There seems to come a point in most people's lives when the confines of living in the City are too much and they start to consider moving to the countryside. These people often start shopping around for a Lethbridge acreage property that is close to the city. The majority of these shoppers want a property that has some space to it, lots of trees, a modern home, a shop or some outbuildings, and town water and sewer of course. Not only do they expect to find that property within 5 minutes of Lethbridge, they expect that it will only cost around the same price as the home they are selling in the City of Lethbridge.
The sad reality is that 99% of the people who are shopping for an acreage will NEVER buy one, ever. Read that again.
They like to shop for one, but they legitimately could never afford to purchase one or maintain one if they did. They cost a lot of money, but also a lot of time. The purchase price alone is not the only cost one will need to consider.
Current acreages around Lethbridge cost a lot. The base price of an acreage close to the city with a livable home is about $300k, then add more $$$ for more acres, outbuildings, etc. Anything under 5 minutes from the City seems to easily reach over $400k these days. Prices drop the farther you get from the City, and if a person is willing to go 20 minutes from town there are some decent deals to be had.
Many of those interested in an acreage are also suprized to learn a few things. They do not understand things like:
-septic tanks
-septic fields
-cisterns
-hauling water
-water co-ops
-rural utility services
-rural snow removal
-yard tractors and maintenance
-tree maintenance
-irrigation
-rural emergency response
-animal and livestock bylaws
-county bylaws
If you are a serious acreage buyer, you hopefully have acquainted yourself with these issues. I personally make sure that any of my buyers I work with are fully educated about these items before we ever look at property. Being smart will help locate the ideal property and avoid a bad purchase decision. This is where having experienced professional help is a wise thing to do.
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