HOMESTEADY FARM

Ok, now that we’ve established a baseline of non-negotiables and lifestyle preferences, we’re now going to dive deeper into all of the other factors that go into choosing the perfect property.

This list is based on what I was shopping for and what mattered to me and related questions to ask.

Your list will be different but this gives you a good place to start.

The key thing with this list is knowing what matters, what to look for, and when to be willing to compromise.

Water

• Rivers / Creeks
  • Source
    • Where is the property in relation to the watershed (top, middle, bottom)?
    • What is the reliability of the watershed?
    • What is upstream of the property, anything bad or could cause pollution?
    • Any other threats to the overall watershed? (local industrial businesses, potential zoning changes or land uses, etc)
  • Seasonality
    • Does the water run year-round or only seasonally?
      • Does it dry up in summer?
      • Does it freeze and stop in winter?
  • Considerations
    • Is the water managed by a water association or other organization?
    • Where are the control gates for water access (if any) and do you have access to them?
• Lakes / Ponds
  • Source
    • How is the water being replenished?
  • Seasonality
    • Is the water there year-round or only seasonally or some other factor?
  • Issues
    • Is the location naturally occurring or manmade?
    • If manmade, are the walls holding or leaking any where?
    • If manmade, is there a liner or is it all naturally built?
• Water Rights: extremely important, confirm before even making an offer
  • Legality
    • Does the property come with water rights to use the water that flows through the property?
    • If yes, how much? when? where?
  • Documentation
    • Does the property come with written legal documents clearly stating the water rights ownership, quantity, seniority, and other determinations?
  • Quantity
    • Does the water rights documentation state if there is a limitation on quantity of water per week, month, or year?
    • Is there a limitation on certain days you can or cannot use it?
  • Location
    • Is there a limitation on where that water can be used on the property?
    • Is there a designation for domestic use, livestock use, landscape use, or irrigation use?

Weather

• Summer
  • What is the average high temperature?
  • What is the record high temperature?
  • Are there seasonal natural occurrences such as monsoons, hurricanes, hail, dust storms, insects, migrations, wildfires, etc?
  • Are you okay living with those factors?
  • Do those factors limit what crops you can grow in the summer?
  • Do those factors limit what animals you can have?
• Winter
  • What is the average low temperature?
  • What is the record low temperature?
  • Are there seasonal natural occurrences such as heavy rain storms, snow storms, extended periods below freezing, etc?
  • Are you okay living with those factors?
  • Do those factors limit what you can grow in the winter?
  • Do those factors limit what animals you can have?
• Plant Zone
  • What USDA Plant Zone is the property?
  • Does that plant zone limit what you can grow each year?
  • Are the total growing days between last frost date and first frost date enough to grow food to be self sufficient?
  • Will you need to build infrastructure to overcome growing challenges for that plant zone? Are you okay with that?
• Predominant Weather Patterns
  • Is the location of the property predominantly windy?
    • Learn to read landscapes (tree quantity, direction the trees lean or branches are pointing, etc)
    • If there are no trees or very few trees within view, it’s probably very windy
    • If the property is near large mountains, it’s probably very windy

Location

• Neighbors
  • How far are the closest neighbors?
    • Are they friendly?
  • If you stand outside, can you hear any neighbors or activity?
    • Is this acceptable? (sometimes too loud, sometimes too quiet for some people)
• Town
  • How far to get to the closest town?
  • What amenities does it have?
  • Does it have the amenities you need?
    • If not, is this okay with you? can you make do without?
• Shopping
  • How far is the grocery store?
  • How far is the hardware store?
  • How far is the feed store?
  • Are you okay with driving those distances on a regular basis?
• Healthcare
  • How far is the closest emergency room?
  • How far is the closest urgent care?
  • How far is the closest medical facility?
    • Are they taking new patients?
  • How far is the closest specialty clinic (dentist, optometrist, etc)?
• School
  • If you have children, how far is the school (all levels)?
  • Are you okay with driving them that distance to school every day?
  • Is there a bus route to pick them up?
  • If homeschooling, are there local support and meetup groups?
• Employment
  • Will you have outside employment or work from home?
  • How far is the closest employment with sufficient pay levels?
  • Are you okay with driving that distance on a regular basis for your job?

Utilities

• Electric
  • local
  • solar
    • enough sun days
  • wind
  • hydro
  • generators
• Natural Gas
• Propane
  • Is there a local propane supplier that delivers to the property?
• Heating/Cooling
  • Is the home heating/cooling source from electric, natural gas, propane, or firewood?
  • Is the system functional and in good condition?
  • Is fuel supply readily available?
• Internet
  • Is there hardwired internet available? (cable, DSL, fiber optic)
    • Are speed sufficient for your daily usage and needs?
  • Is satellite internet available?
    • Is there enough clear sky view for satellite internet to work properly?
    • Are speeds sufficient for your daily usage and needs?

Property Rights

• timber
• mineral
• easements / right of way
• hoa / covenants

zoning

• building restrictions
• allows agriculture

building codes

RV allowed

accessibility

natural disasters

• wildfire
• flooding
• snow
• hurricanes
• tornadoes
• earthquakes
• mudslides

wildlife

wetlands

soil quality

• can be built up over time

property history

security

• can’t be seen from road
• limited ingress/egress access
• able to see approaches

firearms

• allowed

taxation

• agricultural rate

Law

• stand ground / castle doctrine