Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
We have always been urban dwellers-- from a co-op in NYC to small regional cities with small yards. We have several rentals and always look for properties with small lots for lowest maintenance.
Now we are considering buying a rural property with some acreage. One on our radar has 10 acres with two fenced and cleared, another has 14 acres with three fenced and cleared. Yet another has 4 acres all cleared. One also has a pond. All three have several out buildings-- guest house, barn, chicken coop kind of thing.
How much time can one expect to spend on maintaining a large rural property? We are intimately familiar with all the issues that come with any house, so my question is more about the property itself. If you made the move from a small lot to a big rural property, did you find you were spending a lot of time on cutting grass, repairing out buildings, etc? What were the things you didn't anticipate that you learned about?
Some people keep large acreage mowed, some simply let it grow in naturally and do nothing. It would be up to you how you choose to maintain your land. I know one guy who rakes his woods every year. Cleanest woods I've ever seen.
Personally I mow only what I use. About 1/2 acre. The rest I could care less about. Only surprise I could think of would be a tree falling during a storm. I chopped it up with a chainsaw, split it and stacked the wood to dry for burning later. Didnt cost anything, but took lots of time.
I grew up on 40 acres of ct woodlands. The woods generally took care of themselves. But the cleared land should be maintained or the forest will reclaim it.
How much do you enjoy mowing, raking, weeding and pest control? If you like garden work - and 4 acres would be lots of work - great. Personally I hated having a large yard that would take a whole Saturday to maintain. Week after week. Year after year.
We have five acres, about half wooded, half "grass" (plants that are green that we mow). Other than the house, we have a large detached garage, a shed, and a chicken coop. For normal day-to-day stuff, my husband jokes that it is like maintaining a national park. There is always something that needs to be mowed, painted, pressure washed, or repaired. But it's the surprises that will get you.
Yesterday we spent the day clearing trees that came down in a storm the day before--we left the one that landed on one of the cars until the insurance adjuster comes out. The car is totaled. We'll still be working at clearing the rest of the trees over the weekend.
I also spent yesterday spraying the chicken coop for grain mites. Harmless things, but gross.
A few years ago we got 42" of snow. We went to sleep at night and by the time we woke up the next morning the snow was too deep to plow. We spent two days taking turns shoveling the entire driveway by hand.
The deer eat my plants if I am even a day late to spray deer repellent. The chicken eat my plants regardless of the deer repellent.
It is a lot of work, but for us it's worth it because we love being outdoors, love the privacy and the peace. One thing I would stress, is that to live in the country and maintain acreage, you need to be hands-on. Know how to run a chain saw, fix the mower when it breaks, or rebuild the carburetor on the generator when it's pouring rain and the power is out (not that that's ever happened at our house). Only you know what you are comfortable with.
We have five acres, .... Only you know what you are comfortable with.
Could not have said it better myself (5 acres, bought when I was about 60 y.o. & clueless). You will learn more than you ever thought possible about irrigation systems and pond maintenance. Your senses will be exquisitely tuned to the smell of smoke. Everything is hugely expensive, but good golly!, those summer sunrises over the pond and hills are to die for.
We have always been urban dwellers-- from a co-op in NYC to small regional cities with small yards. We have several rentals and always look for properties with small lots for lowest maintenance.
Now we are considering buying a rural property with some acreage. One on our radar has 10 acres with two fenced and cleared, another has 14 acres with three fenced and cleared. Yet another has 4 acres all cleared. One also has a pond. All three have several out buildings-- guest house, barn, chicken coop kind of thing.
How much time can one expect to spend on maintaining a large rural property? We are intimately familiar with all the issues that come with any house, so my question is more about the property itself. If you made the move from a small lot to a big rural property, did you find you were spending a lot of time on cutting grass, repairing out buildings, etc? What were the things you didn't anticipate that you learned about?
Much depends on how you intend to use it... whether you intend to get animals or farm it, or just maintain it for the sake of having it.
On our farm, we have lots of animals and fences and buildings and there's always something that needs done. It's not about how long it takes, it's a lifestyle.
On the other hand, acreage that is largely natural you may not have to do much with, unless there are trails through it you need to maintain. Nature does take things back, if you don't use them.
It's really a broad-ranging question that has a million answers - all dependent up on your own comfort level and what you want the property to look like.
I've had three rural acreage properties in my life - still have one of them, but it's more of a hunting parcel than anything.
Here are the factors I'd rate when looking at it:
Utilities - septic v sewer, county water v well, electric, gas v propane, etc. Also, backup options depending on climate. Mine have both been in Texas and I installed backup generators in the event of a power outage. Both had propane. One had county utilities, one was septic/well. Ideally, you have sewer/water hookups with propane.
Terrain - How are you using the property, versus what does it look like. The lakeside lot I just sold was for the most part unbuildable, but had a decent (3/4 acre) flat near the lake that was the homestead portion. The rest was basically just buffer between me and neighbors.
Access - Remember, you have to maintain that driveway. Out here, it was every 5 years I had to spread another 100 yards of gravel to keep the land from reclaiming the driveway. That was by choice though, I wanted the house behind the stand of trees and set back from the road.
Maintenance - Fencing, outbuildings, mechanicals... these all take constant work. I'd say conservatively I would spend 4-5 hours per week just keeping things in shape. This doesn't include feeding the pigs and chickens and ducks and goats.
How much time can (some)one expect to spend on maintaining a large rural property?
A lot. Only question is whether you do it ...or pay for it (somehow) to be done for you.
If you have cleared acreage that can be farmed... rent it out.
If you don't NEED that income arrange for that farmer person (with all the tools
and equipment and experience etc) to do the work you want done instead of cash.
We had 5 acres for decades in rural high desert Utah. It was all natural sagebrush but DH had randomly planted evergreens for privacy here and there so had to maintain drip irrigation which can be a lot of work to maintain. Our hard well water clogged them up all the time and constantly turning the various lines on and off. And the long driveway needed more gravel periodically.
The worst part was trying to sell it. Often rural properties sit forever on the market. Ours took 3 years to sell and we still took a big hit.
It was a great place to live though! Like living in a Western movie set....scenery to die for.
We have always been urban dwellers-- from a co-op in NYC to small regional cities with small yards. We have several rentals and always look for properties with small lots for lowest maintenance.
Now we are considering buying a rural property with some acreage. One on our radar has 10 acres with two fenced and cleared, another has 14 acres with three fenced and cleared. Yet another has 4 acres all cleared. One also has a pond. All three have several out buildings-- guest house, barn, chicken coop kind of thing.
How much time can one expect to spend on maintaining a large rural property? We are intimately familiar with all the issues that come with any house, so my question is more about the property itself. If you made the move from a small lot to a big rural property, did you find you were spending a lot of time on cutting grass, repairing out buildings, etc? What were the things you didn't anticipate that you learned about?
There is no single answer. It depends on how you intend to use the land and how much maintenance you want to do yourself or hire out. Do you want a conventional yard, only bigger? A hobby farm? A place for wildlife, that is mostly allowed to do what it will?
The work you need to do depends entirely upon your goals.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
