To then get back to the positive, here is what I see. A piece of land that currently has a pond. This means you apparently have the proper terrain, change in elevation and water source needed. That isn't always easy to find. If the location of the property is somewhere you like (we all know the three most important things in real estate) and all the other considerations other posters have brought up, I would tend to go for it, and worry about renovating the pond down the road a few years.