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Even if you’re putting money into your own business, crypto, or NFTs, there’s still room for more traditional investments.
Like the stock market. And real estate.
And land.
Land is a tangible asset that’s continually proven to appreciate over time. And when it comes to making money, you’re not limited to only buying and holding.
Whether you already have land in your portfolio or are looking to invest, here are the best creative ways to make money with land.
How to Make Money with Land
1. Rent Tillable Acreage to Farmers
2. Flip It
3. Harvest Timber
4. Store Campers and RVs for the Winter
5. Consider a Solar Farm Lease
6. Use it to Raise Livestock
7. Build a Rental Property On It
8. Turn it Into a Seasonal Business (Apple Orchard, Corn Maze, Strawberry Patch, Etc.)
9. Lease it to Hunters
10. Put a Tiny House on It and Rent on Airbnb as “OffGrid”
11. Start a Hobby Farm
12. Grow and Sell Flowers
13. Start a Campground
14. Start a Drive-In Movie Theater
15. Use Your Land as a Wedding Venue
16. Create a Dog Park
17. Start a Christmas Tree Farm
18. Bonus Idea: Invest in Virtual Land
1. Rent Tillable Acreage to Farmers
If you already have land and it’s tillable, you can capitalize by renting it out to a farmer. Of course, the amount you’ll earn will depend upon the quality of your soil, how the farmer intends to use the land, and where you live.
According to the USDA, the average lease value for farmland across the US is $138 per acre per year.
So, if you have a 50-acre tillable field to lease out, you can earn $6,900 per year without ever lifting a finger.
2. Flip It
Looking to make money fast? Try flipping land.
Due to crazy high increases in property and land values over the past two years, finding a good deal will take some work. The good news, though, is that if you can find a good deal, reselling for profit will be a breeze.
The best deals aren’t on the MLS. Instead, you’ll need to get your name out there as a potential buyer, so when someone in your area goes to sell, they think of you.
3. Harvest Timber
If you have land full of trees (or can buy a piece of forested land inexpensively), you can harvest the timber from it.
The amount you’ll earn from it will vary by type and age of the timber.
According to Forest2Market, you can earn from $330 to almost $2,000 per acre of forested land, depending on the age of the trees. The older the trees (age 26+), the more they’re worth.
4. Store Campers and RVs for the Winter
If you’ve ever owned a camper or RV, you know how difficult it is to find a place to park it during the off-season. After all, you don’t want it exposed to the elements or taking up your entire driveway.
This means if you live in an area where camping is popular, and you have the land and means to start a camper storage business, it’s worth a look.
Once you get it up and running, this business model is relatively passive.
To get started, you’ll need to install a large carport or garage system – big enough to house campers and RVs. Once you’ve done so, you can advertise and find customers.
You can charge $50-$200 per month for RV storage depending on going rates in your area.
5. Consider a Solar Farm Lease
If solar farms are moving to your area and you have a lot of land you aren’t using, consider leasing to a solar farm.
When you lease to a solar farm, you’ll generally need to agree to a long-term lease and set amount per acre.
According to Strategic Solar Group, the average solar farm lease is $300 to $2,000 per acre per year.
So if you have 50 acres of usable land, you could earn anywhere from $15,000 to $100,000 per year.
6. Use it to Raise Livestock
Do you have experience raising livestock? Or, maybe, you’d like to gain that experience?
While it takes a lot of startup costs in fencing, buildings, feed, and animals, you can make money raising livestock.
There are a couple of ways you can go. First, you can breed livestock and sell the baby offspring. Or, you can breed livestock and sell it as meat.
Both are viable options, and the best one will depend on where you live and who you know.
7. Build a Rental Property On It
Real estate is one of the best long-term investments. It’s a tangible asset that can bring you monthly cash flow and holds its value long term.
So, if you’ve thought about investing in real estate, consider building a rental property on your vacant land.
This idea is best suited if your land is easy to access and you have the means to build.
(If you don’t currently have the means to build, no worries. There are still plenty of other ways to make money.)
8. Turn it Into a Seasonal Business (Apple Orchard, Corn Maze, Strawberry Patch, Etc.)
If you want to run your own business, an empty plot of land can help you get started. Some seasonal ideas are creating an apple orchard, corn maze, or strawberry patch.
Of course, for an apple orchard, you’d have to wait several years for the trees to mature. But you can get the other ideas up and running in a year or two.
If you don’t want to be directly involved in the day-to-day operations, try a self-serve pumpkin patch. You’ll need to till the land, plant the pumpkins, and then advertise on social media.
To collect the money, you can leave a lockbox where customers can pay.
If you don’t mind being in the daily operations, go all out. You can create the ultimate fall fun with a corn maze, pumpkin patch, and hayrides.
9. Lease it to Hunters
If you have a lot of wooded acreages rife with wildlife, lease your land to hunters. While this method probably isn’t the most profitable on the list, it’s very hands-off.
The amount of money you’ll get depends on the property’s exclusivity, how large the property is, and the wildlife activity.
According to OnX, most hunting leases range from $10-$50 per acre.
10. Put a Tiny House on It and Rent on Airbnb as “OffGrid”
Have you ever considered entering the short-term rental market? Well, you can with a tiny house.
If your land is very remote, you can place a tiny home on it, even if you don’t have access to electric and plumbing hookups. Then, you can label the home as “off-grid” and post it for rent on Airbnb.
Of course, the more desirable the location, the better chance you’ll have at making money.
11. Start a Hobby Farm
While this idea might not make you money (at least initially), it can help you save money in terms of food costs.
And that idea is starting a hobby farm.
When you have a hobby farm, you can raise any livestock you’d like (at a small scale, of course) and grow produce.
Many hobby farmers start with a garden and chickens and grow from there. If you do an excellent job with your farm, you can cash in on your surplus by selling it at a farmer’s market.
12. Grow and Sell Flowers
If you love growing flowers, use your land to plant fields of flowers you can sell at farmers’ markets or local stores.
The most popular bouquets are roses, daisies, tulips, and lilies.
Alternatively, you could use part of the land to grow a large sunflower crop that photographers can use for photography sessions.
13. Start a Campground
More than 48 million US households camped at least once in 2020. And since the pandemic first hit in 2019, camper sales have been on the rise.
So, if you have the land, the money to invest, and the grit to make this idea work, start a campground.
To keep it simple, you can host tent campers. While you’ll likely still need a public bathroom and electric hookups, it will be less of an investment than an RV campground.
If you want to start an RV campground, you’ll need concrete pads for the campers, electric hookups, and a place for campers to fill up with water and empty their sewage tanks. Most RV campgrounds also have playgrounds for kids, shower houses, and bathrooms.
While this would require a substantial investment, it’s a business that could last forever.
14. Start a Drive-In Movie Theater
Drive-In movie theaters seem to be a thing of the past. But with current restrictions, they could once again turn into a booming business.
If your land is large enough and easy to access, start a drive-in movie theater. You could also set up food stands to increase your earnings.
15. Use Your Land as a Wedding Venue
If your land is beautiful and there’s space to house many guests, consider using it as a wedding venue.
Ideally, you’d want to have some sort of building for indoor weddings, receptions, and a place for guests to use the bathroom. You could host outdoor weddings during warm months and indoor weddings during the winter season.
16. Create a Dog Park
If you live in an area with no dog parks, you can create one. And instead of the park being free, you can charge an admission fee.
A better idea is to require members to purchase an annual pass – this way, you only have to collect money once per year.
17. Start a Christmas Tree Farm
Sometimes the best business ideas are seasonal. They help you earn extra money without requiring the effort of a full-blown, year-round business.
If a seasonal business is more your style, consider a Christmas tree farm.
You can plant a bunch of Christmas trees and allow families to pick their favorites. You can even set up a building with Christmas decorations for sale to increase your earnings.
18. Bonus Idea: Invest in Virtual Land
I know what you’re thinking – invest in virtual land? This must be a joke, right?
But it’s not.
Just like the art world went virtual with NFTs, land is going virtual. And while not enormously popular yet, this trend has already started.
If you’re wondering how this works, the answer is virtual games and worlds.
One of the most popular virtual worlds is Decentraland, where users can buy, develop, and sell land.
When you buy land on Decentraland, the information is stored on the Ethereum blockchain, so you have actual proof of ownership. You can even mortgage land there. (You will need a 10% down payment, though.) Then, once you’re ready to sell, you can host an auction.
While at this point, buying and selling land may seem crazy, it’s likely that virtual ground will only grow more popular in the coming years.
Final Thoughts
If you’ve considered investing in land, there are plenty of ways for you to make money. You can find a good deal and hold the ground until it grows in value or use it to start your own business.
No matter your skillset or interests, there’s a way to profit.
And if you’re future-thinking, you may want to consider investing in virtual land. While there are no guarantees, virtual land may prove to be a wise investment.