Direct answer
To verify a land seller's claims, take each statement in the listing — "perc tested," "road access," "unrestricted," "utilities available," "buildable" — and find the public record that would confirm or contradict it. Then identify the office that holds that record and ask a specific question tied to the parcel ID.
Listing language is optimistic and rarely verified. Treating each claim as a question to check — not a fact — is the core of land due diligence.
Last updated: 2026-07-09. This is general guidance. The county and licensed professionals make the final determinations for your parcel.
Claim-by-claim
| The claim | The record that checks it | Who holds it | Exact question to ask |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Perc tested" / "septic approved" | A soil/site evaluation or septic permit on file for the parcel — not a verbal assurance. | County environmental health (NC), TDEC field office (TN), or the county OSSF authority (TX). | "Is there a soil evaluation or septic permit on record for this parcel ID, and is it still valid?" |
| "Road access" / "county-maintained road" | Recorded easement or deeded access, and the county road-maintenance map. Frontage on a mapped road is not the same as legal access. | County GIS/road department and the register of deeds. | "Is there recorded, deeded legal access to this parcel, and is the road county-maintained or private?" |
| "Unrestricted" / "no restrictions" | Recorded deed restrictions, subdivision covenants (CC&Rs), and any HOA/POA documents tied to the parcel. | County register of deeds / recorder. | "Are there any recorded restrictions, covenants, or HOA documents attached to this parcel ID?" |
| "Utilities available" | A written service-extension estimate from the provider — availability in the area is not connection to your site. | Local electric co-op and water/sewer utility. | "What would it cost to extend service to this exact parcel, and is service actually at the property line?" |
| "Buildable" / "ready to build" | Zoning designation, flood zone, and any wetlands/soil constraints — plus whatever the county requires before a permit. | County planning/zoning, plus FEMA flood maps. | "What would this county require before issuing a building permit on this parcel, and is any of it flagged?" |
| "No flood zone" | The FEMA flood map panel for the parcel and any local floodplain overlay. | FEMA Flood Map Service Center and county floodplain administrator. | "What FEMA flood zone is this parcel in, and is any of it in a special flood hazard area?" |
| "Owner financing, clear title" | The deed history, and any liens, back taxes, or judgments recorded against the parcel. | County recorder/register of deeds and the tax assessor. | "Are there any recorded liens, unpaid taxes, or ownership clouds on this parcel ID?" |
Why this matters
Access and septic cause the most expensive surprises. "Road access" can mean frontage without recorded legal access, and "perc tested" is sometimes a verbal claim with nothing on file. Both are checkable with the county before you commit a dollar.
How to use this
Before you make an offer, walk the listing line by line. For each claim, pull the matching record or ask the matching office the exact question. If a claim can't be verified, make your offer contingent on verifying it.
Safe-claims note
No third party — including LandCheck — can turn a seller's claim into a guarantee. What you can do is check each claim against the public record and get the county's answer in writing. This page helps you find the right record, office, and question. The final determination on zoning, permits, septic, access, and title rests with the county and the licensed professionals you hire.
For each claim, find the public record that would confirm or contradict it, identify the office that holds that record, and ask a specific question tied to the parcel ID. "Perc tested," "road access," "unrestricted," and "utilities available" each map to a specific record you can check before you buy.
Listing language is often optimistic and rarely verified. Terms like "buildable" or "utilities available" are not legal guarantees. Treat every claim as a question to verify against public records, not a fact — that is the buyer’s job during due diligence.
Access and septic are the two that most often surprise buyers. "Road access" can mean frontage without recorded legal access, and "perc tested" is sometimes a verbal claim with no evaluation on file. Both are verifiable with the county before you commit.
A Parcel Pre-Screen Report organizes these questions for your specific parcel — the record that would check each claim, the office that holds it, and what to ask — with source paths. It surfaces the questions to verify; the county and licensed professionals make the final determinations.
What Before You Buy Land is
What it is not