We have some land but no idea what to do with it.

ifeelabreeze

Hi all.

I'm not from a farming background but I've taken an interest in it over the years (having helped out neighbours and relations throughout the years).

We have a small bit of land 30 minutes from home, but it's about half way on my commute to work.

There's a 2 acre site and a half acre site.

The 2 acre site includes a back passage way, it's somewhat steep towards the front and it's an odd shape (up behind a house), but it's well fenced, gated and was cleared last year (very overrun), now there's bracken on it, but still grass coverage. It's in the west/midlands so not sure on the quality of the land. I know my parents were/are trying to sell it subject to planning permission but have been for close to 20 years, the smaller site is a more likely option in that regard, plus that's just good grassland by comparison.

I'd like to do something with the 2 acres - double check the fencing, clear the bracken, get in a water supply etc. A neighbour is looking to buy the acre surrounding his house, including the back passage.. More so just for peace of mind than anything else. Auctioneer said we were probably as well to sell it to him (before any notion of doing something with the land came up) because it'd be hard to find a buyer otherwise and a development behind another house isn't going to happen, but the front acre is such an awkward shape I can't see that being much good either.

Is it worth more as is? I think it's worth keeping together and trying to do something with, whilst leaving the half acre free if someone's interesting in buying it. Or keeping the back acre, fencing it, farming it and then leaving the front as is in off chance someone's interested.

I was given the suggestion of putting pigs on it. I've heard sheep can be a bad idea given the ticks that like to hide out in bracken. Don't have all too many options as we haven't got sheds. Could look at something hardy like Dexters. Goats, Alpaca, that sort of thing too. It'd be more so as a hobby/interest than anything else.

Any suggestions?

monseiur

Plant it with native hardwood trees.

Base price

Hi OP - I'm trying to visualise the land. When you say there is a back passage behind a house I assume you mean a right a way and the house is belonging to the neighbour who is interested in buying the 2 acres. Is there any road frontage with the 2 acres or is the only access by a right of way. Where does the half acre site fit in.

ifeelabreeze

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120240113#Comment_120240113

It's a tricky one to explain.

Basically there was a big plot of land, square shape, front frontage and access way that goes off behind a neighbours house to the left. But the council who owned land beside us build a house in the wrong spot, basically making it so we didn't really have enough room to put a gate into it from the road. We got some redress whereby they gave us land the far side of the house. So now we've road frontage either side of this council house, a gate to the right, the land goes up an incline behind this house, flattens out and then if you follow the back fencing down along it comes down to a narrow passage way, probably just wide enough to fit a car, that comes out than to a little entrance way to other fields.

The neighbour is looking to buy the passageway and a bit more land, basically half the site. So we'd be left with an acre, with road frontage from the right up behind the council house, biggest issue is it's hardly enough room to even build a house on, it'd be very awkward given the shape. it's wide at the front, but narrows a lot and then opens up again behind the councils house.

Don't know if that's made it any clearer.

The half acre is then up the road from that, not even 2 minutes walk. We applied for planning on that years ago but it was denied due to too many septic tanks (supposedly).