Anyone own land?

[East Texas]

You're bad.... very bad. Now I have to clean the sweet tea off my monitor.

 

[brewer12345]

Well, no chiggers or feral hogs or tornadoes in our neck of the woods. I would either not be building on the land or be putting up at most a bare bones cabin, so a lot of the worries about maintenance and damage are allayed. Water is a big issue. Then there are mountain lions and coyotes to consider (although the coyote [-]eradication[/-] hunting season is all year round)...

 

[Helen]

I have 40 acres in Michigan that I inherited. My Dad made friends with the neighbors way back and gave them deer hunting rights in exchange for them keeping an eye on the place. The neighbor's "kids" (they are probably in their '70s now) are keeping an eye on the property for me.

Dad had owned 120 acres but had trouble with ATVs and sold the back 80 acres because of the trespassing.

I've thought about the possibility of a fire burning down the trees. That would hurt the value of the property quite a bit.

Have you thought about whether you would have to fence the property?

 

[CyclingInvestor]

When I was thinking of buying property shortly before retiring (never got around to it), I bought an excellent book which covered all sorts of the issues issues involved : rights of way, easements, water, mineral rights, zoning, other legal and practical issues, etc. :

"Finding & Buying Your Place in the Country"

 

[Meadbh]

Would this land generate any cash flow?

 

[Redbugdave]

We are looking for acreage, now. The plan is to build our dream house, pole barn, etc., and then sell where we are now. In the next county or two over. I will be retired and not chained to a work place.

I don't think I would want to have land where you were not living on it. Too many thieves, poachers, and scum bags to contend with. You can keep them under control if you are living on the property. Many of my friend's places have been burglarized, tractors stolen, trash piled up and gates destroyed because nobody was around.

Otherwise, give me rattlesnakes, ticks, mosquitoes, coyotes, mud, and country living any day to living in a city.

 

[hankster]

I had to laugh when feral hogs were mentioned. In our case, the problem was the neighbor's domestic hogs occasionally escaping their fenced area. I looked outside one morning to see about a dozen of them "excavating" our landscaping. They truly are four-legged rototillers as they root about looking for food. In our case, the neighbor was a good guy and helped take care of the damage. His farm was actually about a mile east of us.

The ten acre parcel was in an area zoned "agricultural". The good thing about these places is that you can do just about anything you want with the land

The bad thing is your neighbors can do just about anything they want with their land

Some areas have noxious weed problems and the landowner is responsible for controlling them. Just another detail to be aware of.

Last but not least, be prepared to do battle with rodents. Mice can make rural life downright unpleasant at times. Unattended buildings that aren't sealed up down to the last pinhole can quickly become infested.

I have to say there were many enjoyable aspects to living there too. We mainly sold it 3 years ago due to approaching retirement and our desire to do a lot of traveling.

 

[brewer12345]

Would this land generate any cash flow?

Strictly recreational if I do it. Maybe make some money from a hunting lease, but maybe not.