Ever since leaving my parent's house and setting out on my own I have had an eye towards acquiring land. The typical person in their late teens and early twenties is usually more focused on school, the opposite sex, their first car, the opposite sex, their first house, the opposite sex, their first job, the opposite sex - well you get the idea. Most are not casting their eyes about and fantasizing about owning acres of land and what could be accomplished said land. While this wasn't my primary focus is was definitely one that was always percolating in the back of mind. I constantly reviewed places I had lived, places I had visited, and where I was currently for their applicability with regards to acquiring land and potentially living there long term.
I am drawn to open spaces like the sea, the desert, open mountain vistas, sweeping shorelines on lakes, and the rambling courses of rivers. I look for isolation. Not so much because I want separation from every one else but rather that I want a buffer zone of silence that allows me to hear myself. To stretch my boundaries where others can neither stop or help me in that process. These spaces allow that unhinging to occur in my universe where thoughts and actions are less limiting.
Surprisingly, I came to find that I could define the minimum amount of space necessary to achieve this step from every day normality to unbounded imagination. This doesn't mean that my typical days are not wondrous but that I have my own mechanism for amplifying all the I find momentous about life when I cross that threshold.
Back to the specifying of size though. For me it seems that 5 acres is about the minimum and it is the ragged edge of minimum. It is at this point in most parts of the US that you have to cast a wide net to find parcels of this size. Having said that, you can find 5 acres in suburban and semi-rural areas with difficulty. I found 5 acres surrounded by park land only 1.5 miles from where I currently live. Unfortunately, my wife and I were out bid when trying to acquire it. I don't expect to see another 5 acre parcel appear near San Francisco any time soon that I can afford or would be willing to pay the premium to acquire. On the other end of the spectrum I am not sure there is a maximum. There probably is with regard to usability but depending on your vision and ideology, stewardship might offset that. For example, I can't realistically use 640 acres (1 square mile) but the thought of preserving that much land from development and allowing reasonable access to the public seems like a worthy goal to me. In the end I figured, 5 acres on the low end and probably 80 acres on the high end with 10-50 acres really being my target goal.
Size was important to me because of the separation factor from others as I said earlier but it brings its own set of issues. More than likely you will have no in-place utilities on a parcel of that size. All of sudden you have to deal with wells, septic systems, electricity, propane tanks, building a road to the final build site, fire protection, etc. If that bothers you, don't look for a large parcel (or raw land in general) or be willing to pay the high price that all those services command if they are already in-place. You also can not just walk down the block to your local store for supplies either. It may not be far either but more often than not entail a 15-20 bike or 5-10 car ride. You probably don't walk out your door and have a drink at the local brew pub either. If any of this sounds problematic to you than buying a large parcel of land, especially raw land, is probably not what you want to do.
Some people want a quant cabin surrounded by other quant cabins with in walking distance of a quant old town. Great! There are plenty of places where you can find that and be happy. My point, is decide what you want before you start looking. It will set your expectations and make your search for your perfect property so much easier and enjoyable. Otherwise, you are likely to end up with something you don't want and don't enjoy. Life is too short for that to be the case.
I am drawn to open spaces like the sea, the desert, open mountain vistas, sweeping shorelines on lakes, and the rambling courses of rivers. I look for isolation. Not so much because I want separation from every one else but rather that I want a buffer zone of silence that allows me to hear myself. To stretch my boundaries where others can neither stop or help me in that process. These spaces allow that unhinging to occur in my universe where thoughts and actions are less limiting.
Surprisingly, I came to find that I could define the minimum amount of space necessary to achieve this step from every day normality to unbounded imagination. This doesn't mean that my typical days are not wondrous but that I have my own mechanism for amplifying all the I find momentous about life when I cross that threshold.
Back to the specifying of size though. For me it seems that 5 acres is about the minimum and it is the ragged edge of minimum. It is at this point in most parts of the US that you have to cast a wide net to find parcels of this size. Having said that, you can find 5 acres in suburban and semi-rural areas with difficulty. I found 5 acres surrounded by park land only 1.5 miles from where I currently live. Unfortunately, my wife and I were out bid when trying to acquire it. I don't expect to see another 5 acre parcel appear near San Francisco any time soon that I can afford or would be willing to pay the premium to acquire. On the other end of the spectrum I am not sure there is a maximum. There probably is with regard to usability but depending on your vision and ideology, stewardship might offset that. For example, I can't realistically use 640 acres (1 square mile) but the thought of preserving that much land from development and allowing reasonable access to the public seems like a worthy goal to me. In the end I figured, 5 acres on the low end and probably 80 acres on the high end with 10-50 acres really being my target goal.
Size was important to me because of the separation factor from others as I said earlier but it brings its own set of issues. More than likely you will have no in-place utilities on a parcel of that size. All of sudden you have to deal with wells, septic systems, electricity, propane tanks, building a road to the final build site, fire protection, etc. If that bothers you, don't look for a large parcel (or raw land in general) or be willing to pay the high price that all those services command if they are already in-place. You also can not just walk down the block to your local store for supplies either. It may not be far either but more often than not entail a 15-20 bike or 5-10 car ride. You probably don't walk out your door and have a drink at the local brew pub either. If any of this sounds problematic to you than buying a large parcel of land, especially raw land, is probably not what you want to do.
Some people want a quant cabin surrounded by other quant cabins with in walking distance of a quant old town. Great! There are plenty of places where you can find that and be happy. My point, is decide what you want before you start looking. It will set your expectations and make your search for your perfect property so much easier and enjoyable. Otherwise, you are likely to end up with something you don't want and don't enjoy. Life is too short for that to be the case.
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