Eric Scharaga
Founder, Damen Capital
Private lender and direct land note buyer serving land investors nationwide. Featured on REtipster, Legends of Land, and Land Investing Online. LinkedIn →
By Eric Scharaga, Founder, Damen Capital · Published Oct 15, 2026 · Updated Oct 15, 2026
North Carolina land sellers ask me the same questions: can I finance my buyer, what paperwork do I use, what rate can I charge, and do I need a license? Here are the answers, with a source for every legal point. I am not a lawyer, and this is not legal advice.
Yes. North Carolina lets a seller finance a land sale, with state rules on paperwork, interest, foreclosure, and sometimes licensing.
Seller financing means the buyer pays you over time instead of getting a bank loan. In North Carolina the cleanest way to do it is a promissory note secured by a deed of trust. Many state rules turn on two facts: the loan size and whether a home is on or planned for the land.
Use a promissory note and a deed of trust. A land contract keeps you on title and can trigger Chapter 47H when a home is involved.
With a deed of trust, the buyer gets the deed at closing and you hold a recorded lien. With a land contract, also called a contract for deed, you keep title until the buyer pays in full. North Carolina regulates contracts for deed on homes in detail, and we do not buy land contracts.
Chapter 47H covers a contract for deed only on "property" as G.S. 47H-1 defines it: North Carolina real estate with a one to four family structure on it, or to be placed on it, that the buyer will live in as a principal dwelling, or certain manufactured homes.
So vacant land bought for investment, with no home planned, falls outside it. If the buyer will put a home on the land and live there, the chapter can apply: a three business day right to cancel (G.S. 47H-2(c)), recording within five business days (G.S. 47H-2(d)), and a 30 day notice to cure before any forfeiture (G.S. 47H-4), among other rules. Even when 47H does not apply, I would not use a land contract. See why to avoid land contracts for seller financing land.
| Note and deed of trust | Land contract (contract for deed) | |
|---|---|---|
| Who holds title after closing | Buyer gets the deed | Seller keeps title until paid in full |
| Recording | Deed of trust recorded in the county where the land lies | Contract or memorandum within 5 business days when 47H applies |
| If the buyer stops paying | Power of sale foreclosure after a clerk hearing | 30 day notice and cure under 47H; otherwise depends on the contract and other law |
| Will we buy it? | Yes, at 80 to 90% of balance | No |
Selling North Carolina land on terms?
We buy seller financed land notes secured by a deed of trust or mortgage for 80 to 90% of balance. No seasoning required.
Get a Free QuoteNote Value CalculatorIf the deed of trust has a power of sale, foreclosure goes through a hearing before the clerk of superior court instead of starting with a lawsuit.
In North Carolina, the trustee files a notice of hearing, serves the borrower and the owners, and the clerk decides whether the sale can go forward. That is the main reason I want a power of sale in every North Carolina deed of trust.
Under G.S. 45-21.16, notice must be served at least 10 days before the hearing. The clerk must find a valid debt held by the party foreclosing, a default, a right to foreclose under the deed of trust, and proper notice. Either side can appeal to a judge within 10 days. For a state by state view, see our foreclosure timelines for land notes.
On a loan over $25,000, North Carolina lets the parties agree in writing to any rate. At $25,000 or less, a cap applies that is never below 16%.
North Carolina's general rate statute, G.S. 24-1.1, lists purchase money loans. Over $25,000, any rate the parties agree to in writing is allowed. At $25,000 or less, the cap is a rate the Commissioner of Banks announces each month, with a 16% floor.
If a home is on or planned for the land, check G.S. 24-1.1A, which covers first lien home loans under $300,000 and is subject to the high cost home loan rules in G.S. 24-1.1E.
Under G.S. 24-2, charging more than the law allows forfeits all the interest on the note, and a buyer who already paid it can recover twice the interest paid. Put the rate in the signed note, and have your attorney check it if the loan is $25,000 or less or a home is involved.
Usually not for vacant land sold for investment, since the North Carolina SAFE Act covers residential mortgage loans.
North Carolina's mortgage licensing law requires a license to make residential mortgage loans. Those are loans to individuals, mainly for personal or family use, secured by a dwelling or by land where a dwelling is built or planned. The Commissioner of Banks says the Act does not apply to investment and commercial properties.
The definitions are in G.S. 53-244.030, and the license rule and exemptions are in G.S. 53-244.040. A seller who receives no more than three residential mortgage loans for purchase money in one calendar year is exempt (G.S. 53-244.040(d)(9)). An estate or trust gets one a year (d)(10), and the Commissioner of Banks FAQ says it must file a claim of exemption. Some older articles say five a year; the current statute says three.
If you sell lots to families who plan to build homes, count those deals every calendar year, and ask your attorney before you go past three.
Usually not for land sold to a business buyer; the main federal rules target consumer loans secured by a dwelling.
Truth in Lending covers consumer credit, not credit made mainly for business purposes, so a sale to an LLC buying land as an investment is generally outside it. If you sell to an individual for personal use, Regulation Z can still apply depending on how many consumer credit sales you make each year.
Regulation Z counts you as a creditor if you extended consumer credit more than 25 times in the current or prior year, or more than 5 times secured by a dwelling. I walk through the rest in Dodd-Frank and seller financing land.
A North Carolina attorney handles the closing and records the deed and deed of trust in the county where the land lies.
North Carolina is an attorney closing state. The State Bar treats title opinions, preparing deeds and deeds of trust, recording, and disbursing funds as the practice of law, and it requires a licensed North Carolina attorney to supervise residential closings. On land deals, you want that attorney searching title and recording your lien.
The State Bar rule is Authorized Practice Advisory Opinion 2002-1. The North Carolina Real Estate Commission says each party chooses its own attorney; an agent can recommend but cannot choose for you.
Recording basics: a deed of trust protects you against later lien creditors and buyers only from the time it is recorded (G.S. 47-20). The deed works the same way (G.S. 47-18). Record it in every county where the land lies (G.S. 47-20.1). The seller pays excise tax of $1 per $500 of price before the deed records (G.S. 105-228.30).
Have the attorney record the deed and the deed of trust together at closing, so no other lien gets ahead of yours.
Set terms, learn who the buyer is, have a North Carolina attorney draft a note and deed of trust, close and record, then service or sell the note.
Most of the work happens before closing. Decide who you are selling to and whether a home is planned, because that drives the interest, licensing, and federal rules. Then let a North Carolina attorney handle documents, title, and recording. If you might sell the note, structure it to sell from day one.
Yes. We buy North Carolina seller financed land notes secured by a deed of trust or mortgage for 80 to 90% of the balance.
If you would rather have cash than years of payments, sell the note. We buy promissory notes secured by a deed of trust or mortgage on North Carolina land. We do not buy land contracts. Our minimums are a $25,000 balance, a $50,000 property value, and a $10,000 buyer down payment. What we pay stays at or under 65% of the property value.
Performing or non performing, no seasoning required. See sell your note, the note value calculator, or our North Carolina page.
General information, not legal advice. Statutes change; have a North Carolina real estate attorney draft your documents.
Selling North Carolina land on terms, or already holding a note? Get a free written quote on what we would pay for it.
Get a Free Quote →Only when a home is involved. Chapter 47H covers real estate with a one to four family structure on it or planned for it that the buyer will live in as a principal dwelling. Vacant land bought for investment with no home planned falls outside it. Either way, use a promissory note and deed of trust.
Under G.S. 24-1.1, the parties may agree in writing to any rate on a loan over $25,000. On $25,000 or less, the cap is the rate the Commissioner of Banks announces each month, never below 16%. Home loans under G.S. 24-1.1A follow separate rules. Charging too much can forfeit all the interest under G.S. 24-2.
Usually not for vacant land sold for investment. The North Carolina SAFE Act covers residential mortgage loans and, per the Commissioner of Banks, does not apply to investment and commercial properties. A seller taking back no more than three residential mortgage loans a calendar year is exempt under G.S. 53-244.040(d)(9).
It depends on the county and on whether the buyer contests it. With a power of sale, foreclosure goes to a hearing before the clerk of superior court under G.S. 45-21.16, with notice served at least 10 days before the hearing. Either side can appeal the clerk's order to a judge within 10 days.
Yes. We buy North Carolina land notes secured by a deed of trust or mortgage for 80 to 90% of the balance. Minimums are a $25,000 balance, $50,000 property value, and $10,000 buyer down payment. What we pay stays at or under 65% of the property value. No land contracts.
Private lender and direct land note buyer serving land investors nationwide. Featured on REtipster, Legends of Land, and Land Investing Online. LinkedIn →