You don’t want to take purchasing farmland lightly.
If the initial investment isn’t a daunting enough commitment of your financial resources, think of the ongoing investment of building and maintaining soils, facilities, and infrastructure on the land. And you may even dream of the property being part of your family for generations.
Yikes! How do you purchase with confidence, especially if you come from more urban or suburban roots?
It helps to learn from those who have had experience.
Back in our December issue, Jim shared his family’s story and lessons learned when purchasing farmland.
And we’ve just found a resource – a 40-minute podcast – that we would strongly encourage anyone searching for farmland, or considering it, to listen to.
The episode, entitled Critical Questions to Answer Before Buying Your Farm or Homestead, comes from Tim Young’s Small Farm Nation podcast. In the episode, Tim takes you through 23 questions you should seek answers to before you buy a property. These topics come from his own family’s experience and from the experiences of others he has talked with.
For instance, Tim urges the listener to look into the water resources of a piece of farmland. Can you find out the depth of a well? Does it have an adequate rate of flow for your livestock, crops, or family needs? If it is bare farmland with no well, can you learn from neighbors about their wells to make sure the land can support your needs? Are there other water sources on the property – streams, ponds, springs – you can utilize?
Listening to Tim’s podcast will equip you to better understand whether a property you are considering has a good chance of meeting your needs now and far into the future…or not. It’s well worth your time.