Green Acres... What to look for in a property?

[aggieterpkatie]

My biggest recommendation is to look at soil types and drainage. It is hard to have a nice pasture on hydric soil or on areas that won't drain well at all. Do your homework first! You should have a Soil Conservation District in your county so if you find a property you like go to them and ask if they can tell you what soil types (and descriptions of those soil types) are there.

For cows (in this area, MD), I'd want AT LEAST 1 acre per cow, and 1.5-2 would be even better. Around here, you can keep approximately 3-5 sheep or goats per acre, but the heavier you stock it the more work is involved (rotating pastures, etc).

 

[SKR8PN]

I'd also recommend talking to the neighbors closest to the property your looking at. You'd be amazed at how much you can learn from a good neighbor, PLUS it gives you a chance to see if they might be a BAD neighbor!!!

 

[tortoise]

OK, How about facilities for animals? What do I want / need in a barn? Sizes, utilities, stalls, hay storage? Chicken coop? I have absolutely no idea.

1 cow
3 goats
4 hens, expect to go to 25 meaties at some point.
5-10 guinea hens
up to 25 rabbits - I know what they need but maybe they could share space? rabbits up top, chickens below??

 

[patandchickens]

OK, How about facilities for animals? What do I want / need in a barn? Sizes, utilities, stalls, hay storage? Chicken coop? I have absolutely no idea.

Remember barns can be built or added onto or modified (allowing room in budget of course when purchasing property).

Personally I would say 'barn' is not really a NEED when buying a property, unless you already have animals that you absolutely could not keep elsewhere for six months between moving and having a barn.

On the one hand, buying a place with existing outbuildings is cheaper (they do not add nearly as much to the cost of the property as what they'd cost you to build them from scratch) BUT more often than not they aren't really what you need/want and may be in weebly condition or bad location. So, I mean, obviously a property with "the perfect" barns is better than one without, all other things being equal, but IMHO it is not something you would generally have as a criterion for buying a property.

1 cow
3 goats
4 hens, expect to go to 25 meaties at some point.
5-10 guinea hens
up to 25 rabbits - I know what they need but maybe they could share space? rabbits up top, chickens below??

Your best bet, should it be available (or should you find yourself building something), is one or more open pole barns or similar type drive sheds. Something you can reconfigure internally from time to time as your needs change; not something like a bank barn that pretty much "is what it is" due to stone walls and many internal posts and thick old oaken stall walls or poured concrete cow-barn fittings or such.

Life is easiest if you can store your hay at ground level, so a very *large* polebarn, or a separate-but-very-close-by one, for your hay storage is best if you can swing it. It gives you the ability to buy roundbales or big squares if you wish, and prevents you from needing a hay elevator or lots of youthful muscle, and is much more userfriendly if you have a temporary or chronic physical condition that interferes with climbing into a loft and chucking hay down a hole, and can be reconfigured in whole or in part for other purposes if your needs change. Also less fire hazard than a hayloft.

The amount of animals you describe is pretty small, size of a building is not really likely to be a big issue. A long building is better than a squareish one, and two small might well be better than one large except you would want each to be near the haybarn and have its own electric and water service if possible so in some ways one barn is simpler.

The big three things, if you are looking at existing structures (but remember, you can BUILD....), are

1) they have to be on PERMANENTLY HIGH AND DRY GROUND. Even in thunderstorms, even in late-winter snowmelt. A surprising number of barns and outbuildings aren't. It makes life MISERABLE and is just STUPID to have to live with. (Ask me how I know LOL).

2) the area around them should be well disposed for animal turnout/pens.... high, dry, well drained or capable of becoming so with some ditches/gutters/roadbase, and "reasonably" located to anywhere that you may wish to use as larger pastures.

3) a barn needn't be fancy or 'cute' but it needs to not be about to fall over or burst into flame. This is not always easy to recognize as some things that seem minor aren't, adn some things that seem major aren't. The best thing is to try to get someone really familiar with old barns to look the place over with/for you before making an offer, unless the structure is small enough that it can be treated as "oh well, if we move in and it turns out to have serious problems we will just salvage as much material as possible and demolish the rest and build something new".

Really, to me FENCING is almost more valuable in a property than existing buildings, because the amount fencing contributes to the cost of the property is near-zero and it can cost really quite a lot to install. If you just want a small number of recreational small livestock such as listed above that MIGHT not be such an issue for you (as opposed to wanting cows or horses, or to do rotational grazing with goats or sheep or chickens, where you need good perimeter fencing) but is still worth keeping in mind. Although, again, there is fencing and there is fencing, and not all existing stuff is actually a plus

Pat

 

[anniem]

I've been thinking lots about this, too...lots of good info here! The only difference is that we will definitely have horses! And probably no rabbits. I just want enough to sustain our family, maybe get to the point of selling/trading some surplus.
All the trade-offs make my head spin sometimes....if you have enough property to graze livestock as much as the seasons allow then you're paying more for more property and for fencing more space. But less space means more supplemental feeding. Different animals have different shelter and fencing needs, it can be more costly to have a few of multiple types of animals rather than more of 1 or 2 types. The compatibility of different livestock plays into that as well.
And me working vs. the commuting cost from a more remote location. What I want for my kids (more space, easier access to town).
I know how much we have to spend but I need to figure out all the variables....what shape the house is in, outbuildings/barn space, fencing, garden space/soil. Most places don't have everything we want so there's a lot of math juggling for different configurations.
I'm afraid i'm too picky, also....not too flat so that water sits but not steep, enough forested so we have some wood for heat. I also really want a house that I love being in, and is fairly efficient--I don't want it too big, or recently updated in a way I don't like. I really like a cabin feel so the stark white interior manufactured homes just don't do it for me (there are many around here).
It's probably good to see what other people around have, so they are understanding of your livestock and can potentially offer support/help. There also might be a reason that certain livestock are and are not kept in an area.
If you plan on having children get an idea of the school situation, unless you know you'll homeschool.
I also want to be in an area that sells decently well. I only want to move the 1 more time but things happen and if I have to move I don't want it to drag out b/c we're in an unpopular area.
Those are some of the things i've been thinking about, and the responses have given lots more!

 

[Denim Deb]

I know one thing, if we ever do get to move, it's going to be in a area that's not too close to a main road. We have 3 fairly busy roads w/in 2 miles of us. And all 3 are used by people heading to the shore. There are times during the summer that I have trouble sleeping because I can hear the traffic, and it keeps me up.