Piston
Elite Member
That's unfortunate.
Family Farm - A Question
- Thread starter jlgurr
- Start date
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That's unfortunate.
It's great to be able to throw ideas out and bat them around! Just my 2 cents...
Inherited ground caries a burden of responsiblity.
Talk to your uncle and find out just what he has in mind. Then talk to other relatives to learn what they're thinking, to ensure that you won't incur hard feelings which you don't care to deal with. If everybody is in agreement with what you and your uncle want; or if you can deal with any disagreements; then proceed.
If you choose to keep it and can afford to do so; you can always change your mind down the road.
Inherited ground caries a burden of responsiblity.
Talk to your uncle and find out just what he has in mind. Then talk to other relatives to learn what they're thinking, to ensure that you won't incur hard feelings which you don't care to deal with. If everybody is in agreement with what you and your uncle want; or if you can deal with any disagreements; then proceed.
If you choose to keep it and can afford to do so; you can always change your mind down the road.
JakeBrake
Silver Member
A minor consideration. Land that was transferred under the Homestead Act. The original title (land patent) was transferred from the U.S. government to private individuals. That land was transferred with full mineral rights.
Usually, when a property was sold for the first time or the next time, some one, probably the lawyer who prepared the deed, split the mineral rights from the surface rights. Very often the lawyer prepared the surface deed for "free" and kept the mineral rights as payment.
Today, it is very difficult to find property with attached mineral rights. A property that has been in the same family since the U.S. government land patent was issued is about the only place you can find property with attached mineral rights.
Around here mineral rights mean oil and gas. Also around here gravel, sand, clay, limestone and anything else that can be quarried go with the surface.
The Bureau of Land Management BLM website lists and has copies of the original land patents for most states. I don't think that includes the 13 colonies or Texas. This is a valuable site for genealogists.
Usually, when a property was sold for the first time or the next time, some one, probably the lawyer who prepared the deed, split the mineral rights from the surface rights. Very often the lawyer prepared the surface deed for "free" and kept the mineral rights as payment.
Today, it is very difficult to find property with attached mineral rights. A property that has been in the same family since the U.S. government land patent was issued is about the only place you can find property with attached mineral rights.
Around here mineral rights mean oil and gas. Also around here gravel, sand, clay, limestone and anything else that can be quarried go with the surface.
The Bureau of Land Management BLM website lists and has copies of the original land patents for most states. I don't think that includes the 13 colonies or Texas. This is a valuable site for genealogists.
dave1949
Super Star Member
Not much soil turning around here, but when I pick up a rock and put it back on a stone wall I can't help but think someone did the same thing 150-175 years ago. My next thought is the poor devils had a tough life. I don't need a blood relationship to feel that.
As far as the land goes, it doesn't matter to me exactly who that someone was, or that I'll never know much about them other than we each held the same rock. We were both exercising an obligation to the land at the time. Whoever that someone was, they or their descendants almost certainly abandoned this land and headed for greener pastures.
That would be a broken thread in the family-to-land heritage. It wouldn't have made much sense for them to stay here living in poverty just to keep that thread unbroken. This land is part of their heritage or history, but I would argue that a greater part of their history is that they moved on, started over, seeking to improve their lives. One of them could well be your great grandfather who turned the soil before you.
What would be interesting to me is if someone back then, living on this land, kept a journal of their activities here. Perhaps someone did, but it would be a very rare find for a given piece of land under the circumstances described above. What they did is more interesting than who they were, we sort of are what we do.
What about people like myself who have never lived where their recent ancestors lived? My family goes back to Colonial times, but we are not farmers--at least not in recent history. I don't think that means we have no family heritage. Do I need to go buy my grandfather's house on Utah St. on Toledo's east side to have a heritage? I sure hope not.
Piston
Elite Member
notractoryet
New member
I have been a frequent visitor to this site for years and benefited much from the experience and expertise of all the people here. Never had much of a reason to post before but I have some input on this topic so this is my first post.
I have a 4 acre site in Minnesota that belonged to my maternal grandparents and I live in Florida. I had an opportunity to purchase the home site of my grandfathers dairy farm 7 yrs ago after it being out of the family for over 25 yrs. I did and still do have fond memories of my childhood summers on the farm and have always been drawn back to that part of the country. I have no aspirations of ever making the property profitable and it has been a bit of a money pit but I can afford it (so far). The house was in good shape with new septic, Heat/Air, refurbished floors. The barn was falling down after no maintenance for 25 yrs and there were several outbuildings in various stages of decomposition. the price was reasonable and I plan to spend a lot of time there in retirement so I went for it.
So far no issues with vandalism or anything of that sort. I get there about twice a year and end up spending all my time painting, cleaning up the fallen trees, outbuilding repair, driveway repair etc. But I enjoy that sort of thing. For a while my uncle would mow the grass but he can't do it anymore so I am paying for that so the house looks lived in. The outer areas that are not woods are let go for now and are thistle,wild oats, whatever and look terrible. I have had to redo the windows and put a new roof on it. I have set up ip cams to keep an eye on the place and the neighbor farmer is around a lot so he and some aging relatives who still live in the area can keep watch also.
My wife enjoys the "FARM" from her lawn chair with her book or ipad and is ok with it for a while. She goes with me mostly to call for help if I hurt myself while demolishing the barn for usable wood or fall off a ladder while cleaning the rain gutters which are always a mess. Chances are there will be no one who will want to take it off my hands when my turn is up but you never know.
So in my case, I love the place. It is in a beautiful part of the country with fishing and golfing and the smell of silage. But I do ask myself somewhere in the middle of the work I end up doing each time if it is worth it. It will cost you time and money unless you let mother nature take it back as was mentioned above. I did not buy it as an investment property and renting it out would be very difficult to do. I have had several inquires about renting it but just too many hurdles to make it worth it for me.
Good luck with your decision.
I have a 4 acre site in Minnesota that belonged to my maternal grandparents and I live in Florida. I had an opportunity to purchase the home site of my grandfathers dairy farm 7 yrs ago after it being out of the family for over 25 yrs. I did and still do have fond memories of my childhood summers on the farm and have always been drawn back to that part of the country. I have no aspirations of ever making the property profitable and it has been a bit of a money pit but I can afford it (so far). The house was in good shape with new septic, Heat/Air, refurbished floors. The barn was falling down after no maintenance for 25 yrs and there were several outbuildings in various stages of decomposition. the price was reasonable and I plan to spend a lot of time there in retirement so I went for it.
So far no issues with vandalism or anything of that sort. I get there about twice a year and end up spending all my time painting, cleaning up the fallen trees, outbuilding repair, driveway repair etc. But I enjoy that sort of thing. For a while my uncle would mow the grass but he can't do it anymore so I am paying for that so the house looks lived in. The outer areas that are not woods are let go for now and are thistle,wild oats, whatever and look terrible. I have had to redo the windows and put a new roof on it. I have set up ip cams to keep an eye on the place and the neighbor farmer is around a lot so he and some aging relatives who still live in the area can keep watch also.
My wife enjoys the "FARM" from her lawn chair with her book or ipad and is ok with it for a while. She goes with me mostly to call for help if I hurt myself while demolishing the barn for usable wood or fall off a ladder while cleaning the rain gutters which are always a mess. Chances are there will be no one who will want to take it off my hands when my turn is up but you never know.
So in my case, I love the place. It is in a beautiful part of the country with fishing and golfing and the smell of silage. But I do ask myself somewhere in the middle of the work I end up doing each time if it is worth it. It will cost you time and money unless you let mother nature take it back as was mentioned above. I did not buy it as an investment property and renting it out would be very difficult to do. I have had several inquires about renting it but just too many hurdles to make it worth it for me.
Good luck with your decision.
oosik
Epic Contributor
When I graduated from college the wife & I moved to Alaska - over 1000 miles from both of our families here in WA state. When I called it quits in AK and moved back to this property we were only a three hour drive from all our relatives. We both had enough of the long winters in AK and my wife was very happy to be so close to her relatives.
Ask your wife what her feelings are on this situation. Leaving her relatives, you quitting a good job and living like poor dirt farmers may not be the highlight of her life. I inherited the land from my father and will be passing it on to my son. However, I put my family ahead of land - I'm just very fortunate things worked out this way. The wife & I thoroughly enjoy being out in the country and both feel grateful for having this land.
Ask your wife what her feelings are on this situation. Leaving her relatives, you quitting a good job and living like poor dirt farmers may not be the highlight of her life. I inherited the land from my father and will be passing it on to my son. However, I put my family ahead of land - I'm just very fortunate things worked out this way. The wife & I thoroughly enjoy being out in the country and both feel grateful for having this land.
dave1949
Super Star Member
This thread is not about people like yourself
Joking aside, I'm serious.
What the **** is wrong with you? Seriously?
This thread is about someone trying to weigh the value of maintaining a family land heritage in the face of impracticality and likely extra expenses. Offering up some other perspectives around that is not off topic. In particular, examining the idea that people are in some way tied to a given piece of dirt just might be helpful. It's a question with no single correct answer for everyone.
You have an opportunity to expand on your land heritage convictions. I suggest you use it and stop telling me what I should be, think or say.
schmism
Super Member
Land.... they arn't makeing more of it!
Keep it. Its a good investment if nothing else.
I would vacation there, and have a serious discussion about moving there sooner than later. The longer you put down roots the harder it is leave. Getting "southern girls" to leave the south is extremely hard, I've been married to one for almost 15 years now.
Its my experience that jobs are 5-7 year ventures these days. Just enough time to prepare to move to the new property.
I think its a mistake to think of your current location is the last place you will live.
Keep it. Its a good investment if nothing else.
I would vacation there, and have a serious discussion about moving there sooner than later. The longer you put down roots the harder it is leave. Getting "southern girls" to leave the south is extremely hard, I've been married to one for almost 15 years now.
Its my experience that jobs are 5-7 year ventures these days. Just enough time to prepare to move to the new property.
I think its a mistake to think of your current location is the last place you will live.