If you could farm anywhere...

[weedkiller]

I'm thinking of selling out and starting over. There is a huge oil boom in western ND and it is no longer a nice place to live and work on a farm. The only plus side is that land values have quadrupled from five years ago. Anyone of my fields that border the highway would sell for much more.

This is the only place that I have ever known, but I am seriously thinking of taking advantage of these prices and starting over somewhere else in the US where agriculture is still important. I could sell out and retire, but I'm only 35 and my wife and I truly enjoy farming. Any ideas on where to set up shop?

[fbstar]

Considering that I'm in the same chaos as you are if I could pick my place of farming residence it would be south of wahpeton to the sd boarder. Still relatively cheap land rents ( less than 300 per ac haha) and it's as flat as a pancake and extremely heavy ground and they always get the rain needed. What city in west Nd do you farm by??

[deere9600]

Land values have 4x EVERYWHERE. There are tradeoffs on everything and if you want $9k land , head southeast.

[Snipe]

I can relate to your problem there is a huge oil field just SE of me and on a calm day I can see a dust cloud hanging over it a mile high. I wouldn't want to live there. There will be a correction in land prices....when??

[711bert]

Originally Posted by Snipe

There will be a correction in land prices....when??

when commodity prices drop and interrest rates rise.

I honestly don't know where you want to move to land prices gone crazy everywhere. Here in Manitoba you can buy land relatively cheap but on the other hand there hasn't been an average crop for over 3 years.
Since 2007 land prices have more than doubled, and looking at the profit made since than it has been cut in half due to poor yields.

[weedkiller]

Originally Posted by fbstar

Considering that I'm in the same chaos as you are if I could pick my place of farming residence it would be south of wahpeton to the sd boarder. Still relatively cheap land rents ( less than 300 per ac haha) and it's as flat as a pancake and extremely heavy ground and they always get the rain needed. What city in west Nd do you farm by??

I farm north of Dickinson, but the oil activity in Parshall has been just as bad (maybe even worse) as here. My county commisioners say its going to get far worse in the comming years. They are even moving forward with paving the farm to market road that runs in front of my house in order to relieve the truck traffic on hwy 22. My kids are three and four years old so moving them wouldn't be a problem. As for the majority of my land It would sell for between $1,300 and $2,000 per acre. Purchase price was between $250 to $350. My highway frontage property would go for around $20,000 per acre. The only thing tying me down is guilt because I am the 4th generation on this place and hope to have my son as the 5th. But with the recent murders, thefts, and population boom that resembles the cast of "The Road Warrior", it just isn't the place to raise a family.

As far as places to start over, we were looking at someplace warmer than ND. There are some nice looking farm/ranch settups in northern California, or central Oregon that are quite picturesque. Southeast US doesn't look very attractive. Neither does Southwest US. Either central or Northwest would work.

[kirschenman]

If I was in your situation, I would go to the Palouse in Southeast WA or West Central ID. Drove through there this summer and it is incredibly beautiful, very productive, and seems to have some really nice towns.

[farminflyboy]

Or you could head REALLY far south...as in Brazil. You would get atleat 5 times as much land for the $ and never ever have to shovel snow again! The problem with Cali is the friggin regulations.

[711bert]

Originally Posted by farminflyboy

Or you could head REALLY far south...as in Brazil. You would get atleat 5 times as much land for the $ and never ever have to shovel snow again! The problem with Cali is the friggin regulations.

you will be happy with regulation after a year of farming in brasil, corruption is really bad out there.

[dieseldog]

really $2000 acre for tillable land around Dickinson. Have there been any sales that high in that area. Not doubting you just wondering.