Is it ok to ask for drawings in a land that is for sale?

[David Sotomayor]

Hello Guys. I probably have an unprofessional question but: 

So it will be our first large investment. This land is being sold with designs and drawings of townhomes that are allowed to be built. So my question is, is it ok, or professional, or legal, to request a copy of the drawings, something basic, to start doing my own due diligence of soft costs with contractors and architects? would the realtor be able to provide that, or they would basically sell it to me stamped? i just need an almost clear view of how much would each townhome cost after building etc, and get the loan as well. 

[Jay Hinrichs]

Quote from @Ryan Normand:

Quote from @David Sotomayor:

This land is being sold with designs and drawings of townhomes that are allowed to be built. So my question is, is it ok, or professional, or legal, to request a copy of the drawings, something basic, to start doing my own due diligence of soft costs with contractors and architects? . 

When you say "designs and drawings", do you mean conceptual drawings or an actual set of plans?

IMO the former does not add any value. You will still need to hire an architect to draft the full set of plans and get them approved by the city in order to pull permits. Also, there's no guarantee whoever did the original "drawings" paid any attention to zoning rules, Setbacks, height restrictions, etc... so you could end up having to scrap them if the city doesn't like them. I would get this clarified before buying. 

If it's the latter (i.e. a full set of stamped plans, ready to be permitted and bid on), then I would suggest asking for the full set, but if that fails then ask for at least a copy of the site plan and floor plan,  plus a list of all the other plans included. I would still proceed with caution, though. Why would someone go through the trouble of hiring an architect and drafting the plans and then not build? To me, something doesn't add up here.

its not uncommon to sell fully permitted projects.. ONe reason is if there is a big delta in value the seller can 1031 instead of creating inventory that would be taxed at the highest rate. Could be worried about the economy right now.. Might not have the horse power for the loans.. Lender might have backed out we see a lot of that right now.. lots of reasons.  And some folks are in the sole business of permitting projects and flipping them its what they do.