Join me on my journey to find affordable country land in Texas. Along the way, I will be posting tips and tricks on how you can also find your dream piece of rural land.
Loading ...One of my favorite websites for rural and population data for the state of Texas is the Texas A&M Real Estate Center. Recently, they released a graph showing an estimated “Texas Population Growth Forecast” from now until 2020. This is good data if you’re looking to answer two questions: 1.) What cities to avoid based on population and sprawl 2.) What cities to move to based on population and sprawl.
Texas Metro Area Population Forecast
The Real Estate Center at Texas A&M has put out a graphic showcasing Texas statewide rural land prices starting from 1966 to the end of 2008. Notice the large jump starting in 2000.
Statewide rural land prices (Texas A&M Real Estate Center)
We’ve heard that Texas land is still a bargain compared to the rest of the country. However, I recently listened to a talk given by Manfred Chemek, CEO of an international real estate investment firm, at the 2008 Realtors Land Institute that was held in San Antonio. Mr. Chemek stated that due to the weak American dollar, many foreign investors from Europe and the Middle East have begun to buy large tracts of raw land in Texas.
On the way to Doss, with goat on the backroads
Had a lead on some “cheap” land way out in the Northern region of the Texas Hill Country and I decided to make a run for it yesterday and check it out. The drive was much longer than I thought–nearly 2 hours from Northern San Antonio to my destination of Doss, Texas. The whole drive was beautiful, but nothing could prepare me for the beauty I would see once I got to Doss.
It has been a few months since I’ve updated this land search blog, but worry not, I’ve been busy. I have not given up on the dream. As a matter of fact, the desire for my own place in the country seems to increase on each day’s passing. Interestingly, I was recently contracted to do website work for a large real estate development company in town. I’ll keep the name close for now, but they deal in country land. What a refreshing surprise it was. I hope to learn more about the real estate business and how country property sellers think. More on this later.
Driving on FM 385 from Junction to Harper , the inside of my truck smelled like a BBQ pit. I had stopped at Cooper’s BBQ stand in Junction and had lunch at the Llano River (meat was too salty, and the tea too sweet. Be sure to catch the OTHER Cooper’s BBQ in Llano. That one is amazing). I was not intending to go as far as Junction, but I figured what the heck I’m already in Kerrville, might as well mosey a few more miles down the road and take a look at some property that I saw in a local newspaper. Again, the weather was wonderful, if not a bit cloudy.
For the past three months, I began to develop a daily routine of methodically checking the classifieds ads of my local paper. As soon as the paper boy slammed the newspaper through my mail slot in the front door, I’d turn to the real estate section of the ads. I worried that if I didn’t do this right away, someone else may beat me to the punch and buy that perfect piece of Hill Country property.
I’ve been meaning to take another drive out into the Texas Hill Country this week, but with the price of gas, I’ve been having second thoughts. With my truck, it takes about $50-$60 to top off the gas tank. More importantly, I started feeling a little disoriented with my search for land in the Hill Country. I was getting excited about the journey, rather than the destination. My mind started questioning my heart:
What is your plan? Do you know what you are looking for?
After a couple of days of a freak cold front (in the mid 30s!), tomorrow is shaping up to be a beautiful day. High 60s, low 70s. No clouds. Blue skies. Perfect, the epitome of Texas. Looks like I’ll be taking a drive out West again. I see some acreage going for about 2,000/acre. Gotta check it out. Will report back.
Have you ever had the feeling that by the time you get around to finally purchasing your own piece of country land, there might not be any left? The last time I checked, they weren’t making any more land. I wonder if I am alone in that thought.
Well, I saw a cool topic the other day at thelandjournal.com which ran some interesting statistics…