Why You SHOULD Consider Buying Land That Has Been Recently Timbered

In this video, I discuss the value in considering land that has been recently timbered. Many people feel that timbered land is unattractive and ruined. They skip over it when looking for homestead property. But there are some benefits to acquiring land that has recently been timbered.
Stock footage provided by Vecteezy.com.
Be sure to subscribe to our channel and support our efforts by giving us a thumbs up.
Items we like and use on the farm:
Giltek EDC knives - gil-tek.com/?wpam_id=2
Portable Fuel Container Link: amzn.to/3pLDNGT
Sansi Outdoor Flood Lights: amzn.to/3iWKByy
Sansi Shop Light (Disco): amzn.to/3ad2OE1
Sansi Workshop Interior Lights: amzn.to/3cnAUrS
Sansi Motion Flood Light: amzn.to/39uAXA1
Energizers:
Patriot PMX200 - amzn.to/3mgWsZn
Animal Welfare:
Slap Shot amzn.to/3mizvF7
Allflex Dosing Syringe:amzn.to/3mjx1WJ
Follow us on facebook at / redtoolhousefarm
On Instagram at
/ redtoolhouse
Visit our website and be sure to sign up for our email newsletter so you will be up to speed on what goes on at our homestead. redtoolhouse.com/newsletter-si...
If you would like to help Red Tool House Homestead maintain the expenses of running this channel, consider using our Amazon Affiliates link when you shop on Amazon.
Amazon Link: goo.gl/4fiaxX

[@ronaldclemons5520]

Thank you for sharing. I’m looking for land with a home to start homesteading. I’m 65, and people think I’m crazy, lol. I don’t shy away from hard work. Get a tractor with grapples that should help move things better than by hand. Blessings

[@johnjones8880]

Had our property in east central WV timbered in 1999/2000. Did a select cut. The state forester told me in the Appalachian Highlands you could do a select cut every 18 to 20 years from now till eternity..

[@jonathanrich4213]

If you buy timbered land, you need to know you've got to get a large piece of equipment on that property to clean it up. We've cleaned up 1/3rd of our 20 acres and it has taken a long time.

[@dah61789dah]

I had a firewood guy come in to clean up the tops, the rest rotted away. I have stumps from the previous logging, 40 years ago that are still visible.

[@jonathanrich4213]

We've got 12' tall brush piles everywhere. They shrink a bit each year, but up here with all the ash no one is interested in logs unless they're at arm's length.

[@RyanFerreri]

How are you clearing it?

[@Commentleaver-c6x]

You must live somewhere very flat. In WV people don’t normally clean up the land after a logging operation, the terrain is much too steep to make that feasible.

[@RM-cm8hz]

Exactly. When we clear cut land... we dont give a F. Being clean for the owner is NOT profitable. It will take YEARS to clean our mess.

[@jonahhuff184]

We are in the process of buying 10 acres of previously logged land in the ozarks. Im not sure when it was. There are lots of sapplings, and some mature trees. Pretty excited about it. It being logged is pretty much the only way i could afford what we got.

[@ralphturner3798]

I had a 16 acre parcel of land in southeast Iowa that I bought for $6,000. About 10 years later I had someone come and cut down many of the large hardwood trees and got $11,500 for those trees. The timber cutter was very careful and the left trees near the road that ran through my property so everything looked fine. Then a few years later I sold the property for $60,000.

[@JohnSmith-tv5ep]

I'd say you had a great investment strategy! If I sold my place (4 acres SW Pa.)now, I'd make a profit. BUT.…. I'd spend all of it to buy a smaller place! And, being here 40 years, I don't think I could live in a neighborhood with 'Joe Much-da-dutch' as a neighbor!!! I spent too many years getting it where I can enjoy it, Peacefully!

[@ralphturner3798]

I was lucky to get the place at a low price, and lucky that two neighbors were bidding at the auction when I sold it. I wrote a book about the property: "Country Property, Dirt Cheap" @@JohnSmith-tv5ep

[@RM-cm8hz]

This has nothing to do with getting the land lumbered. All you described is EXACTLY what happened to ALL properties in the last 20 years... SMH. Once land is timbered, especially clear cut, it is TRASH. Don't believe me? Look at WV, VA, KY land that is clear cut.. you can get it for less than $1k/acre... and they are NOT selling.

[@georgea6403]

Yep. I liked my 26 acre cul de sac compound so much that I bought it twice 😂😂. Got divorced ya know 😢😢

[@ralphturner3798]

@@georgea6403 I had a friend a few years ago that married a beautiful woman. Five years later they got divorced. Two months later they got married again. The divorce didn't work out.

[@suburbangardenpermaculture3117]

The 40 acres we bought in east texas last year, it had been timbered almost eactly 15 years before. The trees are at a nice size again, and the creek ravine that has never been timbered has massive trees in it, over 75' tall down there.

[@thehamms3]

Great information! I live in eastern NC but same still applies here. I took notes and will get a good realtor that understands this stuff.

[@markp6062]

The biggest surprise for me was that you don't, necessarily, need to plant trees. I had never thought about a seed bank being in place from the old trees. This fact has really changed my mind about the possibility of buying some recently timbered land.

[@andrewgee241]

I enjoy your land use videos. Especially the discussions of easements and right of way roads to access property.

[@markrzechula9390]

Having my property select cut 1 1/2 years ago has already made a big improvement for ground nesting birds

[@johnqcitizen9177]

Great video with TONS of great information.

[@SheratonParkFarms]

First off, GREAT discussion. You brought up some things I hadn’t thought about that made a ton of sense. We bought our property that had not been timbered partly because we saw the upcoming value in a timber harvest. We’re working with a forester right now and planning a sale later this year to help offset the cost of hopefully building a house.

[@creativeminds3220]

Extremely valuable information. Thank you for sharing, Tim. Greetings from Canada Ontario

[@jbbrown7907]

I love Arizona and New Mexico.

[@user-df3yf5ck1w]

Great information Troy! I've always shied away from timbered land. But now I've bought my own 43 acres in West Virginia. That hasn't been cut in about 50 years. Yes, it sure would be nice to have some new lanes for easier access. And honestly I can't get to it without roads put in. So something to consider in the future.

[@Winterascent]

What species do you have?

[@user-df3yf5ck1w]

@@Winterascenta few hemlock, pine, oak, popular a couple decent sized chestnut......

[@theresad6990]

This was very good info. You pointed out a whole lot of things that I hadn't considered. Thank you.

[@jeffpeters1014]

We just logged our property for the second time and the wildlife is moving back in. The logging road cleanup was completed by a great operator. It seems that when the roads are in need of maintenance it’s time to select cut again so it’s a win for us.

[@tealkerberus748]

If you've got a good chipper, all those tops can become deep litter for your shedded animals which eventually becomes premium compost for your vegetable garden. They're also good as mulch without composting if you add enough nitrogen to balance the carbon as they break down, or simply as a woodchip path where the ground is a bit muddy.

[@chrissheathewoodguy]

I totaly agree. as a wood burnner and hunter having our land timbered 10 years ago was great . wild life flurished. now lots of new growth. I do cuttings here and there to great wild life habitat. plus we mill what lumber is cut or falls down in storms..

[@Sue-ec6un]

I've been looking. Not shying away from 'recently timbered' because as I want to grow a garden as soon as possible, having the canopy open is a plus. What I mostly come across lately though is raw land, never timbered and since I have no idea what is what on that subject, it scares me a little. Gonna have to dive in soon though, because land prices are way way high right now. And there aren't many sellers dropping the price. Humph.

[@kenneth9874]

With the massive "inflation" caused by the present administration which in actuality is the devaluation of the dollar the price in dollars has to go up...

[@tealkerberus748]

If it's been farmed, chemical residue testing on the soil can save you a lot of grief later. You wouldn't want to find out that the nice flat spot for your food garden was exactly where a previous owner had filled his spray truck and spilled a whole lot of insecticides and fungicides on the ground.

[@kevinblevins2612]

So right about the forest regrowing I bought 21 acres in NC It was timbered 20 years prior and now it has a nice stand of hardwood coming on Most are 12 to 15 inches at the stump

[@KarenWahlenberg-pv7xz]

Sir that was some great insight. Great things to consider.. thank you

[@huckfinn4260]

I bought 50 acres of fresh clearcut in SE MO in 2012 at a very affordable price. When I bought it there were a handful of large old growth trees left on the steep slopes. Everything else on the place was less than waist high, mostly weeds and brambles. By 2015 most of the cut stumps had shot up tons of saplings that were already quite tall. They grew as if they'd been coppiced, supported by mature well developed root systems. Most of the cut tops had rotted away by then also and weren't usable as firewood. Had several pine groves establish first with hardwoods following close behind. Today it's mostly still high stem count and parts of it are still difficult to bushwhack your way through, but it's really not very far from being mature forest again. If I'd had time to go in and do selective cutting to thin it out the woods would be even farther along in growth. It has been spectacular deer habitat. I've had a few unsolicited lowball offers for the place in the last few years for more than triple what I paid.

[@JaySyzdek]

May I ask how you found the property?

[@huckfinn4260]

@@JaySyzdek It was listed by a local realtor. I happened to see it while browsing MLS.

[@jbbrown7907]

I help buy standing timber for some of the Amish saw mills. It is my job to find the wood first, looking at satellite images. I then find the boundary lines using XHunt on my phone. We opt to mark salable timber that we are sure the land owner owns. If there is a question, we will flag the line to reflect only what we are sure of. If you are buying land, dont go by the logger's flagging.

[@StonerSmurfin]

This is a good time to go to Arizona, In winter time you are only looking at 80° instead of 100°+.

[@themetalmystic3988]

I am grateful for your channel. It helped me with my buyer's checklist in purchasing my farm in the heartland. It was extremely useful. Most of the acreage is timber so this video is very relevant. How might one contact you for consulting services should I want or need them? Happy New Year to you and your family.

[@beelerfamilyfarm]

It's a very good way to get your foot in the door. We purchased our small acreage from the County. Many states have tax sales annually for properties that are usually abandoned, which was the case of our property. Owner had passed, and all his kids were uninterested in keeping up with the place. There are some legal steps to ensure you get it done just right, but it's a good way to find property in many small, rural communities that may be of interest to homesteading types.

[@Iussa]

Great video

[@tradermunky1998]

Good info. Cheaper land especially with clear cutting but you pay for it in hardwork rehabbing it. Unless you have a decade or two to guide it slowly and let it do it itself as you mentioned. I lean heavily to land with timber that I go in and select cut while clearing out what I want. Recoup some of the cost right off the bat.

[@BS.-.-]

I bought land that they select cut the large black cherry off. They left tree tops yes but no big ruts and no stump pile/log landing. How I cleaned it up was to make firewood and contact a local guy who wanted to take logs. Ant clearing I piled up the tree tops and burned. Having something like a small mini ex was very helpful

[@aovoonthefarmsouthernillin3687]

Nice video.

[@stevearchtoe7039]

Tell us more about the grouse you see in w VA. Interesting video. From Wisconsin here.

[@markgabbard3697]

In having ur land logged check for ur best trees. It'll make a better tree regrowth.

[@biekken849]

In 2021 kocht ik bos dat voor een groot gedeelte was ontbost. Bomen waren dood door de letterzetter. Hierdoor had ik gelijk de keuze zelf de nieuwe bomen te kiezen. Ook het pad werd verlegd.

[@user-vm6ck7lt6v]

Out of state where to look for homesteading property in WVA. Zillow is not a good choice.

[@markgray6982]

My Dad bought 450 acres in NW Florida years ago,,,,,,,,,,,he sold the Pine's off of it and got the 450 acres for free and i forgot how much money he got along with the Free Land,,,,,,,,,,and it turned into the Best Deer and Turkey habitat around with the Pine's gone,,,,,,lots of Hardwoods fruit trees and browse came up for the critters. My Dad could turn a terd into Gold,,,he was Special and i miss him Greatly. We had a Fish and Hunting Out-fit in old Mexico back in the late 60's and 70's,,,,The American Sportsman did 3 show's with Dad down there,,,,,,Grits Gresham,,,Larry Czonka and Running Back JIm Kick did a show,,,Lee Trevino did a fishing show and Hugh Obrien, Willian Conrad did a show.

[@thomcarroll5845]

How about converting the left overdo to speak it to firewood

[@donkerr8709]

good video. time for a woodworking video......or shop clean up!

[@BrianMckelvey-vh1gi]

How do you find old abandoned farms and land for sale?

[@TomBTerrific]

I’ve been looking at timber properties or maybe I should say larger 40 acre plus property. I’ve been surprised at what owners ask for a property after harvesting the timber using lines like “Blank Canvas “ . I agree that it’s important to early on establishing a management plan.

[@willbass2869]

Interesting. Where are you seeing this ? How much is timbered land discounted versus neighboring uncut. Only 10%? ...20%? Thanks for any reply

[@PeaceIntheValley]

i think you get more views on the land use videos. How far are you from the Hatfield/McCoy area? Part of the problem there was timbering on someone else's property.

[@Winterascent]

Buying that land should probably be done with a consulting forester to discount the value of the timber from the property sale, considering that volume and value was removed. Unless it was a low value first thinning in planted pine, that same land would be more valuable with the timber in place and the land can then be logged according to the the needs of the owner.

[@objektivone3209]

👌👍

[@willbass2869]

Troy, Heres a crazy notion....use the tops to fire up outside boilers to heat greenhouses producing high $ winter salad greens. After a few years as wood diminishes switch the greenhouses to growing out fall hatched chicks/turkey poults for premium price in spring! Should have the greenhouse fully paid off/depreciated by the time firewood runs out Could also grind the hardwood, sterilize the chips and grow "zillions" of pounds of mushrooms in grow bags like the pros use..... then sell the spent 'shroom medium as fancy compost

[@eamonnmckeown6770]

I think it was in the early 20th C. that the rural/urban pop, flipped. I wonder if it will ever reverse? Rome and the imperial cities emptied out after it's decline.

[@willbass2869]

Well the "flip" wasn't overnight...more like a few centuries. There were different episodes of folks leaving "Rome". Early on Diocletian (AD 270?) moved the capital from Rome to Mediolanum. Then 200 years later they moved the Empire's capitol to Ravenna.....and then the Romans pretty much struck camp, packed their ships and sailed away from Italy to Byzantium by AD 500 (?). Even those who fled Rome stayed pretty close. All those wonderful hill towns in Umbria & Tuscany we're the "exurbs" of the day. They were still on the good Roman roads to facilitate fast travel to catch any special gladiator fights in the Coliseum.😅

[@51rwyatt]

On the seed bank issue, I've read that the leading theory for how creatures and plants survived 65 million years ago after the meteor strike, was the seed bank. What survived was creatures that could live off seeds, and of course the plants that could return from seed. Cause the sun didn't come out for years...

[@alexanderpitman9433]

Timbered land is usually cheaper

[@DrBlood-cq2cm]

Know how much it will cost to clean it up. Could be thousands of $ per acre. Bank wont finance that.

[@larson0014]

Theres land in Michigan thats never been timbered, its a State Park, look up Porcupine Mountains State Park, tamaracks the size of trucks.

[@PeaceIntheValley]

he was referring to available land to purchase - there is no old growth forrest in the US for purchase.

[@mariesheppard3750]

Thanks very interesting, I m on 1 acre with 43 Douglas Firs 6 story high, and I m not allow to cut any tree down, Took me 5 months to get a permit to cut a real dead one down, and I m in the country township not the city, Tree huggers are making the rules, m In B C Canada, Them it cost $1,000. to cut down for fire wood +

[@willbass2869]

Same in Austin. Now huge decaying branches as big as a man's waist drop through people's roofs and street parked cars. The local arborists know they can charge OUTRAGEOUS fees for removals because they have a captive audience and really strict regulations. I'm sure campaign funds slosh around, too

[@danbaker3525]

Thankfully here in the southeast US where we are still somewhat “free” to do as we please I can cut trees off my own property as i see fit - wow what a concept

[@RM-cm8hz]

If you are buying recently timbered land... you are a SUCKER. Source: I own and operate top20 largest lumber mill in WI. When we clear land, it is trash. It will take at least 10 years to recover. Most likely 20 years. Good luck. Have fun!

[@RedToolHouse]

Sounds like you do a slash job. Try that in Appalachia and you wouldn’t last long.