A few years back I helped a couple buy a home in Bridgewood near the new Jordan Creek mall in West Des Moines. That was in 2004 and the home then backed, and still backs, to a large 8 acre parcel of undeveloped land. At the time the land was zoned PUD but permitted uses were for daycare and or non-profits such as a religious facility, not a commercial enterprise. This particular home was a resale but the development was still being sold out. This use was in the original plat submitted to the city by the developer and a number of homes were sold backing to the parcel based on this claim. The buyer felt ok about the usage classification and went ahead and purchased the property.
In 2007 the same people approached me to sell the home. The land behind was still vacant and carried the same classification. We put it on the market and received a number of inquiries. At one point I had a pretty serious prospect. She was however very concerned about the vacant parcel behind. I informed her of the classification but she was still concerned. So, I paid a visit to planning and zoning in city hall. I spoke with two employees who showed me the plat map and reviewed the classification with me. It was as stated previously, PUD but no commercial use. In reviewing the classification though the employees kept referring to the classification as the "current classification." When pressed about it they said there were no requests to rezone the property, but that it was a possibility that someone could do it in the future. That spooked the prospect and she decided based on the uncertainty not to make the purchase. The property eventually sold and the land remains vacant to this day. However....
Six years later the classification of the still unsold parcel has now changed. Hotel-office-commercial use is 
now permitted. So all those homeowners who thought they would back up to a nice day care or church now face the prospect of looking at the service side of a retail business or a 24/7 lighted hotel parking lot.
Buyers in new developments should be aware that when they buy a property that backs to unimproved land the current zoning classification may be there to facilitate the sale of the development and approval of the plat by the city, but the final use may differ substantially due to changing market conditions.
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