Wow! That's very nice! Good job.
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My homemade shooting bench
- Thread starter rbstern
- Start date
I'm a bit shy when it comes to posting those kinds of details on the 'net. But I can share the following general advice:
Land prices are probably about as low right now as they've been in twenty years. During a tough economy, recreational land goes on the market.
Also, credit is very tight (which is part of why prices have fallen so much), so you either need cash, or a good down payment and stellar credit, or a seller who is willing to finance. Many banks don't love land deals in the first place, and in this fiscal environment, borrowing against land is tough, unless the land produces income.
Useful web sites: galandforsale.com, landwatch.com, and the usual assortment of real estate/multiple listing service sites.
Research is the key. Figure out what you want and where you want it, and then regularly start keeping track of what's available for sale in that area. Get a sense for the prices and how fast properties move. I've been thinking about this for years, and specifically planning it for four years. I passed on a bunch of other properties, including some excellent deals, until I found one that really "spoke" to me.
I saw many nice pieces of property all over northern Georgia, with recent prices in the $2K to $3K per acre range, which was pretty much unheard of five years ago. There are also VERY good values in the mountains, on both sides of the GA/NC border. Looking for land that borders US Forestry Service land is a great way to leverage your dollars. You might want 50 acres, but can only afford 5. Find that 5 acres next to USFS land and you have access to hundreds or even thousands of acres that nobody else cares to use. You only pay taxes on the land you own.
One person might look at a piece of land and say "too hilly," and another person looks at the same piece and says "great natural bullet berm!" Ready access to water always makes the land value higher. Lake, river, stream, pond, etc. If you want a patch of land with a pond, from a dollar perspective, you might be better off looking for a piece of land with a decent stream that will let you build a pond.
Bottom line: Research, research, research. And then some more research. And most of all: Don't pay for it with your lunch money. Be patient and save hard.
EDIT: One more tip...pay special attention to bank owned properties. Like all sellers, every bank's situation is different, but banks will often consider lowball offers. They are under pressure to get distressed property off their books. They may take a hit when they sell the property at a loss, but unloading bad-loan properties helps clean up their balance sheet.
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Looks like the bench is missing a bucket of Coronas!
I am Jealous...exactly what I want, but the wife want let me....
Why want she?
Nice! Looks like a fun, comfy little spot. Well done.
Very nice and very true about the banks....My now new neighbor bought the foreclosed house, Very nice house, and 15 acres for 87K The house alone was valued around mid 250's and the 15 acres around 40-70k.... My uncle has found houses through the bank that would normally run 70-110k on a little piece of land like maybe an acre for 14-40k....Deals are easy to come by now if you know where to look.
Was just checking some of the recent listings to verify the guidance I was giving, and came across this set of Banks County parcels. 89+ acres, already split into several parcels, bank owned, and they are asking less than $2500 an acre. Looks like nice property, too. I'd be all over it if I was still in the market. Starting the negotiations with the bank at $1500 per acre would be reasonable. I'd make sure I had 5 grand left over for an old tractor and a good chain saw, and then get to work creating my own personal paradise.
http://www.galandforsale.com/showListing.php?type=property&id=3930#
(But you still need to research the hell out of it!)
Looks solid as heck and should make a great shooting platform. The flowers are kind of cute and starting to grow on me.
