, or Pennsylvania.