Going back to basics like planting your food, raising cattle and goats, and renting out your acreage is gaining popularity. With the increasing prices of food and commodities, people who own vacant land or ranch can now turn them into dollar-earning properties.
Converting a small piece of land can help augment your income. Determine your interest, skills, and ability before turning the unused portion of your lot into a profitable business opportunity.
Assess the type of business and the workforce involved in running it. Once you have finished the assessment, it is time to legalize your business and purchase insurance to protect your investment.
Check out our list of business ideas from your homestead:
Building a Cattle Ranch
If you are fond of animals like cattle, you can start raising cattle using your acreage. You can begin with a female and a male cow for breeding. When your livestock increases, you can sell and trade them.
Breeding cattle has many purposes: trading, dairy production, consumption, and joining cattle exhibits and trade shows.
Before venturing into cattle production, you have to make a feasibility study on its market potential. Determine who will be your market target and your potential income.
Assess the type of cattle bred to raise and where to sell the beef cattle. Buyers buy cattle for breeding stock or use them for feeders. If you know where to sell the beef cattle, find the breed suitable for your buyer’s operation.
Ranch owners can add some perks to their cattle business by offering additional services. The average cattle value in 2001 was 725 USD per head of cattle. In 2015, the value per head was at 1,584 USD.
Horse Boarding
Another income-generating idea is renting your piece of land for horse boarding. Horse owners who do not have ample space to house their horses can board them in your facility for a fee.
Both you and the horse owners can benefit each other. It offers flexibility since your area is big enough to tour the grounds and train the animals. It will be a bonus if you hire instructors, trainers, or caretakers who will provide for the daily needs of the horses.
Converting your area for horse boarding provides additional income for your family and helps horse owners to lessen their workload in caring for the animals.
Find out the acreage and zoning requirements in your area. Survey if homeowners allow your acreage for keeping the horses in your facility.
Among the things you consider before turning your property for the type of business is having knowledgeable staff in feeding and caring for the animals.
The cost of boarding the horses depends on the size of your equine facility. You can provide arenas, pasture land, barns, office, and paddocks if your property is large.
You must hire people to feed the horses, maintain the grass, and clean the barn. Having a trusted staff means you can relax or spend a vacation while earning income from your homestead.
Hunting or Fishing Spot
A large area is suitable for hunting and fishing spot for enthusiasts. Add bonus by offering guide services and training for hunters, fishers, and hobbyists.
Before engaging in this business, you must consider the existing wildlife and state fish laws under regulation by your local authorities. Research and comply with the Department of Natural Resources requirements to operate the business.
You must know the property boundaries, restricted areas, safety zones, and responsibilities because you will be held responsible for untoward incidents in your facilities.
Non-compliance to the laws governing your acreage may lead to forfeiting your privileges to operate the business.
Renting Out for Community Agriculture
Offering your vacant space on your property is a great way to augment your income and provide fresh produce for your family and the residents.
Renting out the acreage for community-supported agriculture is gaining popularity in urban areas where people cannot grow food on their private property. Community gardening is one way of saving a percentage of the family’s food budget, ensuring that the vegetables and fruits are organic.
According to research by the National Gardening Association, about one in three American households grow their food. The trend began during the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. People looked for ways to stay healthy and productive while staying at home.
Idle lands became productive when ranch and property owners began renting out plots for community gardening.
Raising vegetables, fruits, and flowers on your property could be laborious if you do it alone. But, it provides a steady income when you sell your farm products in the farmer’s market.
You can grow strawberries, grapes, melons, lemons, and other fruits, which buyers will harvest alone if you lack the staff to pick them.
Since the pandemic, many people have been selling their farm products using social media. Entrepreneurs are using the Facebook Marketplace to promote their business. It is a great way to advertise your fresh harvest.
Land Lease for a Solar Farm
The growing demand for renewable energy has encouraged landowners to lease their property to solar developers, which provides them a steady income. If your property is a flat and open area, rent it for a solar farm.
The suitable size for an average-sized solar farm is about 20-25 acres.
Renting out your land for solar companies also increases the value of your property in the long run. The installation of solar panels does not affect the physical state of your property if it is barren or grassland.
Leasing the land is your way of helping generate solar energy for the benefit of the community. The lease term agreement could last for ten or more years, which means you will have a passive income that can provide a better future for your kids.
Land Lease for a Telco Tower
Land leasing for a telecommunications company offers a stable income that could last for several decades. The lease rates depend on the lease term agreement and the length of time.
If you have a vast tract of land, you can allocate a portion for land leasing to build a Telco tower. Telco companies look for areas suitable for installing a tower.
There are things to consider for charging the lease rates, such as location, distance to other Telco towers, elevation, local zoning ordinances, traffic, and population.
Some companies also profit from your land by subleasing it to other service providers. If this happens, you must discuss with the company that you will receive a percentage of the lease.
Develop into a Tourist Spot
You can use your property as a tourist destination in many ways. If you have a large area and financial capital, you can develop it into a tourist spot. It would be easy to create if the site has an elevation, a creek, boulders, trees, or an orchard. Talk to a contractor and discuss what you have in mind.
In the beginning, you will spend a lot of money that brings a return on investment when it becomes a favorite spot for recreation, photo opportunities, and events.
Every area of your landscaped property could be a picture-perfect backdrop for photo shoots (weddings, debuts, anniversaries, pictorials, celebrations, etc.). Dot your land with orchards, vineyards, green fields, strawberry fields, and wildflowers.
There is unlimited potential income for your homestead. Photographers may pay you a few dollars to use your place for prenuptial or portrait pictorials. You can also hire an in-house photographer who will take souvenir photos for visitors for a fee.
Amenities like cabanas, spas, pools, cottages, villas, and dance halls are perfect for holding weddings, homecoming, seminars, and other social events on your property. Rent the space for community physical exercises, Zumba, yoga, or athletic events.
Campers and backpackers may also spend their evenings on your property for adventure. Invest in tents or recreational vehicles for rent to your customers. Some people do not care about what they pay for a night or two because they are after the experience of a primitive adventure.
Launch seasonal events like marathons, corn mazes, holiday light displays, pumpkin patches, swimming events, equestrian activities, or cooking lessons to your visitors.
To attract more customers to use your acreage, use social media to promote it.
Raising Goats
Raising goats on your vacant land provides a stream of income without exerting much effort. The pasture land must be spacious to graze the goat even during a dry spell.
Unlike poultry animals, goats are easy to manage because they do not require much farm work. Allow them in the pasture all day long while you can have your day job. But it pays to have a caretaker who will keep them in shades during rainy days. Goats are scared of water if you don’t know it.
Goat’s milk and dairy products are alternative sources for lactose intolerant people. Goats can also add attraction to your homestead as part of the petting zoo.
Goats can help maintain your lawn instead of using gas-powered mowers. Aside from chicken dung, cattle and goat manure is best for composting too. You can sell their compost manure to farmers at reasonable prices.
Collect the manure from the barn, pasture, and chicken coop and dry them for several days. The cost of waste depends on the quality. Plain manure could cost five dollars per pound, and tea could cost ten dollars per gallon.
Conclusion
There are endless possibilities to turn your acreage into a profitable business. Cattle, chicken, or goat offers a reliable source of income. However, beef cattle are more profitable; it works better if you have a large homestead. Cattle need a large pasture for grazing with good quality grass, veterinarian care, hay stock, fresh water, and honest staff to provide daily care.
