Penturbia

[rancar]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts on the thread entitled Rural Land Prices -- Post 9/11. Most of your responses confirmed some research I've been doing on this concept called Penturbia (name created by a Jack Lessinger, Professor Emeritus, Real Estate and Urban Development, University of Washington). The following are a few things he says about Penturbia.

" Who dreams of living in suburbia today? The life of spending and consuming has entered the realm of too-muchness. Since 1960, the first ring of suburban counties has been losing its percentage share of the national population. In remaining rings the rate of increase is declining. Enter the urban-rural city of the 21st Century, the corrective for the ills of suburbia...Penturbia, as I call it, has in abundance what suburbia lacks: beautiful open space, mostly uncongested rural roads, clean air and water as well as friendly communities. Anti-Suburbia, which began around 1960 -- or about 60 years after the start of suburbia -- will grow rapidly until 2020. Aided by technological advances that encourage telecommuting, penturbia is nothing like suburbia or its recent imitators: exurbia and edge cities. Wereas suburbia is tied to major metropolitan areas by daily commutes, penturbia is too distant for that. Whereas suburbia is essentially urban, penturbia is a network of farms, open space, 5-10 acre tracts, tiny villages and towns and small cities diffused throughout one or more counties. Whereas suburban housing is largely mass-produced, penturban housing is far more individualistic"

Does the above sound like where us TBNers live or want to live? What's interesting is Lessinger says the truly explosive growth is still in the future (the next ten years or so). In today's vernacular, Lessinger is more or less suggesting rural development and, hence, rural land prices will be 'going through the roof'. In other words, think what NASDAQ did through the 1990s, but this time applied to rural land prices.

What does all this mean? I guess it's to buy our compact tractors, improve and manage our land, and maybe sell someday in your retirement years to newcomers who may gladly pay up to 10-20 times what you paid for your rural properties.

 

[TerryinMD]

I see this as a double-edged sword.

From the aspect of having my property values increase - wooo-whooo!! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

On the other hand, in ten years I'll have to deal with a bunch of yuppie (or whatever their called nowadays /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif) moving into my neighborhood.

What disturbs me the most, is that the people moving out of the cities and suburbia are also bringing some of the influences that they are tying to escape (let me call it lifestyle creep). I do not mind changing and adapting to newer technologies. But, don't bring all of the other trash along with you!! Noise, trash, ultra-liberal (progressive /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif) thoughts, etc.

Terry

 

[cedarranch]

Terry, you hit it! I was born at my last residence and at age 21 purchased it from my mom. She had been renting it to my sister after she bought some lake front property. My sister moved due no a new job and we moved in. Over the years more and more houses were built. Roads were paved. I had to sell my wife's horse because the neighbor complained about it. It got so bad that my wife and I moved to our present property out in the middle of nowwheresville. In the last three years we have had 3 houses, two mobile homes, and a dirt race track built on just our 2 mile county road.
At this rate, my land will be surrounded by a CITY! Again!
It will probably look like that park in NY. A huge city around a few acres of woods.

 

[rancar]

I know what you mean Terry and I think likewise. I get sad, maybe even upset a bit when I see trailers, mobile homes, modulars, even people living in their travel trailers next to old 200 year colonial homes that have been meticulously cared for. But, I face reality. Many rural communities don't like zoning laws and it's hard to stop the migration of folks with different tastes and lifestyles. I'm fortunate somewhat in that we have a sizeable property and have just added on to it with purchase of adjoining property. All this extra land is my buffer in order to preserve the unique character of country living. I refuse to parcel anything off. When we sell someday, I will strive to sell whole property intact to someone likeminded who will maintain the property in its entirety.

 

[TerryinMD]

rancar,

There is a way to preserve the land as you wish. You could change the deed to the property to keep it whole. There are mechanisms to do that. Exacly what they are I am not sure.

In Maryland, the state has a program to pay the landowner to keep the property from being subdivided. It has a lifetime, but again, I think that the deed could be changed to keep your wishes.

Terry

 

[woodmills1]

i don't know about the rest of you, but if you asked me about preserving the land as it is, it would be part my land and part its surroundings. now i am a realist enough to know that things change. if i read the tone of this thread properly it is saying that the once suburban gets built to the max, and the now non or ex urban becomes the new sububia, hence penturbia. so givin that preserving my own land would leave me ina waste land of now almost urban location. for me that would not serve. so i look to relocate within ten years, and i hope i am again fortunate enough to buy within the next 2-3 years the some what rural land i will occupy as penturbia grows.

 

[rancar]

Terry, I've heard of these land conservation agreements. I have to research this more. But I think once you go down this road and especially if you take public monies in return for granting the state with conservation easements, they're irrevocable. Each state though is different. So, I'll have to explore this more.

 

[rancar]

I think you've got it Jim. Unfortunately, this is the case with much of the rural land in growing boom towns in the Mountain States, Southwest US, and the South. But, this land doesn't last long as landowners are forced to sell to developers due to the huge increases in property tax assessments. Fortunately, the landowner is able to sell at substantially higher prices that what he paid. And as you suggest the cycle goes on as new rural areas become subject to growing penturbian influences.

 

[RoyJackson]

What disturbs me the most, is that the people moving out of the cities and suburbia are also bringing some of the influences that they are tying to escape (let me call it lifestyle creep). I do not mind changing and adapting to newer technologies. But, don't bring all of the other trash along with you!! Noise, trash, ultra-liberal (progressive ) thoughts, etc.
TerryinMD

I know what you mean...my Grandma lived in Mt Airy. She died many years ago, but my mom (before she passed on) wanted to see the old homestead. So, we took her to Mt.Airy...
Gawd! I was amazed at the changes in such a rural area (D.C.creep in this case).

But, y'all remember the map of the areas George Bush won over Algore? Smaller areas of red (liberalism) surrounded by vast areas of blue (us).

BTW, Terry...ever get to the Old South Mountain Inn? Is it still in business?

 

[TerryinMD]

Roy,

No, I haven't been up to the South Mountain Inn. It is still there and doing quite well.

Everyone else -

I took last Thursday and Friday off to catch up on the round-to-it list. This mild winter has helped us out tremendously in getting to our grounds cleanup and critter-hiding-place removal. I digress. While I was out looking over what I wanted to attack first, I talked to a realtor who was looking over an empty lot across the road from me. As it turns out, penturbia properties are coming into demand in our area. A couple of reasons:

1. a building moritorium in Frederick County - too many houses built and the infrastructure lagged. Not enough road upgrades, sewage, and, more importantly, schools. So the property values there have sky-rocketed.
2. the county is imposing a larger minimum lot size in Washington County. Not all areas, just a good portion of the county.
3. More people are beginning to work out of their homes.

The realtor stated that most properties with some acreage are selling in a couple of days. Additionally, bidding wars are beginning to happen. This has been going on for about a year. Just unbelievable. /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

This world has sure gone crazy!!! /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif

Terry