Buying land

I went thru the process of buying land a few months ago. Originally, I had been looking for a smaller lot with a small cabin on it closer to the area I like to fish. What I found was that anything in my price range was in need of repair and had neighbors very close (lot size less than 1 acre)

The max drive I wanted to have was around 2hrs from where I work and live so that going up for just the weekend would still be worth it. I was originally looking for something within a mile of a boat launch on the lakes I wanted to fish, but I found that even though a lot of that area is not developed, there were very specific ordinances based on the township and even what they called a subdivision (even with no houses in it yet). It took a lot of research on my own that the realtor didnt really help with. Based on the price range I was looking at, the commission for a realtor wasn’t real high so Im sure that played a factor into how much of this I had to do on my own

What I found was that the further away from the lakes I got, the more relaxed the ordinances were. The price of the land was overall very similar in the area with the exception of lakefront which is what I had expected

Throughout the process of seeing many properties, my purpose shifted from looking for a place that I could stay for mostly time on the lake, I started seeing that if I had the right piece of land, I would enjoy going up there just to get away and be in the woods without seeing people unless I went to town for anything.

Once I found a piece that my wife and I both liked, I walked it out with my realtor, discussed it and decided on putting in an offer with contingencies of the appraisal and a perk test as we eventually want to build

After a little back and forth with the sellers, we got it done and closed on the land.

We did have to use a smaller, more local to the area bank for what we wanted to finance as where we normally bank doesnt do land loans. The place we went thru required 20% down

One other thing to think of is keeping people off of your land. On the day we closed, I put up 2 trail cameras. This was done for 2 reasons, 1 to see what wildlife is running around and the other is to see what people may be walking thru. about a month after the land was ours, we got a few pictures of a truck that drove back in the driveway, but didnt stick around long, then about 3 weeks later, that camera was stolen. My 2nd camera got what looks to be the same truck on it but is was further way and we got a picture of someone walking around, just not a face picture.

I made it a point to hid the remaining camera better and got another to replace the stolen one, which is now 20ft up in a tree facing down so they would need a ladder to get it. I also had a sign made that says “Smile for the Camera A-Hole” and put it on a tree that you would see if you pull in the driveway before getting back very far.

Im hoping my problems are over but if not, the next step is to get off the driveway and possibly ad a camera with cell tower features for quick access to pictures. On the bright side, they didnt leave any garbage or trash anything so Im hoping they were just walking the land and now that they know it is being watched, they won’t come back

Agree with most of the above statements. My comments were more directed towards Farm country / pheasant country.

Much different, easier to buy a woodland 40 in the northern half of the state.

Biggest thing, as Grouse states, it needs to be useable to you and accessible to you.

I would make sure the property lines are marked (with irons) and a certified certificate of survey is available

Two types of recrealtional land owners. Slave to it or you own a piece of heaven and have YOUR place inof solitude.

I am very blessed to have developed a small piece of land into a family place of gathering and tradition. 25 plus years of work, experimenting, tinkering, projects, maintenance…..and all i can say is I wish i had started 30 years sooner. Im finally in a place to enjoy watching the fruit ripening. The work I did 20 years ago is paying off and its beyond what words can describe to see the success.

For those that have the pride and self satisfaction in enhancing habitat, im sure they all feel as I do. I cant be there without enjoying watching the abundace of deer and other critter thriving. The satisfaction of increasing habitat and seeing how it gives back is just something that almost leaves me speechless.
So, the go/no-go question is what you want to do. If its just and investment, it can be more work than you want. If your looking to have your own special place, sooner is better.

Btw, dont look past big parcels.

I don’t be leave you will be able out bid a farmer for any tillable land. I know some farmers that have tried to bye land only to get out bid by a larger farmer with deeper pockets. I was able to bye some land from a farmer that was already in crp. It was along the crow river and it floods (this year a lot) and he couldn’t farm it so we asked if he wanted to sell it.

Eelpoutguy wrote:

I would make sure the property lines are marked (with irons) and a certified certificate of survey is available

Nice, but not very common in my experience. I wouldn’t make one a deal-breaker unless there are significant other issues.

A survey is a considerable expense so most landowners tend to do one only when there are considerable issues or very unreasonable neighbors.

Grouse

A lot of good advice from many perspectives. My advice is to not wait too long to follow a dream.

I retired to my dream lake home at 62. At 72 I don’t have the energy to do all of the things I dreamed of for 40 plus years. That hurts. I still look forward to years of living those dreams but there are no guarantees.

One option you might want to consider in buying farm land would be to look more towards marginal low lands that have been tiled but are still borderline farmable. Break up the tile and convert it back to a natural state. Farms that have had a 1026 done have a non drainable wetland can buy wetland acres from your converted farm at the rate of 1.5/1 They would buy 1.5 acres of wet land credit from you to tile 1 acre of their own land and you can retain the hunting rights. Last I check going rate was around $20,000/ acre for wetland credits.

TheFamousGrouse wrote:

First off, absolutely do it!

I bought 7 years ago and have never regretted anything except not buying sooner. I’m a food plot seed dealer, so I talk to recreational property owners all the time. Everybody who does it, loves it. The land becomes their pride and joy and a legacy for their children and grandchildren.

How to buy?

All decisions stem from WHERE you think you want to buy based on what you want to do on your property and how long of a drive is acceptable. If you want pheasants, then the big woods of northern MN is not for you.

MAJOR FACTOR: Commuting time. Do NOT over-estimate how far you are willing to drive on a consistent basis. A 3-4 hour drive may SEEM ok when you’re all excited about seeing a property, but can be a major drag on the amount of time you can spend there. Also, all time spent in the truck is time you do NOT spend working on and enjoying the property.

This is the #1 thing I hear from landowners. They love their property BUT wish it were closer so they could spend more time there. Time is the most valuable commodity. You are younger and you will likely see your income rise over your life, but you will NOT get more time.

Once you have identified possible areas that suit your purpose and are within a driving distance that you believe is reasonable, only then can you start looking at prices, income options, expenses, etc and start formulating a plan.

It all starts with identifying areas based on what you want to do.

But get busy! You will only regret not doing it sooner.

Grouse

Drop the MIC after that one Grouse. Nothing more needs to be said here.

TheFamousGrouse wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>eelpoutguy wrote:</div>
I would make sure the property lines are marked (with irons) and a certified certificate of survey is available

Nice, but not very common in my experience. I wouldn’t make one a deal-breaker unless there are significant other issues.

A survey is a considerable expense so most landowners tend to do one only when there are considerable issues or very unreasonable neighbors.

A survey could expose considerable issues.
Lot lines and easements. Money well spent imho.

So you say you cannot afford a second mortgage on purchasing the property. Does getting a second income afford the opportunity to purchase the property? You say your yuh young, 10 years at a 2nd job get you the property?

Just a thought.

riverruns wrote:

So you say you cannot afford a second mortgage on purchasing the property. Does getting a second income afford the opportunity to purchase the property? You say your yuh young, 10 years at a 2nd job get you the property?

Just a thought.

Yes and no. Not interested in a second job no matter what it would bring in income. A 3 year old, 2 year old, and newborn at home is my second job, and losing time with them isn’t worth any amount of money outside my full time job.

I have kind of taken a different approach to the 2nd job that lots of people pick up, be very very detailed with a budget, be very strict and disciplined with what you purchase. It is amazing how many thousands we save a year by following a budget and continually auditing where are money is going. Why work extra hours to make extra money, when most people seem to blow it, when you can not work extra hours and be smart in your spending. You get more family time, free time, and still come out ahead with the money.

Just throwing this out there… seen on Facebook where a guy is selling 40 acres near Sandstone for $13K….

big_g wrote:

Just throwing this out there… seen on Facebook where a guy is selling 40 acres near Sandstone for $13K….

FYI that property sold.

Seen it last night, didn’t think it would make it through the night.

You are certainly getting some good advice from others. I will add in a few items to consider based on my experience. All free advice with full refund guarantee!

Location:
This is really dependent on what you want to hunt. Deer, grouse, turkey are all available in woodlands that go for much less per acre than pheasant and crop country. IMHO you would are better off giving up the concept of paying $3000-4000/acre for crop land hoping to lease it and make money. Just pay $1500 for woodland don’t deal with the leasing. The other benefit you get from that is it will force you to only buy what you can afford instead of getting in deeper and then having a tough time leasing. My deer never complain to me how crappy my woods and swamps are. If I decide to pheasant hunt I will do the public land or find someone else to go with. Taxes for woodland are a fraction of what they are for crop land.

Distance:
As Grouse said, how long do you want to drive to be able to hunt or work on your land. The farther you go, the cheaper, but time, time, time. Also, where will you sleep if you can’t day trip it and what will that lodging cost you? I can day trip to my land, get a full day’s work on the land and drive back the same day if I want to. I also have several lodging options nearby and may someday put in a bunkhouse. Sometimes a day is all I have available. Much better to get the day than sit home and wish I had two so I could go.

Insurance:
My homeowners policy allows up to 500 acres of external premise for liability coverage. There are some stipulations, no man-made structures and I can’t be running a business on the property. The way I interpret that, I could not lease the land out for crops and still have liability coverage for free. This does not cover timber value if the property burns, but that is a risk I’m willing to take as long as some idiot can’t sue me for hitting a tree and take me to the cleaners.

Neighbors:
This is tough to read before purchasing, but important. Some will sell bordering state land as a perk. I view it as an increased likelihood that I will have company on my property during hunting season. Are the folks around you going to respect the property lines and not send bullet’s through your property? This is important to me and while it took me a conversation or two with my neighbors, we all have a good and common understanding of what it takes to be compatible in the woods and we get along pretty well.

Buildings:
Are you planning on putting up a building to store equipment or sleep in? That changes your taxes (if permanent structure) and also changes the insurance situation that I mentioned above. If you are looking to put up a building, how far is electric from the property and the most likely place you would put that building. Convincing the local coop to run a line a few miles so you can pay the minimum quarterly rate may cost you a bit. Also understand the general cost of drilling a well in that area. My area requires drilling 100+ feet through granite to get to quality water. Not cheap.

If you can afford it and it fits with your family lifestyle, I definitely recommend it. Take your time and find a situation that you can handle financially. If it’s a stress on you or your family you will regret it. If it’s something that you enjoy, you will find a way to make it work. Someone above made a comment about buying lakefront instead. I agree with that comment. There are a lot of trade-off’s between woods and lakes. I’m hoping to make the double leap, buy lakefront near my woods. That will be a stretch, but one worth taking I believe.

If you are patient and buy it right, you can always get out from it without it hurting too much. If you rush and stretch too thin, you could be in a situation of having to sell quickly and at a bad time. That is what you want to avoid.

Good luck with your decision.