Thoughts please......Land & house vs city house

**dwnloom** · 06-23-2011, 05:03 PM

Hello,

I need some input please.....We are looking into buying a house next year....if all goes as planned. Here is the problem...I have always wanted a little farm....some chickens, fruit trees, garden, etc....By the time we start looking, I will be 47 and hubby will be 48. Should we go for the land and house or should we look at a small house. I know that isnt old, but is it too old to start over? Currently, we only have a few dr bills and nothing else. Both of our children will be on there own. I know everyone will have different opinions. Just curious what you would do.

**pollypurebred39** · 06-23-2011, 05:18 PM

I'd go for my dream if I had the option. You only live once right? And I don't know that it's ever too late to start over if you've got the money for it.

**craftypam** · 06-23-2011, 05:31 PM

We were looking to buy some land to build because my db and sil have that and we Love it! Then the economy took the downturn. The only thing that I can say is that we were concerned after the fact seeing how much work it is for them to cut their lawn every week and we are older than they are.

**mh3rdwheel** · 06-23-2011, 05:36 PM

If you get goats, they can take care of the grass, all you would have to do is fence in the area and when they are done with cutting the grass you can move them to a new area that needs to be cut.

**mh3rdwheel** · 06-23-2011, 05:41 PM

Sorry had to get off the computer for a minute, my husband live in an apartment above a bar with no grass, we are planning on buying a house with some land to plant a garden. I hate the noise.

About the goats, a friend lives on a farm and that's how he takes care of his grass and his goats get lots of food.

**craftypam** · 06-23-2011, 05:49 PM

I will have to tell my sil about the goats. Wonder how they would get along with her 3 dogs?

**mh3rdwheel** · 06-23-2011, 05:54 PM

My friend has several dogs and lots of cats, deer and turkey. They get along fine, the dogs learn how to stay away from the goats.

**Pemberleyan** · 06-23-2011, 06:01 PM

You could always buy a small house with a little bit of land, especially if you could find one with outbuildings, instead of having to build them yourself. If you're willing to do a lot of work at the front end, it can be fairly low-maintenance. And by work, I mostly mean building sturdy fences and predator-proof areas for the chickens.

I saw a drawing of a chicken house/garden that was such a good idea and I'd love to use it if we had enough flat land. Picture a nice chicken house in the middle of a fenced-in area. The fenced area is divided in half and the chicken house has a chicken door opening to each side or each fenced-in area. During the first year, the chickens are only allowed to free -range on one side while the other side is used as a garden. When the garden is spent, they are allowed to "clean up" and fertilize the garden area. The next year, the garden is planted on the other side, and so on.

Goats can be very hand, but they need sturdy fencing, regular worming, and possibly a protective breed of dog living with them if there are a lot of predators around.

**Spirit Deer** · 06-23-2011, 06:08 PM

I'd go for it BUT I'd plan ahead for the next thirty years. For example, stick with a one-story house vs. one with lots of steps. Steps become more difficult and more dangerous as a person gets older. Think about if one of you became disabled. Would there be a place to put a ramp or a lift? Think about things like that when you look at floor plans and/or model homes. Make sure there's room for a wheelchair to pass through rooms and down hallways. Put in a walk-in shower vs. a tub/shower combo in one bathroom. Attach the garage to the house so you don't have to walk in icy conditions. Stay close enough to town so you can easily drive to get what you need, no thirty-mile commutes for groceries. That kind of thing. And remember you don't have to be older to need that sort of thing. I was sure grateful for our one-story house when I sprained both ankles at the same time and spent a few weeks on crutches.

It's expensive and takes time to develop a property, but that's okay. If you planted stuff like fruit trees on a property in town, it's going to cost the same and take as long as planting them in the country.

We don't mow. We never landscaped. Why would we create all that work for ourselves? God did our landscaping. Beat that! If you develop a rural property, decide where you want to put your money, time, and energy. Chances are, on a rural property, you won't be obligated to do things like maintain a lawn unless you want to.

Keep in mind if you like to travel, animals will tie you down.

Another bonus to not landscaping is all the wild plants you get. We have beautiful daisies, wild roses, and loads of other wildflowers every year. We also have wild strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and we think we're going to have some pin cherries or chokecherries this year, too. All of that stuff just arrived by itself, and it's totally free and completely organic.

One drawback of living in a wild rural property is the forest keeps trying to reclaim the place, so there's work involved in cutting out trees and brush every few years.

Another down side is we've found we're less social now that we don't live in town. Everything is always framed with the time and gas it takes to participate in things. And we're too far out to walk anywhere. If we lived in town, I know I'd get more exercise.

It's been well worth it to us to live in the country though.

**mh3rdwheel** · 06-23-2011, 06:26 PM

My friend has lived on this farm for 20 years, their are coyotes, and occasionally bears, he lives 20 minutes from me.

**NikoSan999** · 06-23-2011, 06:51 PM

I agree with Spirit Deer. If I were younger I'd do the rural in a heartbeat. Hubby wouldn't.
A long time ago, another life, ex hubby and I had 17 acres...we only used a small portion of it. At that time I had no interest in homesteading.
Now when I'd like to I'm 57...hubby is 63. He hates mowing. I have days when it hurts to walk and most days if I lift more than 7 or 8 lbs at a time I'm going to pay for it with my shoulders and upper arms for days and no sleep at night.
Are you healthy? That's an issue and as Spirit Deer said you need to think about 20, 30+ years from now.
My vote would be if you are both healthy now ( at least for the time being and that is all you can go with ) go for the dream of the rural homestead. Keep the upkeep ( landscaping etc ) to something that will be easy in later years. There's always the option later if necessary to sell it.
Now, at my stage and health, I'd have to turn it down if the opportunity arose and it would break my heart.

**nuisance26** · 06-23-2011, 07:02 PM

~We're in the process of trying to do this ourselves so I may not be the best person to give advice. But I say go for your dream.
You don't really need a lot of land to have a nice farm. You can raise animals and have all the garden space you'll need in less than an acre. You just need to check the local ordinances about keeping animals and land use restrictions.
My parents 'started over' at this age also. They moved to a 5 acre wooded lot and started personalizing their land. They couldn't be happier and I know they don't regret it. It's only took about 5 years to really see the difference their efforts made on the land.
We have 3/4 acre in the suburbs right now and we could do everything I want to do on this property. But we've outgrown the house and the neighborhood.
Bye bye city life! Green acres here we come!~

**wanderlusting** · 06-24-2011, 04:32 AM

If it were me, I'd go for the land! I think with all the uncertainties in the world, land is one of the most valuable things you can have.

**Natalie's Nesters** · 06-24-2011, 06:58 AM

Three years ago, I moved from suburbia to 23 acres. I wish I would have done it sooner! I mow around the house, we have a farmer that takes the hay off the other 21 acres for free and leaves some for me. I have chickens and a garden. You have to pick and choose what you want to take on. My husband wanted beef cows, he works full time and travels quite a bit, I said NO...I can not manage that! Take things slow, try to do too much, you will burn out. Best of luck with your decision.

**CrazyCat** · 06-24-2011, 09:14 AM

I would say go for it..the only advise I could give you is make sure any mortgage you take out is for 15 years. ~with no prepayment penalties. ~IF you could pay it off in 10 years..you would only be 57 and 58, or in 15 years you would still be in your early 60's with no mortgage. ~
Ideal situation..and you can grow your own veggies~or even get chickens if you want.~