The rural exodus accelerates (Burlington, Ellis: sale, home, buy)

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by Gunluvver2

I am more optimistic about the future of rural areas like NW Kansas, SW Nebraska and Eastern Colorado. Yes agriculture is changing. I am one of those that left the area when I graduated from High School in 1964. My Dad sold the farm shortly after but my Grandfather's farm is still in the family. No one in the family is farming it at present but the farm is still intact. One of my cousins and her husband have moved back in to the area and have taken jobs and started a business in a small town. I have plans to move back to the area in two or three years, health permitting. Several of the kids that I grew up with left the area also but are looking at retiring and moving back to the area. These retirees are in their early 60's and most of them have built up a hefty nest egg. I look for several of them to create businesses and bring a few jobs to the area.

Thanks to the INTERNET there are a lot of jobs that can be done in rural areas. Doctors and Health professionals will start migrating to these areas when they realize how much better the quality of life can be in smaller communities. I expect a rebirth of the rural community in these areas.

GL2

I like the fact that you have an optimistic view on the situation out there. However, the statistics don't really lie. The counties that are the most isolated and most agriculturally dependent have suffered and continue to suffer the greatest net population loses as well as very high out-migration levels. I completely agree that some retirees will continue to move back to those farm towns, but many generally want to be in a town that is close to a regional hospital and other ammenities. Also, few middle-age and younger career oriented people think about staying in a frontier county and growing a business. If you look at the demographics it can get pretty tough when over 25% of the population is over age 65 and many have a fixed income.
I AGREE that the US is one of the most entreprenurial and innovative countries in the world which is a big plus. The rural Great Plains have weathered this latest economic recession fairly well for the most part. One primary reason is that many of these isolated counties actually face a labor shortage due to the severe out-migration in the first place. Unfortunately, it is a hard cycle to break. These days, it is quite hard to convince young people to stay "on the farm" when the metropolitan areas in the Plains States have such low unemployment rates and a much wider job selection in varied careers.

[cp1969]

Where does it end, with everybody packed into 100 nasty, crime-ridden cities and everything else empty?

There is something incredibly wrong with that concept, if that's where we're headed.

[itsMeFred]

I expect a rebirth of the rural community in these areas.

GL2

I don't.
I know you're looking at the exact same area as I GunLuvver. But the fact is that population has done nothing but decline, sometimes quite rapidly, for decades.
The tri-state counties on the NE/KS side have seen approximately 15% population loss just in the last 8 years. Ie, since the accessibility of internet.
(BTW, for those that don't know, yes, we have high speed/wireless/etc.)

Yuma co. was only -1.5%, but that estimate was made before the oil/gas shutdowns this year.
And that has really hurt...

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by cp1969

Where does it end, with everybody packed into 100 nasty, crime-ridden cities and everything else empty?

There is something incredibly wrong with that concept, if that's where we're headed.

I can think of plenty of cities on the Plains that are not like that at all. Some examples of cities with resilient economies in this latest recession include: Des Moines, Omaha, Lincoln, Sioux Falls, Fargo, Rochester, Madison, etc.

[briansgi]

Originally Posted by Roccaluma

I am looking for a dying town that has extremely low real estate prices but is still near to at least a Walmart, a few fast food places, and a decent grocery store. What towns would you recommend in these dying areas?

If it's slowly dying, do you think the WalMart will still be there in a couple years if the trend continues, or the fast food restaurants, probably not.

[concrete it]

I think this was a direct result of the goverment farm programs that were supposedly ment to "help" the family farms but instead destroyed them. The only benifit of those programs were for corporate farmers and investors. Soon they will be out also and the goverment or Monsanto will controll it.

[Gunluvver2]

I agree with you "concrete it" but there were other factors also.
Although well intentioned most of the health inspection laws on the books have been an even bigger factor in eliminating the small family farm.

On our family farm in the 1950's and 1960's when I was growing up we milked several dairy cows daily except during the Summer when field work was the priority. We separated the cream and the cream was a CASH crop. The local creamery bought cream, eggs and butter from any farmer who brought it to them. We fed our skimmed milk to hogs after saving some for the table for drinking or cheese making. OUR milking parlor was not required to be inspected. When stricter Health Laws were put in place this source of income was gone for 99% of the small farmers. It was just to restrictive and expensive to meet the standards the State required. Hence large dairy farms are NOW the norm.

The same creamery bought eggs directly from farmers. When massive laying hen operations started producing eggs they drove the local creameries out of business. So here are two main sources of CASH income to small farmers gone. Due in part to Health Laws.

Many city people would go to farmers in the area and buy a steer or heifer and have it taken to the local MEAT locker for butchering. More restrictive Health Laws drove these small lockers out of business. Another source of CASH to small farmers gone. Now we have HUGE feedlots and beef packing houses (Pork also) selling meat to the retailers.

As a consequence farmers have increased the size of their operations and specialized in GRAIN or monoculture type farming. Larger operations and fewer small farms.

Even fruit and garden type producers have gotten larger and fewer.

Nowadays even farmers go to the STORE to buy food.

Result 50 years later: Dying farm communities.

JMHO

GL2

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by Gunluvver2

I agree with you "concrete it" but there were other factors also.
Although well intentioned most of the health inspection laws on the books have been an even bigger factor in eliminating the small family farm.

On our family farm in the 1950's and 1960's when I was growing up we milked several dairy cows daily except during the Summer when field work was the priority. We separated the cream and the cream was a CASH crop. The local creamery bought cream, eggs and butter from any farmer who brought it to them. We fed our skimmed milk to hogs after saving some for the table for drinking or cheese making. OUR milking parlor was not required to be inspected. When stricter Health Laws were put in place this source of income was gone for 99% of the small farmers. It was just to restrictive and expensive to meet the standards the State required. Hence large dairy farms are NOW the norm.

The same creamery bought eggs directly from farmers. When massive laying hen operations started producing eggs they drove the local creameries out of business. So here are two main sources of CASH income to small farmers gone. Due in part to Health Laws.

Many city people would go to farmers in the area and buy a steer or heifer and have it taken to the local MEAT locker for butchering. More restrictive Health Laws drove these small lockers out of business. Another source of CASH to small farmers gone. Now we have HUGE feedlots and beef packing houses (Pork also) selling meat to the retailers.

As a consequence farmers have increased the size of their operations and specialized in GRAIN or monoculture type farming. Larger operations and fewer small farms.

Even fruit and garden type producers have gotten larger and fewer.

Nowadays even farmers go to the STORE to buy food.

Result 50 years later: Dying farm communities.

JMHO

GL2

Wow, thanks so much for articulating all of those points in one post gunluvver2! I learned a few new things.

+1

[todd00]

im not seeing the same forecast you are. i cant see that a few new jobs will stop the outward migration. of course, quality of life is an individual thing, but i would doubt a flood of docs and healthcare professionals will be moving to the areas mentioned. even with $$ incentives to attract them, what will make them want to stay.

[Gunluvver2]

tod00,
Some of the local rural communities here in Nebraska are financing Medical and Dental school educations for qualified students who will commit to practicing for several years in the community.

Even a small town Doctor or Dentist can live pretty well on a reduced salary IF they do not have to repay Student Loans.

GL2