My husband and I have been looking for a plot of land to start our life together. Like many others, we wanted to explore any cheaper options that we may have first (because who doesn't love a good discount?). A simple Google search later we found CheapLands.com. Being first-time buyers, we had a lot of questions. These “informed” questions were NOT welcomed by CheapLands.com, however.
This is their standard process for everyone, and what they told me:
I QUOTE,
“In regards to this property, it has $252 in back taxes as of today. Therefore, you will need to assume the back taxes. We suggest paying them off as soon as possible. When you pay them off you would need to:
1. Wait until we issue the title and it's recorded in your name.
2. Then, call 501-683-3053 and press 1 and read the parcel number, which is 34R0250015000. Make sure they know it's in the county of Pulaski.
3. Then, before you pay, you would make sure this form is not expired. (if it is expired we will send you a new form with the higher tax amount).
4. Then, you would not sign the form at first. You would bring it to a notary who would stamp after you sign the page at the notary.
5. Then, you would get a certified check or money order and mail this form and call the same number at 501-683-3053 to make sure they got it.”
After all this, they explained I would then pay them the price of the lot and it would be mine. Naturally, and being a first-time buyer, I was concerned they would wait until I paid off their taxes and then run off with my lot to re-sell it. On top of all of this, the lot was listed as 0.35 acres on their website, but the official county form they sent me (to start the process) identified as being only 0.25 acres. I also needed the lot before July 15 and asked if it would be possible to expedite the transaction as quickly as possible (within days), well before July 15.
This wasn’t taken well.
I am copy-pasting their email response to me below (since Facebook won't accept .JPEG attachments). I am also including my own email that I sent out. THIS HAS NOT BEEN ALTERED BY ME WHATSOEVER (I have nothing to gain from this, anyway). I am only trying to raise awareness about this scam.
!!THE EMAIL IS BELOW!!
EMAIL FROM ME:
"Hello,
Thank you for your response. I evaluated the form and I see it says the acreage is 0.250 but on the listing on your site it says 0.35. It says that the lot is much smaller than promised. Also, after I call the county myself and pay the back taxes, how can I assure that you will not re-sell the property after its taxes have been paid off by me? Where can I guarantee this? I'd also like to make sure that both my husband's and my name are both written equally as property owners. Can I write both our names on the owner/signature section?
Is there a possibility that this can all be completed by July 15 of this month?
Thank you,
Grace"
REPLY FROM CHEAPLANDS.COM:
"Thanks.
We cannot hold the property until July 15.
It doesn't seem your research is complete, although you stated it was ready, so that raises concern on our end.
If you are worried that we will re-sell the property, then you don't need to buy it from us.
Best of luck."
I leave this exchange up to your own opinion, but I don’t think I was rude or out-of-line at all. I URGE you to PLEASE do your own research. Do not be scammed by CheapLands.com.
Just because a company has made a few sales (and has a positive testimonial page which can be easily faked) DOES NOT mean they are polite, fair, or respectful to their clients by any means. There are PLENTY of other options out there for cheap land.
!!NEVER FORGET TO CALL THE COUNTY THAT YOU'RE PURCHASING LAND IN BEFORE YOU BUY IT!! The state county land assessor that I called warned me about how delinquent CheapLands.com was in their back-taxes. She was almost mad at me until she found out that I wasn’t CheapLands.com calling in. Nearly every property has something owed already.
I wanted to buy some land down south in Mississippi, something that can be financed over time by the owner,without the hassle of a real estate agent. So I did a Google search and Cheaplands.com came up. And the land that they supposely offer seemed to be cheap but the information on their website was lacking. They required you to email them if you were interested. So I did. Long story short, I had to ask for everything that should have been a given to start. Such as the land's parcel number and PPIN number , their registered agent information from the Secretary of State to do business in the state that they state they have properties in. The property description did not match what the county had as far as the lots and adj tract numbers. They claimed to be doing business in Florida but have it registered in Delaware and the CEO (Erin Herm) is in Arkansas??? They also claimed that they can do business in Mississippi but there was no proof given of that. When the CEO of this company sent me a Quitclaim Deed it was written in Microsoft Word, with no signature and no notary or state seal!!! (BigRedFlag) And when reading the Quitclaim Deed they stated again being in Florida but at the end of the document it claims to be a State of Arkansas document???(MajorRedFlag) And when it came to them sending me the sales agreement form the CEO voided it out stating that there was a mix up , the title was in the CEO's wife's name that they deeded them back to the company name Cheap LAnds Inc and stated that one of their partners never scanned any deeds, he stated that he had the deed "format"?? but wasn't sure whose name was on it?? I asked for a previous copy of the deed? He never responded..When I started asking the tough questions he didn't have a response, the only thing he sent me to was the sunbiz.org website showing that they are a business out of Florida and two other holding companies??
I'm so glad I dodged a bullet with these guys, they offered 6month, 11 month & 23 month terms with 5-10% increase for payments over 11 months and if you were to use a credit or debit card an additional 2% would be added on top of that. When I contacted the county's tax assessor and recorder of deeds nowhere on that site listed him, or his wife nor partner as a previous owner, it stated that the State of Mississippi is in possession of that land. Look people please, please, please do your research on these guys before giving them your money...I tried doing a BBB search on them, and no information was available besides a similar company with the same name from Colorado?? Sounds fishy to me...
My experience began with OnlineLandSales LLC. I paid on a piece of land that ended up being owned by three other people as well, in Colorado. Luckily my payments to them didnt go over $300 by the time I found out. But CheapLands, these owners acted the same way as Online Land Sales so I did deep research this time. They definitely don't like questions, told me to get my own info by calling tax assessors office and tried to lie about monthly land taxes. They had them listed $500 a year under what they should have been. And were they ever pushy, telling me 40 others were interested in the property. I need to hurry, be the first person to complete five steps and make a payment because it was gonna be sold. They even scoffed at me wanting to do my research first. Not to mention they are trying to resell land that is in a trust to online clients under quitclaim deeds. Which means the original owner with the warranty deed can come kick you off your land because it's still his. Huge red flags!!! Don't trust this company. SCAM ARTISTS I would also like to warn that my old Colorado property was resold again this year for twice as much and then has been relisted on three other websites. Still for sale to others. Be careful land seekers. These land for cheap websites: CheapLands LLC, Onlineland Sales LLC, Dollar Land, and Classic Country Land LLC all like to sell the properties between themselves to resell yet again. They keep them on rotation. If ever in doubt about a property check the county gis map with the parcel number and check the county tax assessors website, these will really give good details for you to rely on. And dont be afraid to question everything. Unfortunately cheap usually means caution, do not proceed.
Scam... Look at BBB.org for Cheaplands.com it has all fake reviews and the only legitimate review at the bottom where Cheaplands is contesting it because I can only assume it's true. Looks really shady to me. I research all over and no other websites have such low prices for land other then auction sites. Red flag for accepting credit card payment for land and real estate!
CheapLands Reviews
CHEAPLANDS.COM BULLIES INFORMED BUYERS!
DO NOT BUY FROM CHEAPLANDS.COM.
Why?
Here is my story, if interested.
My husband and I have been looking for a plot of land to start our life together. Like many others, we wanted to explore any cheaper options that we may have first (because who doesn't love a good discount?). A simple Google search later we found CheapLands.com. Being first-time buyers, we had a lot of questions. These “informed” questions were NOT welcomed by CheapLands.com, however.
This is their standard process for everyone, and what they told me:
I QUOTE,
“In regards to this property, it has $252 in back taxes as of today. Therefore, you will need to assume the back taxes. We suggest paying them off as soon as possible. When you pay them off you would need to:
1. Wait until we issue the title and it's recorded in your name.
2. Then, call 501-683-3053 and press 1 and read the parcel number, which is 34R0250015000. Make sure they know it's in the county of Pulaski.
3. Then, before you pay, you would make sure this form is not expired. (if it is expired we will send you a new form with the higher tax amount).
4. Then, you would not sign the form at first. You would bring it to a notary who would stamp after you sign the page at the notary.
5. Then, you would get a certified check or money order and mail this form and call the same number at 501-683-3053 to make sure they got it.”
After all this, they explained I would then pay them the price of the lot and it would be mine. Naturally, and being a first-time buyer, I was concerned they would wait until I paid off their taxes and then run off with my lot to re-sell it. On top of all of this, the lot was listed as 0.35 acres on their website, but the official county form they sent me (to start the process) identified as being only 0.25 acres. I also needed the lot before July 15 and asked if it would be possible to expedite the transaction as quickly as possible (within days), well before July 15.
This wasn’t taken well.
I am copy-pasting their email response to me below (since Facebook won't accept .JPEG attachments). I am also including my own email that I sent out. THIS HAS NOT BEEN ALTERED BY ME WHATSOEVER (I have nothing to gain from this, anyway). I am only trying to raise awareness about this scam.
!!THE EMAIL IS BELOW!!
EMAIL FROM ME:
"Hello,
Thank you for your response. I evaluated the form and I see it says the acreage is 0.250 but on the listing on your site it says 0.35. It says that the lot is much smaller than promised. Also, after I call the county myself and pay the back taxes, how can I assure that you will not re-sell the property after its taxes have been paid off by me? Where can I guarantee this? I'd also like to make sure that both my husband's and my name are both written equally as property owners. Can I write both our names on the owner/signature section?
Is there a possibility that this can all be completed by July 15 of this month?
Thank you,
Grace"
REPLY FROM CHEAPLANDS.COM:
"Thanks.
We cannot hold the property until July 15.
It doesn't seem your research is complete, although you stated it was ready, so that raises concern on our end.
If you are worried that we will re-sell the property, then you don't need to buy it from us.
Best of luck."
I leave this exchange up to your own opinion, but I don’t think I was rude or out-of-line at all. I URGE you to PLEASE do your own research. Do not be scammed by CheapLands.com.
Just because a company has made a few sales (and has a positive testimonial page which can be easily faked) DOES NOT mean they are polite, fair, or respectful to their clients by any means. There are PLENTY of other options out there for cheap land.
!!NEVER FORGET TO CALL THE COUNTY THAT YOU'RE PURCHASING LAND IN BEFORE YOU BUY IT!! The state county land assessor that I called warned me about how delinquent CheapLands.com was in their back-taxes. She was almost mad at me until she found out that I wasn’t CheapLands.com calling in. Nearly every property has something owed already.
Do not waste your time here.
I wanted to buy some land down south in Mississippi, something that can be financed over time by the owner,without the hassle of a real estate agent. So I did a Google search and Cheaplands.com came up. And the land that they supposely offer seemed to be cheap but the information on their website was lacking. They required you to email them if you were interested. So I did. Long story short, I had to ask for everything that should have been a given to start. Such as the land's parcel number and PPIN number , their registered agent information from the Secretary of State to do business in the state that they state they have properties in. The property description did not match what the county had as far as the lots and adj tract numbers. They claimed to be doing business in Florida but have it registered in Delaware and the CEO (Erin Herm) is in Arkansas??? They also claimed that they can do business in Mississippi but there was no proof given of that. When the CEO of this company sent me a Quitclaim Deed it was written in Microsoft Word, with no signature and no notary or state seal!!! (BigRedFlag) And when reading the Quitclaim Deed they stated again being in Florida but at the end of the document it claims to be a State of Arkansas document???(MajorRedFlag) And when it came to them sending me the sales agreement form the CEO voided it out stating that there was a mix up , the title was in the CEO's wife's name that they deeded them back to the company name Cheap LAnds Inc and stated that one of their partners never scanned any deeds, he stated that he had the deed "format"?? but wasn't sure whose name was on it?? I asked for a previous copy of the deed? He never responded..When I started asking the tough questions he didn't have a response, the only thing he sent me to was the sunbiz.org website showing that they are a business out of Florida and two other holding companies??
I'm so glad I dodged a bullet with these guys, they offered 6month, 11 month & 23 month terms with 5-10% increase for payments over 11 months and if you were to use a credit or debit card an additional 2% would be added on top of that. When I contacted the county's tax assessor and recorder of deeds nowhere on that site listed him, or his wife nor partner as a previous owner, it stated that the State of Mississippi is in possession of that land. Look people please, please, please do your research on these guys before giving them your money...I tried doing a BBB search on them, and no information was available besides a similar company with the same name from Colorado?? Sounds fishy to me...
Con Artists, plain and simple
My experience began with OnlineLandSales LLC. I paid on a piece of land that ended up being owned by three other people as well, in Colorado. Luckily my payments to them didnt go over $300 by the time I found out. But CheapLands, these owners acted the same way as Online Land Sales so I did deep research this time. They definitely don't like questions, told me to get my own info by calling tax assessors office and tried to lie about monthly land taxes. They had them listed $500 a year under what they should have been. And were they ever pushy, telling me 40 others were interested in the property. I need to hurry, be the first person to complete five steps and make a payment because it was gonna be sold. They even scoffed at me wanting to do my research first. Not to mention they are trying to resell land that is in a trust to online clients under quitclaim deeds. Which means the original owner with the warranty deed can come kick you off your land because it's still his. Huge red flags!!! Don't trust this company. SCAM ARTISTS I would also like to warn that my old Colorado property was resold again this year for twice as much and then has been relisted on three other websites. Still for sale to others. Be careful land seekers. These land for cheap websites: CheapLands LLC, Onlineland Sales LLC, Dollar Land, and Classic Country Land LLC all like to sell the properties between themselves to resell yet again. They keep them on rotation. If ever in doubt about a property check the county gis map with the parcel number and check the county tax assessors website, these will really give good details for you to rely on. And dont be afraid to question everything. Unfortunately cheap usually means caution, do not proceed.
Scam... Look at BBB.org for Cheaplands.com
Scam... Look at BBB.org for Cheaplands.com it has all fake reviews and the only legitimate review at the bottom where Cheaplands is contesting it because I can only assume it's true. Looks really shady to me. I research all over and no other websites have such low prices for land other then auction sites. Red flag for accepting credit card payment for land and real estate!