Getting Started With 25K? Need Suggestions

[Homesearchers]

I would appreciate any advice or suggestions concerning our current financial dilemma. We have 25K cash saved and have been looking for 6 months now for a fixer upper of some sort on an acre or so of land with no luck. We are on the eastern seaboard of the US, currently in PA but looking in Maryland and Virginia also. We have some experience renovating homes but we don't want to start from scratch and we don't have enough money to have a well and septic put in right now. We are renting now and only have part-time incomes so we will never save much more than this. We are over 50 but have done homesteading before and are capable of growing most of our food, etc. and we are also open to living in a rustic situation for awhile with no electricity and maybe a composting toilet. So we are wondering if we should be looking elsewhere, maybe the prices are too high here. We also had thoughts of buying land and having a tiny cottage shell built that we could finish out eventually. We are just concerned about zoning regulations and the cost to put in a well and septic. Has anyone dug their own well? There seems to be lots of property in small towns in the price range but that would mean backyard homesteading and we would like to do chickens and maybe some other animals as well as fruit trees. We also had thoughts of investing the money in some other way and then trying to find something in a few years when the real estate market evens out a bit, but that means renting for now and we really don't want to do that. So if anyone has any ideas, references, or similar experiences they would like to share we would be very grateful. And thank you for this forum. It's really great.

 

[moolie]

And congratulations on your savings, I know how hard it is to save like that, especially on part-time incomes. No advice from me on your particular situation/location when it comes to buying land as I am far away in southern Alberta Canada, but I hope you are able to find what you want/need soon

 

[Chantilly]

Virginia and Maryland are both pretty expensive states. Have you considered West Virginia? There are no big cities there, which should bring down the cost of real estate. Here's one website that I found that has rural listings in your price range (although some are just raw land):

http://www.landandfarm.com/search/West-Virginia-land-for-sale/#/search/?StateIDs=63&MaxPrice=25000

 

[Wannabefree]

Just do what everyone else from up there does...move to TN You could get a fixer upper and land here for that price fairly easily. I hear Michigan has very low real estate right now too. Maybe you're just not looking far enough?

 

[Denim Deb]

Stay away from SJ as well! I'm not sure if Delaware is cheaper or not, but I've heard it is. I haven't really looked. And, from South Jersey.

 

[heatherlynnky]

Just do what everyone else from up there does...move to TN You could get a fixer upper and land here for that price fairly easily. I hear Michigan has very low real estate right now too. Maybe you're just not looking far enough?

Hey, or Kentucky. fixer upper right down the road that already has county water and septic. 24,000 I think it has 3 acres. Not bad but it is a fixer upper. You have some chicken and goat minded neighbors though.

 

[Wannabefree]

Just do what everyone else from up there does...move to TN You could get a fixer upper and land here for that price fairly easily. I hear Michigan has very low real estate right now too. Maybe you're just not looking far enough?

Hey, or Kentucky. fixer upper right down the road that already has county water and septic. 24,000 I think it has 3 acres. Not bad but it is a fixer upper. You have some chicken and goat minded neighbors though.

Hehe I could sell out here, and buy that place doubling my property! All except those darn deep roots I got stuck in the ground over here that is.. Stupid roots

 

[SuburbanFarmChic]

WV, VA, MD, PA etc all have their cheap areas. They are ALL a million miles away from the cities. Put a pin in the big cities on the maps. Then go out 50-70 miles. Then start looking at property.

 

[rhoda_bruce]

Get a used FEMA trailer to camp in.....which you can always sell later. Then you can concentrate on just the land and setting up some farming projects and homesteading. Its the cheapest home I can think of, plus its portable.

 

[vekselmanpeter]

Congratulations on your savings!

Before doing anything drastic, the best move, I believe, is to study the real estate market you eying very carefully.

Then get an expert's advice. Someone who knows the property market, from inside out, can assist you in making the right decision.

Hope this helps. And great thread, by the way.

Looking forward to more discussions soon.

Peter Vekselman