You’ve been living the urban life for thirty years and dreaming of retiring to the country someday. Every weekend you drive down country roads and imagine that it’s you on that tractor, riding that horse, tilling that garden. Now it’s time to make it happen and you jot down your priorities. They have mostly to do with peace and quiet, character and charm, reaping what you sow.

Here are a couple of things I’ve noticed that are sometimes overlooked:

Soil: It’s easy to be impressed with bright green grass jumping up from freshly raked soil or golden grasses swaying in the summer breeze. It could be that green grass is just winter rye enjoying a heavy dose of fertilizer and that golden grass may well be broom sage indicating acidic soil.

If you are planning on using the land in some specific way, planting grapes perhaps, raising livestock, growing Christmas trees, the soil underneath it all is a critical component. Grapes need well drained soils and elevation, livestock need good pasture and water, Christmas trees can thrive on marginal soils found in the mountains.

There are excellent resources available to help you understand the soils best suited to your requirements. There are detailed soil maps available through your local extension service office and Virginia Tech has volumes of information on agricultural suitability.

It’s pretty safe to assume that if you are in an area where horse and cattle farms are common that the soils are suitable but it makes sense to do a little research and confirm what lies under all that grass. Here are a couple of links that can help.
https://www.soiltest.vt.edu/
https://www.ext.vt.edu/

Location:
It’s easy to be wooed by a low price per acre. You can find farmland for $3,000 an acre but you may not be getting the bargain you think you are. Marginal areas are slower to appreciate and if you over-improve your property with a nice house and stable you may have a harder time recouping that
investment.

There are lots of reasons to appreciate rural Virginia but make sure you weigh the
importance of having access to amenities like those found in Charlottesville and any of the charming
small towns within her sphere of influence. It may make more sense to settle for less acreage in a great
area with good resale potential than a larger property out in the boonies
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boondocks

Want a horse?

All land is not equal when it comes to keeping horses. It is possible to find land in the Charlottesville area that is absolutely perfect for horses. It would consist of a nice deep soil with few if any rocks. It would be gently rolling and well drained and it would already be in good grass, your horse’s favorite food.

This is horse country and a horse can thrive here and live entirely off the land for most of the year. It’s not all horse country though so do your homework. Up close to the mountains the pasture will be rockier and harder on your horse’s feet. That beautiful flat bottomland along the creek looks great when dry but will often be a wet soil that can also be unhealthy for hooves.

Clearing woodland to make pasture can be done but it takes years to build up the grass to compare with established pasture. If you want to breed horses you’ll want to look at the type of grass growing in your fields. The fescue grass found in much of this area needs to managed if broodmares are grazing on it. Finding a place that is already fenced and has existing stabling is usually the best buy and finding a place that allows riding off the property can be a huge benefit in how you can enjoy your horses without trailering.
https://pubs.ext.vt.edu/418/418-050/418-050.html

Charlottesville Real Estate

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Market update for the Charlottesville real estate market including:  Albemarle County, VA, Orange County, VA, Madison County, VA, Greene County, VA, Nelson County, VA, Fluvanna County, VA, Louisa County, VA real estate.

Little more than a year ago my clients were getting a 30 year fixed rate mortgage at 3%, a 15 year fixed at 2.5%. Sellers were getting stacks of offers and the most challenging job for a listing Realtor was determining which offer was truly the best for their client, Buyer’s agents were pulling out all the stops to get their client’s offer to the top; full price + with escalation clauses, inspections waived, appraisals waived, free leaseback for sellers for months after settlement… Sound to good to be true?

I guess the Fed agreed because as soon as inflation started becoming the word of the day, the Fed started bumping rates up hoping to slow the worrisome inflation by closing the damper on the real estate rally. Real estate has historically been a benchmark for wealth accumulation and consumer confidence among home owners fueling spending on all levels, creating high demand for both necessities and luxuries. When supply can’t keep up prices rise as we have witnessed in the grocery stores, gas pumps and car dealerships over the last two years.

Is it working? Housing starts, the resale market and loan applications are down to pre-2008 levels nationally which is when the last fan got hit. The stock market has dropped and exuberant home buyers are now crunching serious numbers as they compute monthly payments over the breakfast table. Inventory is still low but we are seeing price drops as sellers understand that realism is setting in and buyers are being much more careful.

Some say the Fed has acted too quickly and has not allowed the first rate hikes to have effect. Some say they should have acted earlier. There are many factors influencing our economy. Some are controllable and others are not.

Interest rates from the Fed are one of the few controls that can be manipulated and we are witnessing the impact on the real estate market in just six months. Inevitably, rates will level and probably even lower for a soft landing at which time the refi business will be the in full swing again.

The overall real estate market needed a re-set. 22% annual appreciation was not sustainable. Changes don’t occur overnight but you can expect buyers to have more choices and more negotiating room soon. There are opportunities in every market. What kind of opportunity are you looking for?

Current interest rates can be found here.

Charlottesville Real Estate

Call John Ince for information on new listings, price reductions and properties coming soon in the Charlottesville, VA area.

Sign up here to receive a customized Charlottesville Real Estate Market Report.

Market update for the Charlottesville real estate market including:  Albemarle County, VA, Orange County, VA, Madison County, VA, Greene County, VA, Nelson County, VA, Fluvanna County, VA, Louisa County, VA real estate.

Financing country property can certainly be a maze to navigate. A buyer looking at a lovely home on 75 acres near Charlottesville may be thinking that the timing is perfect. Prices have finally leveled off and inventory is coming back. Rates have bumped up lately but are still at record lows historically.

Just ask you parents if they are still around. Financing country property is not the same as financing a residential property. Are you a non-conformist? Quite possibly you are and if you are hoping to pick up a sizable chunk of land, your loan probably will be as well.

Country property, farms, estates and raw land do not fit the standard criteria on the application for a home loan. Whenever the ratio of land value to improvements value exceeds 30% it becomes a non-conforming loan and will not fit neatly into the packaging of loans for resale to the secondary market.

Unfortunately, few lenders will explain the non-conformity issue at the pre-qualification stage so buyers who believe they are ready, willing and able don’t realize that the property they seek may not be.

The nation’s largest lender for rural properties is Farm Credit. Farm Credit has been around for about 90 years and was originated to assist farmers with reliable financing in good times and bad. Today, they still are in business to assist farmers but also make loans to rural land owners, country home owners and agribusinesses.

Traditional lenders also participate in country property financing but usually need to be creative. They may originate two loans, one for the residence and another for the surrounding land which may carry a higher interest rate.

Personal bankers who can keep a loan in house may choose to finance country properties for clients whose assets are known and respected and seller financing is more prevalent in country property brokerage than in the traditional residential market.

The best strategy for financing country property is to be prepared. Make sure you explain to your lender that you are interested in purchasing a property with some acreage and make sure they understand the nuances. We will be happy to refer you to some excellent lenders who know how to work with country property. It is indeed a perfect time to consider a purchase of country property and we’d love to help.

Charlottesville Real Estate

Call John Ince for information on new listings, price reductions and properties coming soon in the Charlottesville, VA area.

Sign up here to receive a customized Charlottesville Real Estate Market Report.

Market update for the Charlottesville real estate market including:  Albemarle County, VA, Orange County, VA, Madison County, VA, Greene County, VA, Nelson County, VA, Fluvanna County, VA, Louisa County, VA real estate.