BiggerPockets

10 miles to a college sounds like party land to me. What's the zoning? How does lay? All trees cut? How busy is the road frontage if any? Neighbors there? What is the land use around it, might indicate the highest and best use?

Are the railroad tracks active or decommissioned?? If active a warehouse type business might want to locate there. Cost of gas being so high many are shipping through trains these days.

I would say you could sell to a developer for a subdivision but with the railroad tracks if they are active home buyers hate that train noise and the whistle going by all hours of the day.

A friend of mine has almost 300 acres in a rural area. He rents out part of the land for pastures to place cows etc. and then some parts lets them use for tree farms and also seasonal events.

The front part he reconditioned an old farm house and has a bed and breakfast with an organic garden for the corporate type wanting to get away from the big cities and take a vacation. he is retired so he doesn't mind just making a little profit and covering the taxes on the land.

You need to paint a better picture, it's pretty foggy, saying rural and then residential neighbors. Are the neighbors 10 acre mini estates or have land with each home or are the subdivisions?

The RR tracks issue depends on its use, frequent, seldom?

What town is this near? Cotty(ie) College is an all girls private college in a small town near here, if you go ten miles away, it's pretty rural and has scattered homes with acreage so sounds similar.

I'd tend to not go with a warehouse idea, I doubt there is a spur available along rails in rural areas where higher speeds are used and the cost could be more than the land value. From rail to house and ultimately to a truck, if it were an interstate with ingress/egress that might work, sounds like your traffic flow is limited with a median...how far to turn backs? Warehouses tend to be near populated areas for distribution, so tenant/owner possibilities may be limited.

Ten miles out is not so far away for a subdivision, 40 acres might get you 12 or 13 3 acre tracts, depends if sewer is there or you need to have septic. Another limitation is water districts and having a well. State law may apply to water supplies and sewage treatment with a subdivision. Guessing, I'd say from the rural nature in location that a subdivision of quarter acre lots might not be marketable, probably one acre lots and 2,000 to 3,000 sq ft homes. A subdivision of high efficiency solar capable smaller homes might work, depends on your market, something more unique not wild.

I guessing to you are looking for a use without much more investment. That takes the subdivision out.

Might have a light industrial use, heavy equipment supply/repair, tractors, farm machinery, welding shop, trailer manufacture. Depends on regulations, you might get by with a metal building and gravel lots.

Really, without more information about the location, town, highway access and terrain, we are shooting in the dark. :)

What's the nearest town, Gregory?

Originally posted by Joel Owens:
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I would say you could sell to a developer for a subdivision but with the railroad tracks if they are active home buyers hate that train noise and the whistle going by all hours of the day.
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I agree that the trains are noisy, but they only blow whistles at crossing where the RR crosses a road; doesn't sound like those tracks are crossing any nearby roads. There are also methods for reducing the noise level from those trains, especially with that amount of acreage.

I'd say, again I think, you need to look to the market for the highest and best use.

By that I mean find what is needed in the area. In RE, the old
saying "build I and they will come" doesn't hold true.

I wouldn't build anything out there without a tenant on the hook.

Good suggestions up there, a hunting reserve usually needs more land, you can hunt 40 acres, but not with many others, maybe birds, deer bullets go kinda far. Just having 2 or 3 paying hunters might be more trouble than it's worth.

You won't be able to come up with much until you go there and survey the place, call other business operations and investigate the market.

Renting it as is to a grower is good idea. You might just throw up a cowboy bar out there, have a rodeo, put some trailers on the place.

Just go with the market demands.

I'm sure both have one in Dallas, why would any large company want a depot/warehouse 90 miles east of Dallas?

Were the trees longleaf pines, for the paper mill in DeRidder or Many La.? Logging is common in the area, a logger might set up on the property running trucks through.

I like the idea of leasing the land. Looks like I should spend some time researching what kind of trees are on the land, who owns most of the land around there.

I like what you say but how do I find local developers? Just drive down there and see who's doing the development?? Like I said before there's not much development going on there but I'm planning a trip to check it out.

Gregory land is really my first love even though I make more money at apt buildings tell me about your land a little.
What type of soil is this can we grow trees for timber or is it to dry in this part of Tx. Your north of Dallas so you must get at least 25 inches annually right? also is the soil a black dirt or a red clay?
Personally land is an active investment and if its not going to be developed I would sell it. How ever if you planned to work the land and get trees or an orchard or anything like that going and no big deal it might be worth keeping. It sounds like its not something your going to get a higher use out of if the metro area nearby is 1300 people.
I do orchards myself on small land plots I have but nothing i have is 40 acres. I think its probably not going to be something you can do because that part of Tx is more like prairie soils or red clay in my best guess. Afisols or mollisols are what I am talking about for soil.
Red clay I would not try doing much with personally but a mollisol you might be able to plant trees? Entisol is a good soil in that area that could exist but is not the norm does drain well and can be used in many agricultural formats. Texas north of dallas is dominated by these 3 soil types however this doesnt mean your land has this. I would explore your land and see what is has. Tx can grow a variety of things ranging from dates,to palm trees to cotton and u name it.
the other thing is make sure when you think about the use of this land no stone goes unturned. My mind always things in terms of geology and is there oil or mineral wealth and then I go back to tree farming and other things i can grow. I know this if I is me and I want dirt I am after good land I can use and would trade 40 acres in a flash for 5 acres that was located close to me that I could use. Maybe a trade for something you can develop close to home? Or sell this land and just repatriate the money into a better real estate deal near home.
Do you have a geo survey of the land? I might be inclined to spend the day up there and explore the area and learn about it before selling it. also driving around it might offer suggestions as to what you might do with it. the question is what are the neighbors doing with there land nearby? Also get with a broker and find out what its worth after you have collected other data for yourself.. maybe see what other 40's near there sell for. I used to cruise timberlands in my youth and still enjoy it on a weekend w my dog. It was a hobby of mine but today most of the deals I buy I have them sold before I every step foot on the land.