Homesteading in the UP (Marquette, Sault Ste. Marie: real estate, house, rent)

[homesteadin']

Hello there yoopers!

I have a strange and wonderful situation on my hands, and I am hoping someone can help me with it:

Thanks to the sale of some family land, I have the opportunity to fulfill a long-held dream of mine. That is, to buy a good piece of land (say 40 acres) in the UP and build a homestead there. My female partner and I are farmers and hope to build a nice cordwood home/barn/sauna homestead and live off of the land as much as we can. The only problem is, according to tax law, in order to save the 25% tax hit, we only have until January 10th to have identified properties that we would be interested in making offers on. (In case you are wondering, this is a 1031 rollover.)

So, here it is December 12th, and here I am in Belfast, Maine, and there you are with two feet of snow on the ground. Obviously, I assumed incorrectly when the ground was bare that our property wouldn't sell before 2008. I was wrong, and now I have to scramble, otherwise I lose a good chunk of our grubstake.

So my question to anyone who cares is can you help me narrow down where in the UP to look? And, can you suggest any realtors who know what they are doing (and really care)? Or, do you know of anyone selling a good piece of land?

We are devoted snowbirds, I love to cross country ski, and she needs to be near a little culture (Houghton/Hancock or Marquette). I am envisioning that we could find some land within 15 minutes or so of a small town that offers a library, a post office and bookstore (culture) and be about 40 minutes door-to-door from the big town (H/H, MQT) for shopping. That way, I can be the homebody I am, and she can have her dose of culture once a week. (Don't get me wrong, she grew up on an orchard and can work most men under the table, including me, but still a lady needs to be able to explore a Main St every so often.)

I'm hoping to find a piece of well-timbered land that hasn't been cut in the last 20 years and that has some pasture as well. 40 acres plus would be ideal for no more than $60k. Or some land that has a well-built log cabin on it, that is four-seasoned, for about $100k.)

I have a map that shows X-C areas, and I like the looks of that area between Calumet and H/H. As we love snow and long, cold winters, I have no problem with being on the Keweenaw, but we can't be too far north.

Okay, you get my drift and are probably nodding off.

Any help you could give would be much appreciated!

Also, I'd love to meet anyone who has built a cordwood home up there.

Thanks so much,

Hayes

[jeeg]

I can give a couple tips for the Marquette county area (I live there). I don't think we can post links in the open here but if you're looking for land google Northern Michigan Land brokers, Marquette..... or if you want something with a place already on it, google Chris Cosco, Marquette. The first is a company with several parcels I'm eyeing myself. The second is a prominent local realtor who I've heard is good to deal with (his wife posts here on occasion too).
It's interesting because your plans are very similar to ours including building with cordwood! I know there are some up in the keewenaw area. There's a century old barn built of cordwood south of me. Feel free to send me a direct message (click on my name) if I can help you more or if you would like the links to the cordwood structures I mentioned.

[darstar]

The North Michigan land folks , can help. Great people. Sold me 8 acres last year, Marquette area. Pm me if you would like to know more , or jeeg. The area around Marquette is perfect. You don't have to go very far out of town to find wilderness ,yet , Marquette is as upscale as anyplace around. Very Progressive, if you know what I mean , more so than the other parts of the UP. The Keewenaw is wonderful , and Copper Harbor is like no other place , but , its remote , in the winter , may be a bit more remote , and its a long drive to Marquette....... An area that is remote , yet , not all that far away , is the northern reaches of Marquette County , many off the grid , reasonable prices ,and mountain terrain. The higher up you get , for breeze from the Big Lake , plus views , the less bug problems. ( cost can get pricey however ) .
I am building now , a 2500 sq.Deltec round house , with a 50 mile view of Lake Superior , hope I can afford it when I am done ! There lots of deals , and , the winter is the best time to deal, come and check it out, I am going up after Christmas. My neighbor , says , bring your snow shoes, thats the only problem looking at property in the winter , its hard to see thru the snow.......

[Bydand]

Homesteadin' Can't help you with land, but can with a bit on Belfast/UP move. Coming from Belfast, you really need to find something close to Lake Superior. The water views and scenery you will miss greatly after a very short time. The effect Lake Superior will have is great! It is much wilder feeling than Penobscot Bay and the difference will amaze you. The smell of the ocean you will miss though because the Great lakes don't have that saltwater smell you get when by the coast of Maine.

I do hope you like cold and snow. There is nowhere in Maine that gets snow and cold like the UP of Michigan. How do I know? Graduated from Sault Ste. Marie, MI and now live in Maine. I'm up in "The County" right now for another couple of months until I return to Michigan and the "way life should really be". There is no better place for winter lovers than the UP.

As far as the people go, the UP is different than Belfast area. There isn't the same pace to life. It is more reserved and laid-back in 90% of the UP. The friendliest people around populate the UP, just as long as you don't try to turn the UP into Belfast. In that way it is very much like Maine. The people tend to be a bit quieter, and more reserved. Doesn't mean they don't like you, just that they have nothing to say . I love the UP, and it's people. Very much "my" type of folk.

Good luck on your search.

[futruper]

I have a little more of an eastern UP perspective, so I'll offer you that, although we were very interested in the Keweenaw peninsula. I think for growing things the Garden Peninsula (finger of land west of Manistique jetting into Lake Michigan) should get a look. Being near the water moderates the early and late frosts and allows for a longer growing season, therefore you can grow a larger variety of things. It's also a "Banana Belt" area for the UP, which might be good or bad depending on how much exteme weather you want. I talked to a fellow that said he has peach trees growing there. There are a lot of apple trees, either wild or what looks to be abandoned orchards along the road to Fayette. There are some woodlots and open field areas that could meet your need.

Another area to consider would be the Pickford area. There is a lot of farmland that has hardwood forests abutting them. Fieldcrops seem to prevail, and there are numerous deer in the area. There is quite a large section of land to choose from all the way over to the water. Prices seem to be pretty reasonable for the land also as few seem to be making it very handsomely in their endeavors.


Best wishes, the UP is a very special place wherever you settle.

[darstar]

It is good to hear from others in the UP, from other prospectives. The land is diverse, but , basically is divided in 2 sections. The western , and the eastern.
I must agree with the poster , that , you may not like the deep woods , coming from coastal Maine. I have traveled both states extensively, and , would guess you would be a can date for the western UP , as it looks very much like coastal Maine.
Lake Superior dominates the land , the people , and the climate. Once you view the lake from a 50 to 100 foot rock bluff , and look out at the islands, the ore boats crossing, and the rolling waves crashing the rocky beach , you will be smitten with this inland ocean.
On the other hand , the UP is , for the most part , a low lying pc. of real estate. Lots of swamp areas. Much of the eastern UP is like this, as is a lot of the whole cross section of the state, where the plains , give way to the highlands and mountains. This interior area can be suited for some farming, hay crops , mostly. Some like the flat lands , and , yes , there are fine fishing lakes in these areas also. The prices for land are much less , and , there are many old homesteads available. The area to the south , that borders Lake Michigan is warmer , both summer and winter, less dramatic , but , still part of the great land called Superior.
I have driven it all over 30 years of visiting, from the Sault population center , second city,Soo locks, to Drummond Island, a fishermans retreat , the Le Cheneaux islands with summer homes, and wooden launches to Mackanac Island , a tourist day tripper haven,to Fayette, a garden spot long forgotten, to Escanaba, up and coming Iron Mountain, and Iron wood , in another time zone, and an prevalence to cheese head land .Then on to the ski resorts and the beautiful Porkies, and the onset of Superiors rocky,windy unprotected shore.. This , the most remote area of the UP as relates to population centers. Then on to Houghton, the gateway to the Keweenaw, the UPs third city, a college town. The Keweenaw , like no other , a summer paradise, ghost towns, artist colonies, abandoned iron mines, and, the end of the world , as we know it , Cooper harbor. Then its back down and east, to Marquette County, the largest in the state of Michigan , and home of the UPs first city, Marquette. A place , so , much reminded, to several cities in Alaska , its scary ! A city with more bike trails than anywhere in the US , liberal in thinking , and loaded with places to eat , and entertain. One of the 10 top hospitals in the US , and home to NMU, and , just outside Marquette , a wilderness, the Huron Mountains,one of the last hold outs left in the country.
There is much more, the inland towns and villages, the expanses of highway , flat and forever, or it seems so. ( Its 160 miles from the Bridge to Marquette ), so , with such a big land , its most deserving to come and check it out first. Who knows , you may not like it here , thats what a lot of UPers are counting on !

[jeeg]

Darstar!! You're making me anxious to get in my vehicle and do some more exploring!!!!!

[darstar]

Originally Posted by jeeg

Darstar!! You're making me anxious to get in my vehicle and do some more exploring!!!!!

That was the intended !........... I will never forget my first time , a hot humid Sunday in Chicago, and a desire to go, go where its cool , and not so far away. Monday found me , at speed , eating up the miles in my Jag xke , somewhere north of Witch lake , and , wondering , " where am I , what am I doing , where am I going" ?........ I soon found out , as I crested the last hill on US 41 , and before me was a little village hugging the Superior shore.........Cooper harbor.

[Bydand]

Originally Posted by darstar

That was the intended !........... I will never forget my first time , a hot humid Sunday in Chicago, and a desire to go, go where its cool , and not so far away. Monday found me , at speed , eating up the miles in my Jag xke , somewhere north of Witch lake , and , wondering , " where am I , what am I doing , where am I going" ?........ I soon found out , as I crested the last hill on US 41 , and before me was a little village hugging the Superior shore.........Cooper harbor.

And my bet is that it was hard to turn that buggy around and head back to Chicago.

[Great Lakes Pirate]

This links to Keweenaw area Multi List Serv, search there
http://www.century21northcountry.com/idxsearch.htm

Just a side-bar: isolated, upland acreage may pose an issue for your well. So keep in mind, you may be paying to drill through 250' of rock for your water.