How To Use The Polygon Tool to Filter Vacant Land

At Land Portal, we know how important it is to narrow down your land search to very specific areas.

While filtering by state, county, city, or zip code works for many, sometimes you need more precision—especially if you’re trying to avoid city limits, target only rural tracts, or focus on a few scattered areas.

That’s exactly why we built the Polygon Search Tool.

In this article, we’ll walk you through how to use the polygon filter to draw custom search boundaries directly on the map.

Whether you want to isolate certain neighborhoods, avoid flood zones, or cherry-pick areas with specific investment potential, this feature gives you total control over your location filters.

Step 1: Navigate to Filtered Search

From Land Portal homepage, click into the Filtered Search tab.

This is where you’ll find all the advanced filtering options including the Polygon Tool, which is located just below the State, County, and Zip Code filters.

Step 2: Zoom Into Your Target Area

Start by zooming into the state or region you're interested in. As you zoom in, county outlines will become visible.

In this example, we’ll focus on Brown County, Ohio, but the same steps apply anywhere in the U.S.

Step 3: Activate the Polygon Tool

Click the polygon button (highlighted in green when active).

Now you're ready to draw.

Simply click around the area you want to include—each click will create a point on the polygon.

Once you’ve drawn the shape that outlines your target zone, hit Enter to lock it in.

Step 4: Create Multiple Polygons

One of the most powerful features is the ability to draw up to 10 polygons at once.

For example, you might want to target the city of Georgetown specifically, and include Mount Orab nearby.

Draw one polygon around Georgetown, hit Enter, then reactivate the tool and draw another around Mount Orab.

Step 5: Add Additional Filters

After setting your polygon areas, scroll down and add any other filters you need, like road frontage, FEMA status, acreage range, or landlocked properties.

Keep in mind: once you use polygons, you cannot also filter by state, county, city, or zip code. Your polygon becomes the new location boundary.

Why Use the Polygon Filter in Land Portal?

Polygon filtering gives you total control over where you're searching for land. Rather than being limited to zip codes, cities, or counties, you can draw your own boundaries—right on the map.

Avoid city limits and HOAs

If you prefer to stay away from zoning complications or HOA restrictions, you can simply draw around those areas and leave them out of your search.

Target rural land only

Want to stick to the outskirts? Use polygons to highlight just the rural sections of a county or region, skipping anything too developed.

Include or exclude specific neighborhoods

If there’s a pocket you know is promising—or one you know to avoid—you can outline that exact area with precision.

Cherry-pick submarkets within a state

Instead of searching one county at a time, draw up to 10 polygons around high-potential areas across multiple counties or regions. No need to run separate campaigns.

Align your search with direct mail strategy

If you’re running targeted mailers, the polygon tool makes it easy to match your search exactly to your marketing zones.

Ultimately, you're not stuck with predefined borders. The polygon tool gives you the freedom to define your market, down to the exact streets or rural roads you want to work with.