Land Search vs Land Locator: How People Actually Find Viable Land
Most people start with land search. The problem is that most land search tools show what is for sale, but they do not tell you what will actually work.
What people mean by land search
Land search usually means browsing listings. Zillow, LandWatch, Facebook Marketplace, and various listing sites make it easy to scroll photos, compare prices, and filter by acreage or county.
At first, it feels productive. But land search rarely answers the questions that decide whether land is viable: can you build, can you live there full time, how does water work, what does the county require, and what does access look like year round?
What land search tools do well
- Show listings
- Display price, acreage, and a location
- Help you browse what exists
Land search tools are built for browsing. They are not built for decision making. They do not reliably account for zoning rules, permitting, access, water realities, or enforcement differences between counties.
Why land search fails most buyers
The biggest mistake people make is trying to evaluate land after they find it. By the time the right questions come up, people are already emotionally invested.
Then they discover something like: you cannot legally live there full time, you cannot build what you planned, water is not feasible, access is unreliable, or the county is more restrictive than expected. That is not a motivation problem. It is a context problem.
What a land locator is
A land locator works in the opposite direction. Instead of starting with listings, it starts with constraints. It helps you understand where land is likely to work before you spend time chasing parcels that cannot support your goals.
It is not a listing feed. It is a decision tool that helps you narrow the map first, then use listings second.
Why I built the Frugal Off Grid Land Locator
I learned most of this the hard way over years of working through counties, rules, access issues, water realities, and enforcement differences. People kept asking the same questions: where can I actually live off grid, which counties will allow it, and how do I avoid buying land I cannot use? There was no single place to answer those questions, so I built a tool for it.
Use the tool
The Land Locator is designed to give clarity before commitment. It helps you evaluate counties and constraints first, then move to parcel listings with less guesswork.
Go to the Land LocatorNote: searchoffgridland.com also directs to the Land Locator.
Watch the explainer
If you want to see this explained visually, here is the explainer video.
Direct link: https://youtu.be/JRzvan3sckM
FAQ
Is a land locator the same thing as a listing site?
No. Listings show what is for sale. A land locator helps you understand where land is likely to be viable for your goals before you chase individual parcels.
Why not just use Zillow or LandWatch?
Those tools can be useful after you know where to look. The problem is that most beginners start with listings before they understand county rules, water realities, access, and enforcement. That is where most wasted time and bad purchases happen.
What is the right order?
Map first, parcel second. Use a land locator to narrow the counties and constraints. Then use listings to choose a specific parcel inside the area you already know can work.