LAND OWNERSHIP

[Apple Junkie]

If it were me, I'd follow the advice of kl9 and WTNUT and form an LLC with the assistance of a good Real Estate lawyer. The only thing I would add is to be sure to include the other 4 owners are included in any meeting / conversations on the temrs of ownership so they "buy in" ahead of time. It's wise to get this in order while you can before it gets totally out of control. Good luck.

 

[Telemark]

I hate to be negative, but this is my nightmare. I have problems with relatives who don't hunt and say no to improvements on the land and some who just want a payout. Many of the problems actually come from spouses of owners. There's always someone who wants more than their share.

 

[swat1018]

Good luck, it's not if it turns ugly, but when. My family owned a manufacturing business, my Grandfather founded. It was a source of grief for years, lots of hard feelings, siblings that don't speak to each other, etc. There were good years, but outnumbered by the bad.

 

[yoderjac]

It is never easy but there is a tradeoff. I could never personally afforded enough land to attempt QDM on my own. Even with 4 other owners, we don't own enough. We are fortunate that some neighboring properties extend our QDM reach, but even with that, we are still on the ratty edge.

If I had to do it again, with all the lessons learned, I think I would have approached things differently. I also wish some of our owners were more satisfied. Personally, I think most of the dissatisfaction has to do with the fact that we bought the land right at the top of the market and we are watching our investment decline in value over the years. Folks seem to enjoy the recreational use and are still in relative agreement in terms of the land management. The largest dissatisfaction is that some folks would like to liquidate and get all of their initial investment back. Given our market, that simply can't happen. I hate to see them unhappy and it does cause tension within the group. Some went in wearing rose colored glasses looking for a developer to buy us out at a large profit. Given the market when we purchased, that was possible. Personally, I was more in it for the long-haul never expecting to sell for a profit or sell at all for that matter. So, the fact that the assessed value of our land is about 1/2 of what we paid doesn't bother me personally at all. I'm happy with the choice given the information we had at the time.

Having said that, if I had to do it all over again, I would do things quite differently.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Boone]

I believe it's still a good deal for us as my grandpa had the land paid off years ago. He paid $12k for 160 acres and now in our market is worth $600k+. We will all agree or be forced to sell and go buy our own land. Myself I would like to keep the land as I use it so locking it down now if possible would be good before it's to late.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

Having a bunch of owners might work well for a while, but eventually it will fall apart in ways others have described above. I would say either legally split up the land and give each person X amount of acres or sell the land and split the money.

 

[Nova]

My intent is to keep the land in the family for many years to come. I would like to see provisions be put in place like you said about buy outs and such. I'm not sure if maybe an LLC or trust would be a better option.

We put our farm in an LLC 3 years ago for this very reason. We also put previsions in that no one could sell the land, you can only opt out. The only way the land could be sold was if all owners were in agreement.

The LLC also protects all the owners if there was a law suit against the land, the owners personal property/assets could not be touched in that law suit.

 

[Telemark]

An LLC seems like a good idea. And the sooner the better. I hope it all works out for you.

Our place is in Canada, so things are a bit difficult.

 

[Wintomatic]

I agree with everyone else. My Uncle left my property to the five nieces and nephews. Lucky for me that either they didn’t want to or couldn’t afford to buy in and split ownership of the property. The next generation will be the ones that will have the issues. You might be better off selling out and buying a property close by so you can still spend time with family but still be able to call the shots and have an isolated area for you to go.
160 acres/ 90 acres of huntable land gets a lot harder to hunt when there are 15-20 people walking around the property. That is assuming they aren’t bow hunting right before gun opener, riding atv’s, ect.

 

[Wintomatic]

I agree with everyone else. My Uncle left my property to the five nieces and nephews. Lucky for me that either they didn’t want to or couldn’t afford to buy in and split ownership of the property. The next generation will be the ones that will have the issues. You might be better off selling out and buying a property close by so you can still spend time with family but still be able to call the shots and have an isolated area for you to go.
160 acres/ 90 acres of huntable land gets a lot harder to hunt when there are 15-20 people walking around the property. That is assuming they aren’t bow hunting right before gun opener, riding atv’s, ect.

I have a 40x40 pole barn and I am still trying to get my brother to get his shit out of it. If he had any ownership he would have it packed full.