Does anyone make any money off their property

[LRTX1]

I have a friend that buys baby bull calves and castrates them and then raises the steers for grass and grain fed beef..he then sells the beef on the hoof at $4.80 lb live weight last time I checked with him to city folks who gladly pay the price. He hauls the steer they pick to the local processor where the cutomer takes over and tells the processor how they want thier beef cut..He does quiet well.

Wow, i'm lucky to see $1.40


For the original poster, I have 53 acres, 30 in farmable land. We raise cows and sell the calves yearly. It pays for it self plus a little extra, like a secend income tax check. It also qualifys for a Ag. related tax exemption.


I also dedicate some acreage to plant peas. All my equipment and property has been paid for, it's been in the family for years, so there is no payments or expense where that is concerned. I make enough to keep doing it but, if I had a mortgage and equipment notes I would have to be more "specialized" to make it justifiable.

 

[GBeck]

Sorry I didn't read through every page of posts...but what is your local electric company paying for solar.
I am in SW Ont and there seems to be more solar farms opening then crops

 

[oldnslo]

Only cash crop I know of on small acreage that will make money is illegal unless you are in California and then it for "medical purposes".

 

[brin]

Wow, i'm lucky to see $1.40


For the original poster, I have 53 acres, 30 in farmable land. We raise cows and sell the calves yearly. It pays for it self plus a little extra, like a secend income tax check. It also qualifys for a Ag. related tax exemption.


I also dedicate some acreage to plant peas. All my equipment and property has been paid for, it's been in the family for years, so there is no payments or expense where that is concerned. I make enough to keep doing it but, if I had a mortgage and equipment notes I would have to be more "specialized" to make it justifiable.

I really think the key to making money is to find a void...a niche int he market and fill it. In my beef selling friends case he is selling to city folks who want to buy their beef from someone who assures them there are no antibiotics or chemicals in the beef they buy and they get to see it and pick it out live and control the processing and for all that they gladly pay the premium.

 

[LBrown59]

The only way I've made money off of propery is bought a big piece and broke it into little pieces and sold the little pieces.

 

[FallbrookFarmer]

I really think the key to making money is to find a void...a niche int he market and fill it. In my beef selling friends case he is selling to city folks who want to buy their beef from someone who assures them there are no antibiotics or chemicals in the beef they buy and they get to see it and pick it out live and control the processing and for all that they gladly pay the premium.

Exactly, I am amazed at the premium that people will pay for "organic".
A Dairy farmer just north of us in Winchester started making cheese instead of treating the milk as a commodity item.
Winchester cheese company is doing fine, selling their gouda to markets from San Diego to San Francisco.
While all the other dairy farmers had to move north because they were trying to compete with the mega farms on price. Sure loser. Old Saying "The rich will always have money". And you can be sure they will pay a premium if they think that it is the "best".

 

[Tongy]

I have a friend that buys baby bull calves and castrates them and then raises the steers for grass and grain fed beef..he then sells the beef on the hoof at $4.80 lb live weight last time I checked with him to city folks who gladly pay the price. He hauls the steer they pick to the local processor where the cutomer takes over and tells the processor how they want thier beef cut..He does quiet well.

Are you sure that $4.80 lb is live wt or dressed wt? I run 2-3 steers on grass and we sell them for 3.25 lb dressed wt and we pay the processing. We have 20 acres, mostly in pasture, with about 5 acres in hay. We think grass fed beef is just as good or better then grain fed and better health wise. It takes a little longer to reach weight but you have less input costs.
Our butcher will split a half between 2 buyers and split it equal and has their name printed on each package. This widens your buyer pool, since a lot of people don't want a half of steer,us included.
We should sell "stress relief" since its really relaxing in the winter when the snow is flying outside, and just sit in the barn and watch the steers eating hay. Especially if you throw them a couple flakes of straight alfalfa, its like, pure enjoyment.
Shucks, that may be worth the price of that tractor alone.

 

[JakeBrake]

In 1972 we purchased 20 acres of pine timberland for $5,000. At that time the timber was appraised as being worth $50 per acre. This property is extremely hilly. We like to think it would be 40 acres if you flattened it out. It is too steep to use a tractor for the most part. We use the property for recreation, camping and shooting.

Fast forward to 1999. The southern pine beatles were decimating the pines. So we had the place clear-cut. We told the loggers to not clean up the residue and to leave the tops where they fell. They paid us $24,000 and we gave them a one year timber deed.

The pines reseeded naturally at no cost to us and we now have a great stand of pines that needs to be thinned. In my personal opinion these volunteer pines are probably better suited to this site than any "superior" pines that we could have planted at considerable expense.

In 2003 a wholesale electric power company placed a high voltage transmission line across the property. They paid $8,000 for a 100 ft right of way across the property. They fenced the right of way including four 16 ft gates and an access road. We still own the right of way and can use it for anything that does not interfere with the power lines, but, of course, we can't grow any pine trees there. We were not happy about this, but fighting the power company is a losing battle.

So now in 2010 we still own the property, worth vastly more than we paid for it, and have another crop of pine trees well on the way. I just wish all of my investments had turned out this well.

 

[dcyrilc]

Are you sure that $4.80 lb is live wt or dressed wt? I run 2-3 steers on grass and we sell them for 3.25 lb dressed wt and we pay the processing. We have 20 acres, mostly in pasture, with about 5 acres in hay. We think grass fed beef is just as good or better then grain fed and better health wise. It takes a little longer to reach weight but you have less input costs.
Our butcher will split a half between 2 buyers and split it equal and has their name printed on each package. This widens your buyer pool, since a lot of people don't want a half of steer,us included.
We should sell "stress relief" since its really relaxing in the winter when the snow is flying outside, and just sit in the barn and watch the steers eating hay. Especially if you throw them a couple flakes of straight alfalfa, its like, pure enjoyment.
Shucks, that may be worth the price of that tractor alone.

We sell ours at $3/lb hanging weight. I pay for the slauter and the customer pays their own cut and wrap costs. We sell whole, halfs, or quarters. Grass fed Scottish Highlands have lower colestoral than Buffalo. We grain for the last 60 days to help give them closer to a store bought taste.

 

[twarr1]

The old fellow who used to grow oats on my place told me that he couldn't make any money off his 300 acre wheat farm even though his father gave him the land and he never had to make payments on it. He makes his money from a 1 acre truck farm that he grows vegetables on and takes to the farmers market in Austin. The dozens of pieces of equipment (including a nice JD combine), assortment of tractors and the 300 acre wheat farm are more like an elaborate hobby.