Collin41

I've got this idea in my head to buy some land and build a cabin sometime within the next ten years. Ideally it would be a nice little spot with space for hunting or shooting and a water source for fishing. I'm not looking for luxury accommodations, just a place I can spend a few weeks out of the year at.

So where would I even start doing research? I've seen that there are some government incentive programs for land management, what other programs are available to help mitigate the costs?

I'm looking for something out of state, maybe up north. Anyone have experiences with something like this?

Topgun 3006

It would help to at least know what state you're in and how far you would go to get to a property like that. I bought 20 acres in northern MI 3 hours north of where I live way back in 1973 on a cheap land contract and after staying in a small travel trailer for several years found a big trailer that I had moved to the property. Over the next few years I put a steel roof over it and then in 2000 as I was getting close to retiring I added a nice 12'x16' room onto it where I spend most of my time now when I'm up there. I put steel on the outside of that room along with a steel roof that runs up under the trailer roof and also added steel all the way around the trailer to make it look like one big building. The addition cost $4K and I probably don't have more than about $20K in the land cost and building. The easiest way to find land is to contact real estate companies in an area you're interested in and see what properties they have available.

MudderChuck

My experience is if you aren't there to watch it on a regular basis somebody is going to screw it up, steal anything worth stealing and/or dream up some way to grab it.

I've got three plots. On one the closest city has been trying to immanent domain it and at the same time the Park service has been trying to grab it, it borders a State Park. The city says they want to build a school there, which is insane, the back of the property is a two hundred foot cliff that periodically sheds bus sized boulders. The park service discovered I have water and they want it. I'm seriously thinking about Deeding it to a local Indian tribe before lawyer fees eat me up. I've declared it a Saquaro Cactus refuge, we will see how that works out. The closest city was a few buildings and a dozen shacks when I bought the property, now it is almost a suburb of Phoenix.

Another plot in South Carolina is constantly encroached upon by my neighbors. When they plow, they plow an extra thirty-fifty feet onto my property every year and slowly try to expand their holdings. The same plot was raped by a pulp mill a few years back. I figure I'll eventually loose it to development. I did one smart thing, I buried an old engine block at the four corners after a survey and can now find my property line with a metal detector. It used to be in the middle of nowhere bordering a highway, now suburbia is headed my direction. I've declared it a bird sanctuary.

My third plot is now the go to place for dirt bikers and ATV drivers. It is high desert anyway and not much grows there, now it is a true desert and only grows trash. The only good thing about it is it borders a major aqueduct and would be a good hideout if TSHTF.

Father Forkhorn

I'm not an expert, but i'd start with identifying a area and then call the realtors, maybe get a subscription to a newspaper so you can track the want adds.

I'd recommend keeping yourself within a short enough drive that you could do a day there and still get back by evening or in a weekend. That way, you don't have to take vacation time and all you need is a tank of gas and some petty cash.

Inevitably, people who buy land for this end up wanting to do little projects and so forth on it. It might simply be building a deer stand, maybe erect a cabin or something. The idea is get it close enough to allow you to make a run and do whatever, yet be far enough that it is a true getaway.

Oldtimr

Mudder, how was that rant helpful to the OP, if a man has a dream, you don't help him by trying to kill it!

flags

I recently re-located to TX and have been looking at property. I've found a number of really nice parcels in East TX with ponds on them. I'd say the average price is about $30K for 10-15 acres with a pond, trees and water/power on site. Note this is the part of TX with a lot of oaks and pines and not on the prairie flats. The closer you get to big cities like Dallas however, the higher the price climbs.

You can go to realtor.com and search the MLS list anywhere in the nation. But this only shows properties listed through realtors. Often you can find better deals driving the country roads and looking for signs that say "for sale by owner". That's what I've been doing.

MudderChuck

I always figure there is something to learn in my screw ups. Research and planing way into the future is likely to be beneficial. I was thinking maximum ten-twenty years down the road. And now it is 35 years latter and my faulty planning is evident.

The less painful way to learn is from other peoples mistakes.

Topgun 3006

His places and experiences are so far from normal that it was ridiculous to even make that ranting post! None of those places even sound remotely like hunting or fishing property from the descriptions, so why even bring them up! It certainly doesn't sound like they were made with any attempt to help the OP.

Topgun 3006

That is exactly how and why I bought the place I have had since 73. I can get there in less than 3 hours and because of where it is I have at least 500 acres of state land that is basically landlocked and hardly anyone hunts the area. I'm guessing that we've probably taken close to 50 bucks up there over the years. It's also great grouse hunting and I'll be heading up in a couple weeks to hunt for a nice longbeard.

CalHunter

I'd have to disagree. The OP asked if anybody "had experience" in buying a plot of land, used for hunting and/or fishing purposes. Mudder's point about urban encroachments after 35 years instead of just 10-20 years is wise advice and probably something you obviously considered back in 1973. His point about being "close enough to watch it" could mean many things, from living less than an hour away from the property to living within a day's driving as father forkhorn pointed out. Mudder stated he has some property out of state and the inherent problems with owning property so far away that you likely only visit once a year or even just every other year.

You obviously researched your property well as you're hunting deer, turkey and grouse on it throughout the year. Multiple game species is something else for the OP to consider. At one time or another, just about every hunter has wished they could own such a piece of property so they always have a place to hunt with game on it. I don't know that mudder is necessarily trying to dissuade the OP from buying hunting property so much as advising about problems to avoid.

Flags, I was not aware that parts of Texas had oak and pine trees. That pricing for land sounds really attractive. Maybe the OP should look at Texas.