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Wisconsin · WI

Sell your land in Wisconsin.

Wisconsin is one of the few states that makes you fill out a disclosure form for bare ground. Wis. Stat. § 709.033 sets out a vacant land report covering wells, subsoil, legal access, shoreland status and forest-law enrollment — questions most states let a raw-land seller skip. The form is where the tax programs surface.

Tax sale type
Tax deed
Redemption period
2 years before deed
Rate on redemption
Varies by county
Closings handled by
Title company

Figures describe Wisconsin generally. Counties administer their own sales and their own calendars — your county treasurer is the only source for a payoff figure or a sale date you can act on.

Local detail

What actually matters about land in Wisconsin

Vacant land gets its own disclosure form

Most states exempt raw land from seller disclosure. Wisconsin does the opposite. Wis. Stat. § 709.001(5)(b) defines real property that does not include any buildings, and § 709.033 prescribes the vacant land disclosure report the owner of that property completes. Under § 709.02 the owner furnishes it not later than 10 days after acceptance of a contract of sale or option contract; a buyer who does not receive it may rescind within 2 business days after that period ends and recover deposits. Section 709.01 carries the exceptions — transfers exempt from the real estate transfer fee under § 77.25, and personal representatives, trustees, conservators and court-appointed fiduciaries who never occupied the property.

The form asks about programs, not just defects

The questions run past the usual defect list. The report asks whether the parcel sits in a special purpose district such as a drainage district with authority to assess it, whether any land division happened without the required state or local permits, whether all or part of the property is in a floodplain, wetland or shoreland zoning area, and whether there is no legal access. It asks about subsoil conditions that would raise development cost — high groundwater, low load-bearing capacity, fill, rock formations. It asks whether the land is enrolled in the Forest Crop Law, the Managed Forest Law or the Conservation Reserve Program, and whether a use value assessment conversion charge has been assessed or deferred.

Managed Forest Law follows the land

The Managed Forest Law, Wis. Stat. ch. 77 subch. VI, cuts property tax on woodland in exchange for a management plan and an order that runs 25 or 50 years. Enrollment needs at least 20 contiguous acres under one ownership, or 10 contiguous acres connected to another qualifying parcel. Acreage is designated open or closed: open acreage stays available to the public for hunting, fishing, hiking, sight-seeing and cross-country skiing, and closed acreage is capped at 320 acres per owner per municipality. The order does not end at closing. A new owner files a transfer with the DNR and pays a $100 fee; acreage pulled out early owes a withdrawal tax plus a $300 withdrawal fee.

Shoreland zoning and the conversion charge

Counties administer shoreland zoning under Wis. Admin. Code ch. NR 115, which reaches land within 1,000 feet of the ordinary high-water mark of a lake, pond or flowage and 300 feet of a river or stream, or to the landward edge of the floodplain if that is farther. The statewide minimums set buildings 75 feet back from the ordinary high-water mark and put unsewered lots at 100 feet average width and 20,000 square feet. Counties may be stricter, so the local ordinance governs. Separately, agricultural land assessed at use value under Wis. Stat. § 70.32(2r) can owe a conversion charge under § 74.485 when it shifts to residential, commercial or manufacturing use.

Questions

Selling land in Wisconsin

Do I have to fill out a disclosure report for vacant Wisconsin land?

Yes, in most sales. Wis. Stat. § 709.033 prescribes a vacant land disclosure report for real property that does not include any buildings, and § 709.02 requires the owner to furnish it within 10 days after acceptance of the contract. A buyer who does not get it may rescind within 2 business days after that window closes. Section 709.01 exempts transfers that are exempt from the real estate transfer fee under § 77.25, and fiduciaries who never occupied the property. Answering honestly is cheaper than the alternative.

Can I sell land that is enrolled in the Managed Forest Law?

Yes, and the enrollment goes with the land rather than ending at closing. The order under Wis. Stat. ch. 77 subch. VI runs 25 or 50 years and binds the next owner, who files a transfer of ownership with the DNR and pays a $100 fee to continue it. Pulling the acreage out instead triggers a withdrawal tax plus a $300 withdrawal fee, and the closed-acreage cap of 320 acres per owner per municipality can matter to a buyer who already holds forest land nearby.

My lot is near a lake. What does shoreland zoning change?

It changes where a building can go and how small a lot can legally be. Wisconsin counties administer shoreland zoning under Wis. Admin. Code ch. NR 115, which covers land within 1,000 feet of a lake, pond or flowage and 300 feet of a river or stream, measured from the ordinary high-water mark. Statewide minimums include a 75-foot building setback and 20,000 square feet for an unsewered lot. Counties can adopt tighter standards and many have, so the county ordinance is the one that governs your parcel.

Sources for the figures above

These are secondary references, accurate enough to orient you and not a substitute for the statute or your county. Tax procedure changes; nothing here is legal advice.

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