Start with a tax bill, your deed and a few notes about the land. Then compare ways to find a buyer, review offers and arrange closing. This guide helps Inyo County owners find missing papers and plan the next step. You don’t need every answer to get started.
Tell us about your land. There’s no obligation to accept an offer.
Start with what you know. These steps will help you get ready and choose the way to sell that fits you.
Write down the owner names, acres if known, nearest road and which pieces you want to sell. A parcel number is the number the county uses for a piece of land. Add it if you can find it on a tax bill or old papers.
No street address? A map pin and directions are a good start. Keep each piece’s bill and map together if you own more than one. Mark any piece you want to keep.
Think about your goal. Do you want the best price, fewer calls and visits, or a simpler way to let go of land you no longer use? Use that goal when you compare an agent, selling it yourself and a direct buyer.
Look for the APN on your tax bill or old closing papers. APN means Assessor’s Parcel Number. Keep it with the owner names, acres if known and written land description. Make a separate note for each piece you want to sell.
The county’s Assessor page links to ParcelQuest for parcel information. For help finding the right record, call 760-878-0302. The office is at 168 North Edwards Street in Independence. Confirm visiting details before going.
The Recorder’s Recorded Documents guide links to recorded maps that can be viewed using an APN. The county’s Public Maps page also lists maps for parcel and address information.
Use these maps to help explain the location. The county map guidance warns that map areas are approximate and data may be wrong, missing or out of date. A line on a screen does not settle a fence line or prove a right to cross another owner’s land. Keep any survey and written road papers with your deed.
A deed is the paper that records a transfer of land. Start with owner names, an approximate year and any document number on old papers. The Recorder’s guide says official records from 1982 onward are available through its online self-service site. It describes free searches and paid copies you can download.
An index is a list of record details, not the whole deed. The county-linked search entry advises trying different spellings of names. Read the entry notice before deciding whether to use the service.
For records before 1982, the guide directs owners to contact the office about in-house research. There is a current timing limit: the Clerk-Recorder page, checked October 17, 2026, says in-house research is on hold through November 25 and is planned to resume November 30. Call 760-878-0224 before planning a visit or promising a buyer when an older record will be ready.
You can still start with the papers you have. Ask your closing team what is missing and how to get it. A title company or real estate attorney can help check ownership and other claims and prepare sale papers. A lien is a claim against land, often for money owed. A deed copy alone may not answer every ownership question.
Gather any loan statement, lease, survey, owner rules and written road agreement. An easement is a right to use land for a stated purpose, such as a road. If several owners are named, ask who needs to sign before setting a closing date.
If you’re handling inherited land or helping settle a loved one’s estate, start with the papers you have. Ask which papers and signatures are needed. Our seller document checklist helps you keep track. Keep private family papers out of public ads.
Take photos of the entrance, open ground, trees and any buildings. Write directions from a public road. Explain gates, rough stretches and road upkeep. Share what you know about seasonal travel without promising conditions you have not checked.
For open or sloping ground, show both usable areas and steep or rocky spots. If the land is leased or used for grazing, gather the lease and explain what is included in the sale. List fences, tanks, pumps and other items that stay.
For a town lot, show frontage and the entrance. List water, power and other services connected now. Nearby lines or pipes are different from working connections. Gather any well, water-service or septic records you already have.
You do not need to plan a buyer’s home before asking about a sale. Share permits and written answers you have. Ask which city or county office handles land-use questions for your parcel. Zoning means local rules for how land can be used. A nearby home does not approve the same use on your land.
Ask a local land agent or appraiser for recent completed sales a buyer would compare with yours. Compare usable ground, roads, working services, land-use rules and acres. Ask how each price was confirmed and what was included.
A town lot with working services can serve a different buyer from open land reached over a rough track. For larger land, compare useful space and access as well as total acres. A view can matter, but it does not answer questions about road rights or connected water.
Check what the owner actually sold. Land sold with buildings, pumps or several parcels may be a poor match for one empty piece. Write down which parcels sold together, count that deal once and record the date.
An asking price is what a seller wants, not proof of what a buyer paid. A county tax value is not an offer. Our land value guide helps organize comparisons. We do not have a verified current Inyo County price per acre to quote here.
List with a land agent. Ask how they would price and market your land, what the fee is, and how long the listing lasts. Check whether they have worked with land like yours. They can help handle calls, visits and offers.
Sell it yourself. You arrange the ad, answer questions, show the land and review offers. Prepare good photos and clear directions. You may still want help with the sale agreement and closing.
Compare a direct offer. A buyer who buys from you directly gives you another choice. Compare the price, costs and terms with your goals. You can turn down an offer.
You do not have to choose Reelvest to use this guide. If you’d like a direct offer to compare, tell us about your land. We’ll review the details and let you know whether we can make one.
Read the price, deposit, costs you pay and planned closing date. Ask what the buyer still needs to check and what would let them cancel. Make sure each offer covers the same land and items.
For example, $60,000 minus $5,000 in seller costs leaves $55,000 before loans or unpaid taxes. A $58,000 offer with $1,000 in those costs leaves $57,000 before those balances. These are examples, not Inyo County land prices.
The county’s Treasurer-Tax Collector page links to its tax-bill search. The linked service asks for the whole parcel or account number when searching by number. Have the bill in front of you so you do not leave out digits. It also gives property and mailing-address search options.
For help with a bill or older unpaid amount, call 760-878-0312. Ask what is owed for your planned payment date and whether there are separate bills. If the sale covers several pieces, check each one. Let the closing team confirm the amounts in writing.
The Assessor’s page explains that it does not collect taxes or calculate the bills. A parcel value from that office is different from a bill or a payoff amount. Keep any payment records with the bills so the closing team can check what has been paid.
Ask how taxes, loans, owner dues, transfer taxes and closing fees will affect your payment. Our offer comparison worksheet helps you put known costs side by side. Leave unknown costs blank until you can check them.
Closing is when the sale papers are signed and the agreed payment is handled. Ask who is arranging it and what they need from you. Give them the owner names, written land descriptions and papers you found. Tell them about any loan, lease, shared owner or road question.
Read the agreement and ask about anything that is unclear. Check that it describes the right pieces and items. Before signing the final papers, review the costs and payment amounts. If more than one owner must sign, ask how to arrange that.
Before sending bank details or money, call the closing office using a number you already trust. Confirm the instructions with that office. Keep copies of the signed papers and your payment record. You don't need to have every answer today; a clear set of notes makes the next step easier.
Start with the APN, or Assessor’s Parcel Number, on your bill or deed. The county links to maps for parcel information. Keep a map pin and directions with your papers, and ask for help if the records do not match.
The Recorder’s guide says official records from 1982 onward are on its self-service site. For earlier records, contact the office about research. A missing online result does not mean no deed exists.
The Clerk-Recorder page checked October 17, 2026 says research is on hold through November 25, with a planned November 30 restart. Call 760-878-0224 to check current arrangements before visiting or setting a deadline.
No. County map guidance says areas are approximate and data can have errors. Keep any survey and written road agreements. Ask for help with a boundary or road-right question before making a claim in an ad.
The Treasurer-Tax Collector lists 760-878-0312 and links to its tax search. Have your bill ready and ask about all amounts for the date you plan to pay. A county tax value is a different figure.
No. You can list with an agent, find a buyer yourself or compare a direct offer. Choose the route and terms that fit your goals.
Local source links reviewed October 17, 2026.