Group purchase of land for RV community

[ghost]

I've always tried to follow the advice of those older than me my entire adult life.  There is  no substitute in life for actual experience and all the money and schooling in the world can't outpace real world experience.  So far it's worked out pretty good for me.  I've of course made mistakes on the way and anyone who hasn't is either lying or has never taken a chance (which in reality was probably a mistake)  

I think this thread has produced some fantastic advice on all the potential downfalls of a group owned piece of land and very little info on why it would be successful.  There are of course successful co ops but I think the number that's tried and failed far exceed the number that have tried and succeeded.

My one other thought on why this idea wouldn't be so good is the price of land.  To get a good location, with good weather, good access, ability to get water/sewer/ is going to cost a small fortune.  Most cheap land that even makes this idea a possibility is it's biggest drawback.  No one is going to want to use it 8-10 months out of the year because it's going to be way to hot or way to cold.

For the win!

 

[DannyB1954]

Nice idea - -  then right away "no thanks", with no explanation?  How was this constructive?

You can't please everybody. Some complained when I did give reasons. They implied that my input was not required by the original post.

 

[Wanderer]

Nice idea - -  then right away "no thanks", with no explanation?  How was this constructive?

Was there a requirement I had to explain my words? That's like me saying "What about "No" don't you understand?"

 

[highdesertranger]

you people in the pro camp need to figure out what you want to hear. some post say agree and sing kumbaya with us or don't post. then in other posts an explanation is demanded. either you want to hear both sides or you don't. highdesertranger

 

[IGBT]

You *might* be able to make something like this work with gold claims.  Solves some of the problems and the mining laws allow more than you might think.

 

[highdesertranger]

IGBT I agree with the gold claims but I am hesitant to advise it. if the group was actually looking for gold, ok. but the mining law has been abused by people just wanting to squat on the land. I will have no part of the later. there are already a few mining groups that once you join you can stay on the properties for extended periods of time. there is a small annual fee around 100 bucks. The New 49ers in northern CA is one, the LDMA is another they have properties in 8 states I believe. highdesertranger

 

[IGBT]

Yeah HDR, I probably shouldn't have mentioned it.

Heavy religion is another possibility.  If you can establish the property as a religious site or vital to your group's religious beliefs, it might be possible to sidestep some of the taxes and regulations.

See John Oliver's episode where he creates a $50 "Our Lady of Perpetual Exemption"

 

[ZoNiE]

Where is everyone gonna dump their buckets of poo? I'm not kidding, a place like this can get pretty gross pretty quickly.

A more workable solution is to buy an existing campground as already stated, and everyone rents their plot or set it up as a proper coop.

Or, find some land that can be subdivided so everyone owns their own part, and then build a facility (for profit / non profit) to provide water, trash collection, and a dump station that is properly connected to a sewer or large enough septic system. Users pay a per-use fee to cover the costs.

Then have CC&R's, yes rules, that one must live by. It would basically be an HOA. Not what anyone wants, but if you don't want a garbage dump with cat holes next door to your piece of paradise, you will need one.

 

[JeriLynn]

I've always tried to follow the advice of those older than me my entire adult life.  There is  no substitute in life for actual experience and all the money and schooling in the world can't outpace real world experience.  So far it's worked out pretty good for me.  I've of course made mistakes on the way and anyone who hasn't is either lying or has never taken a chance (which in reality was probably a mistake)  

I think this thread has produced some fantastic advice on all the potential downfalls of a group owned piece of land and very little info on why it would be successful.  There are of course successful co ops but I think the number that's tried and failed far exceed the number that have tried and succeeded.

My one other thought on why this idea wouldn't be so good is the price of land.  To get a good location, with good weather, good access, ability to get water/sewer/ is going to cost a small fortune.  Most cheap land that even makes this idea a possibility is it's biggest drawback.  No one is going to want to use it 8-10 months out of the year because it's going to be way to hot or way to cold.

I think that a small group of extremely rational, responsible people could have success sharing land but water, septic and power should already be in place as those are the main costs.  The key element is responsibility.  Someone would have to be on the property most of if not all of the year and maintenance would have to be shared and shared equally.

I recently saw a property with a junky mobile on it for only 13K, owner carry contract near Blythe, CA.  There is lots of affordable land in the southwest and occasionally all utilities are in.  Yes, the summers are hell, but the weather is great at least half of the year. Ten people with 10 to 20 K each could easily find someplace suitable in AZ, NV, CA. 


I would like to have a place to go to for a home base to rest after traveling and the area would not have to be scenic, just safe. If someone wants an beautiful property surrounded by nature, then yes that would be a lot more expensive. 

I recently some nice looking land on the road into Tombstone and as I said in an earlier post, there are lots of beautiful areas near the Oregon/CA border.  If anyone wants to seriously discuss buying or leasing something in CA, NV or AZ I would be quite willing to enter into a discussion.
jeri

 

[ZoNiE]

Saw this on the news this morning:
Cabin Creek CO is for sale on CL.
www.cabincreekcolorado.com
303.915.1620

Has a "bates" motel and gas station. all closed and boarded up.

The whole town is up for sale. Has 4 RV hookups behind one of the bldgs and a house.

 

[nobodyG17]

Great idea Ghost.  

If you get any solid ideas I might be interested.

 

[bseek]

When I read this article from the tinyhouse domain it reminded me much of this question. So here is an interesting take on what can be accomplished if you have some creative, open minded thinkers (and someone with a bit of cash).

http://tinyhouseblog.com/tiny-house/llamalopolis-an-urban-tiny-living-oasis/

 

[Every Road Leads Home]

Cool! If the OP got this wouldn't it become a "Ghost Town"?

Guy

Ha, that took me a minute to figure out!

 

[ghost]

Cool! If the OP got this wouldn't it become a "Ghost Town"?

Guy

Haha!  Sweet!

 

[nobodyG17]

They named it that in this article.

http://fortune.com/2016/07/05/cabin-creek-ghost-town-sale/

 

[ghost]

They named it that in this article.

http://fortune.com/2016/07/05/cabin-creek-ghost-town-sale/

Ok... What people on here want to go in on this and buy a town?  

 

[cognitive dissonance]

Buying a ghost town would be a great way to get around onerous zoning regs, etc. You could start your own town government, and elect your city council from among your fellow van dwellers!

I wouldn't buy this one, though. Cabin Creek is in Adams County, Colorado, which is a very difficult and expensive county government to deal with. (Adams County is one of the counties that makes up the Denver metro area...)

I used to lease business space there, and I still know a lot of people in Adams County. Between what I experienced firsthand and have seen and heard since, there are far too many negatives to ever want to locate there. The government is a bit of a mini-mafia, and if you aren't the 4th or 5th generation descendent of an Italian family that homesteaded in the county, you aren't terribly likely to have your wishes granted as far as land unconventional use goes.

This would be a great idea in an area where the established government wasn't so powerful and self-serving.

 

[Wanderer]

Saw this on the news this morning:
Cabin Creek CO is for sale on CL.
www.cabincreekcolorado.com
303.915.1620

Has a "bates" motel and gas station. all closed and boarded up.

The whole town is up for sale. Has 4 RV hookups behind one of the bldgs and a house.

At 350K not bad, but you need 40 at 10K and with 5 acres, not a lot of room for everyone.

 

[DannyB1954]

If the land is desireable, you can bet it is not cheap. If the land is cheap, you can bet it is undesirable for a myriad of reasons, ( no water, no civilization nearby, etc). For a while some communities were giving houses away just to boost their tax base. You may be able to buy a whole neighborhood cheap in Detroit Mi.

 

[ghost]

At 350K not bad, but you need 40 at 10K and with 5 acres, not a lot of room for everyone.

Or 20 at $20k each. 1/4 acre per RV