There are many things to consider when purchasing land for a survival homestead. Many of these topics will destroy your dreams and prevent you from living the life you want live. Here is my top 20 list of things to avoid and consider when purchasing land for a survival homestead. All topics on my list will assume that you are going all in, and that you are not working a 9-5 job. It also assumes you are prepping for tougher times and not just homesteading, there is a big difference.
Government Regulations
The first item on my list is government regulations because nothing I will say will kill your dreams like the government. They have the power to force you to remove structures, condemn your land and put you in jail if you do not comply. Check with your local code enforcement before you even start looking at properties. Driving around and looking at land will be a huge waste of time and money if you aren’t allowed to do what you want to do with your new property. If you fall in love with a property, it is going to be devastating to find out that you weren’t approved for the structure or land use permit.
Proximity to supplies
The further you are from the supplies, the cheaper the land will be. While cost is an important factor, we are talking survival here. If the fuel supply shuts down, how are you going to get to town to trade? There are things you can do, things you can grow, and things you can trade but not if you are 100 miles from civilization. I am not prepping for zombie apocalypse or nuclear fallout; I’d just prefer to be first round draft on those. In the event that there are no more trucks running for the next 6 months, how do you get what you need to live? Salt for preserving, medications, and basic necessities can all be traded if you can get to other people that need what you have. Bike, horse or walking become more and more important the longer you want to survive. Some people are getting electric cars that can be charged by solar. Parts will eventually get scares and the more you have to drive, the sooner it will wear out.
What is the shape of the land?
Why does the shape of the land matter you ask, this can be critical to your survival? If you buy 25 acres that is only 200 foot wide, the back of your rectangle property is undefendable. If you plant the back half of the property, people will steal you blind because you will never know they are there until the food is gone. At that point, the food is gone and so is your future seedbank. A square shaped property is more of a defensive hold than narrow long properties.
Position of your property and house
There is no perfect answer, and you might not have an option depending on the area of the country you are in. If you buy in a valley, you give the neighbors an upper hand. They can look down on you and see what you are doing, memorize your schedule and know when you are vulnerable. You will have a better water supply and more fertile land, but this is the tradeoff. My ideal location would be up against a steep mountain range that is unaccusable on at least 2 sides. Another top pick is land that backs up to swamps or any land that is difficult to access. People in desperate times will take desperate measures and you don’t what to defend any more property line then you have to. The position of your house, barns gardens will be critical to the success to maintaining your security. In a permaculture garden, they encourage multiple zones to be placed around the garden. Zone 1 is the immediate area surrounding the house and goes up as you move further away. Keep your most valuable assets close in zone 1 and your least valuable out in zone 10. If you are worried about theft, consider growing more than you need so you aren’t left vulnerable.
Does the property perc?
Now that you have picked out your property, does it perc? Human waste will be discarded in a septic system. If your land doesn’t perc, you will have to build an above ground drain field. This is quite often expensive to build and must be maintained by professionals per the design documents. Many counties have strict rules about these, and I would only agree to this if the land was cheap, real cheap! Typically, if the land doesn’t perc it is because the water will not absorb into the ground fast enough. This is not a good thing in heavy rain, the rain will absorb into the topsoil and be caught in a bowl. Your yard, garden, fields and orchards will flood and get root rot. In my mind, land that wont perc is not even worth looking at for these reasons.
What way does the property face?
There is a reason that North Facing land is cheaper than South Facing land, and it is not for the view. Think about most ski slopes, they face north. Less sun means less melting, less growing, and less solar. This is not the best choice for a survival Homestead. A south
Do you have Water Rights?
Some areas of the country you are not allowed to collect the rain off your roof, not allowed to drill a well and definitely not allowed to get water from a stream (see Government Regulations above). You might be able to drill a well, but you might have to pay per gallon of use. This is insane to me; water should be a right not a privilege. Consider putting a drinking well into the contingency offer, don’t buy land that wont perc or supply water. Some wells can cost tens of thousands of dollars to drill. This can be folded into the purchase price if it is part of the purchase offer. Get hard quotes first and ask them if they will do a “not to exceed” contract. If they will, then you have your maximum. If they wont, be prepared and don’t take their word on it. Well drillers get paid by the foot and most have a minimum. My well is 40ft deep however, when I asked for a quote to get a backup well, the minimum was 500ft drilling. Even if they hit water at 40ft, you pay for 500ft! Ask the drillers if they guarantee a water source? If you are lucky enough to have a spring on your property, make sure that you 1) have rights to it with the county and 2) have a backup plan if it ever goes dry. When it comes to your water source, you are forced to have a good supply. Just because the spring is flowing in the spring doesn’t mean that it will flow in the summer months when the reservoir up the hill goes dry.
Do you retain Mineral Rights?
Do you own the dirt below your feet? Not always! Some less than scrupulous sellers will strip all mineral rights and hide it in the fine print. They can drill beneath your property and harvest oil and natural gas, tunnel under you for gold, silver, coal etc., and there isn’t a thing you can do about it. While this might not be an issue for some people, if they drill thru an aquafer and contaminate your water supply, you are out of luck. You can sue them but what are you going to do, your water is contaminated at that point!
Is your property in a flood plain or wetland?
While this isn’t always an issue if you have enough land, I would not put my survival homestead in a floodplain. Even if it is only a 100 year floodplain, it can still happen. I would not put my survival in an area that is prone to flooding, period! If a small portion of the property floods, not a big deal but don’t put your house or garden there.
Do you have the right kind of insurance?
Some insurance companies will not cover you if you are a commercial property, some companies consider a homestead a farm. Before you buy your land, check with your insurance company and make sure they will insure you. Get it in writing, don’t take the salesman’s word for this. If they come out and see that you have tractors, barns and any heavy equipment, don’t give they an out for a potential claim.
Is cheap land worth considering?
Absolutely! The cheaper the better however, keep all these facts in mind. If the average for your area is 8k per acre and someone listed theirs for 2k, buyer beware!
Does the property have trees?
Hopefully it will have some on the parameters, but it doesn’t need to be a wooded lot. Stumping land is expensive and time consuming. There is a reason pastureland is more expensive than wooded land. Even though you can sell the lumber, most people will not make enough money on lumber sales to cover the cost of removing the stumps. I was offered by a logging company to have the trees and stumps removed together as a trade. They would keep the timber money and dig the stumps. This isn’t always the case depending on how many acres you are talking about. Logging companies don’t want to come out for 5-acre tracts, they want the big money. If you are going to clear cut, you can make more money per ton, but I wanted a thinning and not to remove everything I had. It might be worth spending a little more on the land to have it already cleared.
What is the soil condition?
If your potential land is overgrown with weeds, it is going to take a lot of time, money and effort to get it under control. The weed seed bank (no, we aren’t talking Denver supplies) in the ground can take years to get under control. Weeds drop thousands of seeds per year, per plant and the seeds can remain dormant for many years. Once you cut the weeds down, the seeds are exposed and can start growing. Turning the soil over can bring up old seed banks further exasperating the situation. Depending on if you are going organic or not will dictate how fast you can get it under control. Before making an offer on any land, get some soil samples done. If your soil is acidic, you will need lime to make it more neutral. On my property, I am so acidic that I have to apply 4 tons per acre to bring it to an acceptable level. I didn’t count this cost when I was considering other land. At the time ow writing this, lime is only $20per ton or $80 per acre in BULK (18wheeler loads). This isn’t bad I thought, but then there’s delivery, spreading and many days of back breaking work lifting the bags. This is definitely one thing I would have done for me next time. In all, I spent over $600 per acre when considering the lime, delivery, purchasing a spreader and fuel. That cost would not have stopped me from buying the land however, I wish I had budgeted for amendments.
Is electricity close to the property?
Depending on your goals and your abilities, this might be a HUGE issue for you. When I was looking, I wanted to go off grid however, I got a fantastic deal on my property and electricity was already installed. At $9 per foot for electric installation, a 3000-foot installation was going to run me $27,000. I calculated out a solar panel array and battery system that was going to allow me to go off grid but that was even more. While I have started the off-grid process, I decided to do it in small parts as I can afford it instead of spending all that money at once. This enabled me to make other improvements around the homestead for a faster return.
Does the property have a road?
Gravel roads can cost up to $50 per linear foot for a 6-foot-wide road. My 3000-foot road could have cost $150,000 to construct. This is considering that I have enough land to dig a pond and move it to the road site, not hauling it in which could cost even more. If you are considering bare land, consider road construction costs before you fall in love with your property. One thing I warn about is does your driveway cross someone else’s land? This can be a huge point of contention in the future, make sure it is in writing and recorded as an easement with the county. Talk to the neighbors and find out if there are issues with the roads being impassable, washing out or if there is a jerk neighbor that purposely blocks the road with obstacles. Does the county provide plowing in winter, road maintenance or rocking and is there an assessment? The longer the road is the more maintenance there will be. If the road is shared, is there an agreement and what must you do to be part of the community road?
Are there any delipidated structures on the property?
While the look of an old barn might be appealing at first, it can cost thousands to tear one down. In a tornado or hurricane, these structures can be shrapnel and dangerous. If you have kids, do you want them playing in these structures because we all know they will! They can be a huge risk to you financially and your insurance company might deny you due to a dangerous structure.
Hard water
Hard water and poor water quality can add substantial costs to your dream property. Some water treatment and softening systems can run in the thousands of dollars. Minerals can stain your fixtures, bathtubs, sinks, driveways and clothing while leaving annoying mineral deposits on showers and scale inside your hot water tanks. While this is not dangerous if properly maintained, the annoyance might literally leave a bitter taste in your mouth. There is nothing like the taste of Sulphur in your coffee first thing in the morning.
Will you be raising livestock?
If you are vegetation, you have a lot of options however you might want to raise livestock for trade. Knowing what animals you can raise before you buy the land can save you a lot of money and heartache. If you buy a dairy cow and plan to put her on a wooded lot, you will soon realize that you have to buy hay, and a lot of it! If you buy goats and put them on open pasture, the vet will start sending Christmas cards to their new best customer. Every animal has a unique needs, different minerals and care levels. Goats are EXTREMELY tough on fencing, if you have an old fence, you will soon be replacing it. Chickens are loved by all predator animals from snakes, to foxes, opossums, racoons, owls, coyotes, dogs, cats… you get the point. Chickens need a LOT of protection.
What are your plans for the survival homestead?
Are you going to make a root cellar and store your food or make your own wine and forget that the situation exists? Great news, you can do all of that in the root cellar at the same time. Since we are assuming that you live there full time, are you going to be off grid, a hermit, a survivalist? Depending on your needs will dictate what you need. Don’t buy more than you can take care of or afford. It takes me 8 hours a week to mow the grass, this is a lot of time spent mowing instead of other tasks. The reason I mow 8 hours a week is I collect the grass clippings and put them in the fruit orchard. I have poor soil and I am amending it organically; this takes time and amendments.
What are your neighbors like?
If you are not from the area, it pays to get to know your neighbors before you buy. Make sure that the sellers are not moving because of a jerk neighbor. I don’t believe in gossip but if I were going to, doing it before you buy would be the time to sin! Take the neighbors to dinner, buy them a drink and get the scoop. Last thing you want to do is start your dream next to someone’s nightmare.
Buy someone else’s failed dream
While I hate this one the most. People get in over their heads all the time (hence the reason I am writing, and you are reading). If you can step in and finish someone else’s dream, you are leaps and bounds ahead (most of the time). If you are buying someone’s failed dream, ask them why/how it failed. Most like-minded people will be honest and you’re hiring a home surveyor anyways. Maybe its too far away from town, too expensive or too something else. Be listening carefully and take heed to their warning. Most people like to talk about their dreams, even the failed ones. Get them talking and make sure you are listening and not talking, this could save you from making their mistakes. There are deals out there, people get old and tired and want a change. You might be able to come to some deal by meeting their needs.
The biggest piece of advice I can give you, don’t bite off more than you can chew. Stay within your budget and don’t let some real estate agent talk you into making a HUGE mistake. Acreage takes a lot of money, a lot of time, a lot of sweat and a lot of MONEY. Yes, I said money twice on purpose and not because I want to scare you; I want you to be successful. I am living someone else’s dream, in their house looking at their pond. While it is great for me, another homesteaders dreams and financial future came to an end when they sold it to me.
If you have any questions or comments, we would love to hear from you.
Until then,
Happy Homesteading