Chicken,
First thing you need to do is go look at the land - then you need to hire a surveyor to assess the land, then an inspector to test the soil to see if it will perk - then either the surveyor or inspector should also bring in (or should know how) to dowse for water if there is none currently on site. No water isnt a good thing
All of these things are going to cost you a few thousand dollars very easily and are all up front costs - you dont recoup them if your land doesnt perk and if it doesnt perk, its useless land. You'd have to put a contract (contingent of course...make sure you have contingencies based upon ALL of these things) in order to even be able to do any of these things, however the seller should have to by law, already have it perked prior to offering it for sale. However- that being said, it doesnt mean that the entire 5 acres or whatever you're looking at will perk, it may be only 1 acre out of 5 that will perk - so that is where a house or anything else will go for living purposes. I believe, but am not certain, this also applies to any animal stables/barns as well as you will need electricity and running water - so it too must perk. Well, septic, drain field - all very very expensive. As I said just a well that is deep bore is going to cost you around $15-20K - and no hook ups - that doesnt include the septic or drain field required. Then you get into permits - a permit is required for EVERYTHING - if you dont have them.. you cant build or run electric, water, fencing..nothing - not to mention the inspections that are required by law following completion of all projects. OMG - these things can take months to a year sometimes depending on your County Admin!! Headaches galore
- and permits cost money. If you dont have the right one..they will shut all operations down and start to fine you from the day you violated... and the fines are steep.
Onward and upward - to the land itself. If you buy fully timbered land - and must have it cleared - YEOW!!!! you're looking at again, thousands of dollars to cut the trees - then grade, seed and get an established pasture going. This can take up to a year or more in order to sustain livestock. Timber cutting is usually done seasonally and you're correct, there are laws for what you cut down, you must replace. Have you priced out orchard grass seed required for livestock and whatnot? It too is very very pricey - I have Timothy Orchard Grass on about 1/2 an acre and I love it - and wanted to plant more - however... for a 50 lb bag of seed it runs nearly $100 here in VA - and thats from the Co-Op. Guess what... I put down KY31 instead and that was still costly, but not as costly as orchard grass.
Love the look but not the price, and I dont even have anything but chickens!
If I were you - I would look into investing in a pre-exisiting property that has the house on it, barn and pasture all ready to go. You will save thousands upon thousands of dollars by doing so and can use those savings to invest in your orchard and fencing for livestock down the road. When I say thousands upon thousands - I'm talking probably 50-70K if not more by buying pre-existing and not starting from scratch.
Keep your dream... but really look around and dont settle. It took us 18 years to get ours, but we finally did. It'll happen, just be smart and savvy
First thing you need to do is go look at the land - then you need to hire a surveyor to assess the land, then an inspector to test the soil to see if it will perk - then either the surveyor or inspector should also bring in (or should know how) to dowse for water if there is none currently on site. No water isnt a good thing
Onward and upward - to the land itself. If you buy fully timbered land - and must have it cleared - YEOW!!!! you're looking at again, thousands of dollars to cut the trees - then grade, seed and get an established pasture going. This can take up to a year or more in order to sustain livestock. Timber cutting is usually done seasonally and you're correct, there are laws for what you cut down, you must replace. Have you priced out orchard grass seed required for livestock and whatnot? It too is very very pricey - I have Timothy Orchard Grass on about 1/2 an acre and I love it - and wanted to plant more - however... for a 50 lb bag of seed it runs nearly $100 here in VA - and thats from the Co-Op. Guess what... I put down KY31 instead and that was still costly, but not as costly as orchard grass.
If I were you - I would look into investing in a pre-exisiting property that has the house on it, barn and pasture all ready to go. You will save thousands upon thousands of dollars by doing so and can use those savings to invest in your orchard and fencing for livestock down the road. When I say thousands upon thousands - I'm talking probably 50-70K if not more by buying pre-existing and not starting from scratch.
Keep your dream... but really look around and dont settle. It took us 18 years to get ours, but we finally did. It'll happen, just be smart and savvy
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