A land contract should buy you time to investigate before your deposit is at risk. The Florida Realtors Vacant Land Contract does that with a feasibility study period, 30 days if the blank is left empty. The catch: if you say nothing by the deadline, you have accepted the land as it is.
A different form from a home purchase
Vacant land in Florida is usually written on the Florida Realtors Vacant Land Contract, not the As Is home contract. This lesson describes the 8/14 and 2/20 revisions we read, which agree on every point below. Check the current form before you sign.
The feasibility study period
You choose one of two boxes. The first gives you a feasibility study period to decide, at your own expense, whether the land suits your intended use. The form lists what you may investigate: engineering and environmental conditions, zoning, soil and grade, access to public roads, water and other utilities, and whether permits and approvals are available. That is lessons 1 through 3 of this course.
Before the period ends you must give the seller written notice of whether the property is acceptable. The form says that failing to give that notice counts as accepting the property in its "as is" condition.
The second box skips the study: you declare yourself satisfied, and the contract is not contingent on further investigation. Either way, once the period is over a change in government regulations is not grounds to cancel.
| Term | Default |
|---|---|
| Feasibility study period | 30 days after the effective date |
| Loan application | Within 5 days |
| Financing period | The closing date or 30 days, whichever comes first |
| Time to examine title | 10 days |
| Seller's time to cure a title defect | 30 days |
Example: a contract effective Monday, January 11, 2027 with the default period gives you until Wednesday, February 10. If your checklist needs longer, write in more days.
Survey and title
The form lets you survey the land at your expense. The survey proves the acreage, boundaries, access and easements, so treat it as required.
Who pays for the owner's title policy is a checkbox, and the party who pays chooses the closing agent.
Worked example: closing costs on $250,000 of land
- Deed tax: 2,500 hundreds at $0.70 is $1,750. The form lists taxes on the deed as a seller cost.
- Owner's title policy: at Florida's set rates, $575 on the first $100,000 plus $5.00 times 150, which is $750: $1,325.
- Reissue rate: previously insured unimproved land can qualify for a lower rate if the earlier policy is produced: $330 plus $450, or $780, a saving of $545.
- Buyer's side: recording the deed, the survey and your inspections. A cash buyer owes no tax on a note; a financed buyer adds $0.35 per $100 of the note and 0.2% of the mortgage.
The form also advises you to verify the flood zone with a survey, your lender and the government agencies.
Silence. No notice by the deadline means you accepted the land. Set your own deadline three days early and send the notice in writing, the way the contract requires.
Before you go
- List every item from lessons 1 to 4 that you still need answered, and who answers it.
- Put the feasibility deadline in the contract-to-close calendar.
- Read the land and acreage guide, then bring the parcel to Robert through the contact page.
Sources: Florida Realtors Vacant Land Contract, revisions 8/14 and 2/20, Florida Department of Revenue, documentary stamp tax, Rule 69O-186.003, F.A.C. (title insurance rates), FEMA Flood Map Service Center. Checked November 2026.
The default is 30 days. Failing to give written notice counts as accepting the property in its as-is condition.
