CheapUSLand.com

You can never be too rich, too thin or do too much research when buying vacant land. There are many online tools available to help you make the right decision. Some tools are simple, others complex, while some are expensive and others are Free.

Over the years, I have come to rely on the tools available in Google Maps to help me make practical business decisions. And who doesn’t like FREE! Earth view Free. Street view FREE. Topology Maps FREE. Google Maps provides an endless amount of useful information to help you make the right investment decisions.

Information is power and the more you know about a property, the stronger your position when negotiating a good deal.  I picked out 10 of my favorite Google Maps Tools that I find helpful in my day to day search for good deals.

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Tool #1 – Get Latitude & Longitude Coordinates of your property.                             – Right-click selected  location                             – Select  “What’s here?” from drop-down box                                                                                – Lattitude & Longitude coordinates display at bottom of screen

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Tool #2 – Send parcel locations directly to your smart phone or tablet                                   – Click “Send to phone” on left side of screen                                                                          – Select  which device to send to                          – Retrieve location notification   on smart phone or tablet*********************************************************************************

 Tool #3 – “Earth View”

– Click the “Earth” icon at bottom of screen   – Earth view shows houses, roads, waterways, subdivisions and more                   – Zoom in to see such details as power lines, trees, etc.

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Tool #4 – “Measuring Tool”

– Right-click a location                                          -Select “Measure Distance”                                  – Measure: Distance between points, Total Distance & Total Area                                            – Totals appear at bottom of screen

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Tool #5 – “Street View”

– Click on “Pegman” on bottom right of screen           – Drag & drop him anywhere on the road          -Provides a 360′ view, where the rubber meets the road.                                                                                        -Drive around the area without ever  leaving the comfort of your living room.

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Tool #6 – “Historic Street View”

– Click upper left menu to see prior year “Street Views” (if available)                                                     -Select an earlier “Street View”   to see how the land has changed                                                                      -This view from 2007 doesn’t show the apartment complex

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Tool #7 – “Search Nearby”

– Right-click a location & select “Search Nearby” from the drop-down menu                                             -Or click on the “Nearby” button to the left                   -Locate local gas stations, restaurants, hospitals, schools, shopping & more.

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Tool #8 – “Topology & Elevation”

-While in Map view, click “Terrain” from left menu                                                                                             -Displays area elevation in feet                                  -Shows whether the parcel is level or on an incline or decline.

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Tool #9 – “”Print Map w/Notes””

-Before printing measure distances you want to appear on map such as road frontageSelect “Print” from the drop-down menu to left   

-Measure distances that will appear on y our map    -Add notes to the map, like an address or other
important info                                                                 -Print copy of map for when you walk the property

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Tool #10 – “Share & Email Property Links”

-Select “Share” from the menu on the left                  -Select ‘Short URL”                                                        -Copy & Paste link and email  to a friend, business partner, family member or yourself.                       -Link opens the exact same map that you were looking at

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These are a few of the useful Google Maps tools that I use everyday in my business. They help me to quickly research my properties and make smart investment decisions when buying land.