Mom & Dad, How About Some Land?

It has happened for ages, yet with the ever-increasing number of divorces, bankruptcies, and general use of credit, the scene has dramatically changed. Mom & Dad's little boy or girl is now grown up, married, and has children, and the young family may be looking to build a new home to escape the small confines of their current "starter" home or rental.
So, who do they turn to solve their problems for land?
Yep, Mom and Dad, and they're happy to help!
The parents are thrilled to have their son or daughter living so close, so they can see the grandkids all of the time, but this luxury may come at a future cost. In fact, Mom & Dad may give their child a small plot among their farm or excess acreage, the child and his/her new family may build a new home, and there may be several years of bliss. No one asks the simple yet painful question, "What happens if there is a divorce (assuming the couple is married) or otherwise a break-up, bankruptcy, loss of a job, or costly and unexpected illness occurs?"
Soon the once-new home filled with happy grandkids -- along with what use to be part of Mom & Dad's farm -- goes through foreclosure, sheriff sale, growing weeds, various infestations, and just maybe and eventually new faces move into the home.
Did I mention that these new faces next door to Mom & Dad also happen to have an endless stream of "five-minute friends" stopping by at all hours of the day-and-night but seemingly only when the porch light is on, a vicious pet named "Tiny" is tied up out back, and an interesting yet growing salvage yard art business begins even though they never seem to sell any of it?
Of course, now Mom and Dad are less than happy -- and rightfully so. Aside from losing their immediate family as neighbors, they have now given up part of the family farm that has been in the family for years, and they have the new faces next door to contend with, along with the other issues these new faces brought with them to the neighborhood.
But what could have changed this whole scenario?
A little planning, forethought, and a trip to your friendly, legal adviser would have certainly helped before the land was even given. Although I'm not an attorney, nor play one on TV, I can think of two potential ideas that could have helped in this situation:
One is called a "First Right of Refusal" clause in the deed and another is implementing "Deed Restrictions and Covenants" on the land given to the kids.
The online encyclopedia Wikipedia defines "First Right of Refusal" as "a contractual right granted by the owner of something, that gives the holder of the right an option to enter a business transaction with the owner according to specified terms, before the owner is entitled to enter that transaction with a third party." In other words, Mom & Dad have the right to be first in line to purchase the property back, possibly even at a pre-set price, say, the average of two appraisers' opinions of value, for example. One is chosen by the buyer, and the other one is picked by the seller.
If you look up "restrictive covenant" on the same website, you'll note that it is "a legal obligation imposed in a deed by the seller upon the buyer to do -- or not to do something." It goes on to say, "such restrictions frequently 'run with the land' and are enforceable on subsequent buyers of the property. Some examples include: maintaining a property in a reasonable state of repair, preserving a sight-line for a neighboring property, not to run a business from a residence, or not to build on certain parts of the property."
In both of these instances, however, it assumes the parents have the money or financing available to re-purchase the property (possibly with a new home and other improvements now on it) or pay the costs to sue to enforce the covenants if they are broken, respectively.
Although these may or may not work in a particular situation, the point is this: when you seek legal help, don't just solve today's pressing issues, such as preparing the deed. You should spend a little time exploring what could go wrong -- or at least not as planned -- in the future with your legal advisor, so potential situations can be dealt with before they happen. Although it may cost a little more now, it could save thousands later.
As Ben Franklin was credited saying, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."