# I Just Want Quiet and Sanity



## HomeStead (Mar 5, 2010)

I need advice...

Should I buy a homestead if the main thing I want is peace and quiet?

I don't want a bunch of animals, maybe just some chickens and I definitely want a garden.

It would just be me, wife, and maybe one kid and couple of dogs.

I currently live in urban aread(Boston area) and I've looked all around in NH, ME, and elsewhere.

What do you think? I hate being around city noise and always feel refreshed when going to the country for a few days. I just find so many things about city culture repulsive that I want to live closer to the woods and not be in a hectic pace of life. I hate being around so many left-wing political nut cases too so that's another reason I want to buy some acreage.

If I buy a few acres of land does it require a lot of work? Can I just leave the land alone mostly or will I have to constantly maintain it? I don't want to buy acreage if it will create a bunch of additional work.

I would like to have a small house on the land(1200 sq feet). I could build one or have one already there....I don't want a huge house. Even a trailer might work.

Any advice is appreciated.....thanks


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## hunter63 (Jan 4, 2005)

You really need to set a goal
Then possibility... go and a rent a place (house, farm) for a couple of months....or a vacation/ country home....
A "homestead" implies you are working the land.....and resources
Then go back over your goals.....


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## melli (May 7, 2016)

HomeStead said:


> I need advice...
> 
> Should I buy a homestead if the main thing I want is peace and quiet?
> 
> ...


When you go to country for a few days, are you camping, motel, Airbnb? 
I like Hunter's idea of renting your ideal place, and seeing how it flies. 
Are you ok driving a ways to get groceries, see a doc, supplies etc? 
I've know folks who have 20 acres, and do virtually nothing in maintaining property, except driveway (gravel - fixing potholes). 
Actually, she doesn't want to cut a tree, ever, and hasn't. It has led to a bit of shadiness, but she loves it. Oh yeah, her son weed-whacks the side of driveway once a year and her BF cuts and bucks up firewood (from deadfall). 

Some folks are good with 1/2 acre, but it depends on neighbors. 

I hear you about country life...I lived in a city almost all my adult life until 10yrs ago...I could never go back. It wasn't the city lefties or righties that drove me nuts, but the noise (constant hum of city), pollution, and traffic (gridlock everywhere). And I'm ok with a little yardwork...and I like grass...acres of it...lol. An hour and half 3-4 times a year is all that is needed *on *my lawn tractor. Rather cathartic, and one large buffer. I don't see neighbors, and they don't see me. 

And now, when I go to city, I can't wait to leave...I even forgo visiting a store because I need to leave! lol
3-4 hrs, and I'm gone....


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## Forcast (Apr 15, 2014)

You can hire a maintenance company.
We have many weekend homes around my area. Lot of 1 to 5 acec. Most are wooded lots. Never know who your neighbors will be. If you only using your place part time it needs to be close to your home driving time makes for a unhappy event after awhile.


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## Bellyman (Jul 6, 2013)

If you buy a place that's mostly wooded, there isn't a lot of maintenance involved in that. Whatever open land you have would have to be taken care of if you wanted it to remain open but you said you wanted to garden anyway.

Another possibility, if you have open acreage, is letting a neighbor use open land for hay. Let them cut it and bale it and haul it away. They'll probably give you a little for it, or a little hay, but not a lot. But it would allow you to have space around you without having to take care of it.

Another possibility is to find a property that backs up to a state or national forest. It wouldn't be yours but it would also not become a housing development a year after you buy your place.


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## Back2Basix (Dec 24, 2015)

HomeStead said:


> I need advice...
> 
> Should I buy a homestead if the main thing I want is peace and quiet?
> 
> ...


Not to rub in but I'm reading your post as i drink my coffee next to the pond listening to the birds and frogs. Fish hitting the surface and crickets playing a tune.

Sure is loud out here in the peace and quiet.  

Cheers!!!!


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## hunter63 (Jan 4, 2005)

Back2Basix said:


> Not to rub in but I'm reading your post as i drink my coffee next to the pond listening to the birds and frogs. Fish hitting the surface and crickets playing a tune.
> 
> Sure is loud out here in the peace and quiet.
> 
> Cheers!!!!


Nice place....looks like a bit steep...from the pic.


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## In The Woods (Apr 27, 2017)

You can do as much or as little as you like.

I live in a heavily forested area so I like a bit of openness around my house with lawn area. I have about 3 acres of lawn but only takes about 2 hours to mow with my big diesel.

Next house up the road is the opposite. He is more in the woods and has no open or lawn area so he has no maintenance at all besides driveway snow removal which he hires out.

It sounds like you are dreaming which is great. But I would highly recommend living in the area you are thinking about temporarily for a while before you commit. Since you are used to city life (even if you don't like it) you may find that you dislike living in the boonies even more. The grass rarely is greener on the other side.


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## hunter63 (Jan 4, 2005)

Also hard to get a pizza delivered at 10:00 PM in some areas....
Just saying.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Word of caution-Leaving the city means many times leaving stable phone, internet, tv service, short commutes to Drs, hospital,grocery stores, work, school, and the loss of building codes, regulations, covenants, and in general, rules.
A 911 call from our home would bring emergency/LEO in about 20 minutes in order to write a report about whatever happened.
You can live like a hermit or as you do now. A small parcel even an acre or less might suit you, BUT, do not think that living in the country will eliminate issues with smells, noises or neighbors. It can be just as bad, only different.


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## Back2Basix (Dec 24, 2015)

hunter63 said:


> Nice place....looks like a bit steep...from the pic.


I live in a pretty low area. Most of my woods are under water spring and fall, nearest street is actually called Swamp St. Thankfully all the acreage around us is undeveloped and I'm always trying to buy more and more. 40 sounded like a lot but it's feeling smaller and smaller by the day


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## krackin (Nov 2, 2014)

What do you do for work? It matters a lot as to what your best options are. 

If you plan on raising a family I can't blame you a lick for wanting out of your area. You most certainly aren't the first. Most of my customers have moved north. Then again, my closest neighbor moved down from The County. Good thing, mighty fine neighbor family.


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## HomeStead (Mar 5, 2010)

Great responses! Thanks!

Yes, so I do a lot of computer work as an IT so I do need internet, but I'm not dependent on work because I do have a pension. I don't want to be totally secluded or too far from a city. I just mainly want peace, quiet, and lots of woods. I love to fish, garden, and just feel more physically healthy when i'm near woods.

I HATE lots of neighbor noise and always have....

I had a serious surgery years ago,, which has required some hospital visits at times, but 30 minutes or so away is very doable for me...It's not like I need to be within 5 minutes from a doctor or hospital....

I'd like to target shoot more often outdoors. I never hardly get to in Boston area and registering a gun takes an act of Congress here...

It's great to hear some of you say that I don't have to spend a ton of time maintaining land if I don't want to.....I can imagine just a gravel or regular driveway and some clearing around my house/trailer would be good enough....I want to have at least several acres.

Yes, renting a place for a while might be good. I love some areas in NH and Maine that I've seen. 

Some of Western MA is o.k. but the politics are too left-wing for me....Bernie's Vermont is probably not my cup of tea either....


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## Breezy833 (Jun 17, 2013)

HomeStead said:


> Great responses! Thanks!
> 
> Yes, so I do a lot of computer work as an IT so I do need internet, but I'm not dependent on work because I do have a pension. I don't want to be totally secluded or too far from a city. I just mainly want peace, quiet, and lots of woods. I love to fish, garden, and just feel more physically healthy when i'm near woods.
> 
> ...


Is the east coast a requirement? Lots of beauty out here in the mid west.


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## HomeStead (Mar 5, 2010)

Breezy833 said:


> Is the east coast a requirement? Lots of beauty out here in the mid west.


probably not a requirement....Although, I like being within 2-3 hours of ocean.


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## Breezy833 (Jun 17, 2013)

Not a lot of ocean here. Lol. We are about an hour away from Lake Huron.


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## melli (May 7, 2016)

HomeStead said:


> Great responses! Thanks!
> 
> Yes, so I do a lot of computer work as an IT so I do need internet, but I'm not dependent on work because I do have a pension. I don't want to be totally secluded or too far from a city. I just mainly want peace, quiet, and lots of woods. I love to fish, garden, and just feel more physically healthy when i'm near woods.
> 
> ...


I'm with Back2basix - except I don't have a pond, so less noise from critters. Really need 5+ acres I suspect to have some quiet. And as others have pointed out, you can get bad neighbors even in the woods. Although, being farther apart and less folks per sq mile, does tend to be a lot quieter than a suburb. I really cannot believe the sanctity of nature, I have in boonies. I got a larger lot (5 acres of heavy forest) than the initial 1/2 acre I got, and suddenly everything changed. I don't see neighbors, rarely hear them, so my morning view is the same, and has been for four years. I see trees, grass and sky, with deer passing through, and my local Ravens bugging me for a snack. A couple times a year I see a bear and a coyote, both passing through. Never had a human just walk through my property unless I invited them (once I had a person drive up, who had the wrong address). And once, I had a neighbors dog pay me a visit. Out of 4 years, that is totally acceptable. I think it is the busy-ness and noise of city that ramps up one's nerves. Honking horns, jets passing overhead, ambulance/police/fire vehicles with sirens, slamming doors, folks chattering, dog's barking...all of these things seem to jack up my nervous system. In the country, none of that, and the year round greenery I have here (pseudo rainforest) is a relaxant. Natures remedy. In the country, I can't wait to get get up, prep a coffee and look out my windows (survey my park like setting, look at garden). In the city, I'd pull the covers over my head in morning, and want to go back to sleep. And at night, I can fall asleep without any distractions. 

I toured NH and Maine...both great places...some hidden spots way up. And some awesome lakes. I'm on the other coast, but if I had to live on east coast, those two places would be at top of list.


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## Back2Basix (Dec 24, 2015)

HomeStead said:


> probably not a requirement....Although, I like being within 2-3 hours of ocean.


I'm within 30min of Lake Michigan and all of our Florida relatives prefer it over the ocean. Nicer beaches, no salt water, no sharks, no gators, and you can't tell that it's not an ocean


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## mnn2501 (Apr 2, 2008)

Back2Basix said:


> I'm within 30min of Lake Michigan and all of our Florida relatives prefer it over the ocean. Nicer beaches, no salt water, no sharks, no gators, and you can't tell that it's not an ocean


Well, except in the winter. Michigan in the winter is nothing like Florida in the winter.


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## Nimrod (Jun 8, 2010)

If your goal is "hear a pin drop" quiet I recommend property within the arctic circle.

I have a 40 on north central MN. There is a neighbor about 1/4 mile north of me and cabins on the lakes that are about 3/4 miles west and south of me. I can hear the neighbor north of me if he fires up the chain saw or starts clearing trails with the bobcat. The folks on the lakes sometimes turn up the music so loud I can hear it. There is someone on the lake that lights off fireworks every Saturday night. Then there are the natural sounds. There is a whippoorwill that feels the need to call all night long and the wolves howl some when their travels around their territory bring them close. I do suspect that things are much quieter in the winter when the summer tourists have gone home.

You do want to have some open areas and you will have to mow them or the forest will reclaim them. Try to have an open area around your house as a fire break in case of a forest fire. Trails through the woods are nice too. You can let the natural processes play out in the forest without investing any labor.


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## mnn2501 (Apr 2, 2008)

Nimrod said:


> Try to have an open area around your house as a fire break in case of a forest fire.


Very important when you live off the beaten path!!

Also you don't want tree's falling on the power lines. Some areas the power company cuts them, other areas the homeowner is required to.

All in all, you can do as much or a little as you want to do, but there always will be a bit of maintenance - how much depends on what you want out of your property.


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## Forcast (Apr 15, 2014)

Delaware might be nice


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## AmericanStand (Jul 29, 2014)

I hate to have to be the one that tells you this but the country can be pretty noisy. There are times you can't hear yourself think over the crickets , frogs , cicadas, and specially the ones the call 17 year locusts. 
As for what you have to maintain check with the county, and townships. With any luck you won't have to maintain anything. 
If the neighbors don't maintain anything it's a clue you won't have to either. 
Personally I like areas where people don't have overnight pole lights.


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## katlupe (Nov 15, 2004)

HomeStead said:


> I need advice...
> 
> Should I buy a homestead if the main thing I want is peace and quiet?
> 
> ...



I live in the state forest in NY and am 6 miles from the closest town and about 10 from another, basically within 30+ miles from two bigger cities, which I rarely go to. I shop in our area or online. Our house is on a dirt road and is just about 1 acre. We do have horses and a barn with a paddock, but if I had to do it over, I don't think I would get horses again. I have 2 cats and 1 house rabbit and about 16 raised garden beds made from rock that came from our paddock area when my husband cleared it. In the beginning our house was just a basic hunting camp even though the house is a well built old farm house. I can look out any window in my house and all I see is the forest. My closest neighbors are hunting camps that are barely ever used. I know some day they could be sold. In fact one full time residence up the road about half a mile is up for sale right now and it is a real nice property, so I am sure we will have someone new living there. But that is going to happen wherever you live unless you can buy a huge piece of land. We can't hear it or see it anyway with all the forest between us.

As for leaving behind the internet and phone service, no, that is not the case with us. We have been running an online business here since about 2002. We first had dial-up, then satellite and now we finally, this past year were able to get DSL through our phone company. So those things are available most every place.

If you don't want a large lawn, you don't clear it too large. My husband cleared a large lawn around our house because we find that ticks and fleas love to live in the higher grass. And he likes it that way. In the beginning the woods came almost up to the back door. Now we have garden beds back there and lawn around it. My husband uses an electric lawn mower so is no fuel cost for us. He does it easily and he is in his sixties. 

We definitely have privacy and is very peaceful except in hunting season. The thing about this modern homesteading is you can do what you want. There are NO rules.


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## sagonatefarm (Feb 16, 2017)

I hear from you, "Homestead" your dislike of liberals. Before I get on with my thoughts with specific answers to your good questions, let me say that I agree there's a lot of noise (political) out there but it's certainly coming from all sides of the political partisanship. Secondly, if it weren't for the liberals who want to preserve public lands, who created refuges, parks and wilderness areas (yes, once those were Republicans, too, like Teddy Roosevelt), who passed rules and regs preventing the abuse of land, you wouldn't have a choice to find such a place. For example, in Maine Gov. LePage wants to rescind the "gift" of 80,000+acres of land that Burt's Bees co-founder, Roxanne Quimby, gave to the federal government. He, and some others, think it should be open for development and not protected as was the intention of Ms. Quimby. Liberals want to uphold the intention of the gift and conservatives agree with LePage. Rather than group everyone into one basket or another, take each issue separately, independently of other issues, and make a choice of what's important for you. That's the only way we will ever come to an understanding of why our neighbors may differ from us. 

Regarding specific questions you have - I moved to the country a few years ago. I had to learn a lot given that I was not brought up on a farm. But, I did have significant life experiences in the country. Go into the process of making the decision open-minded and honest. Think about such things as your age and health. Are you young and healthy enough to tend a garden - how large a garden? If it snows, can you get someone to plow a long driveway or are you wiling to do it yourself. There was a reason that farmers, in days past, had large families - to help with the chores. 

Do you want a lot of land or just an acre? Do you want it to be cultivated or left "natural." Even if left natural, there are, unfortunately, an abundance of invasive plant material that should be kept at bay. The multiflora, knapweeds, asian bittersweet and many others have taken over much of our land. Landowners are responsible for doing their part in controlling it and eradicating it, allowing the native species to take hold. 

Some good thoughts have already been shared about access to services. Friends come to visit us and remark how beautiful it is here, but can't imagine being so "far" from a market, a doctor, a school and so on. To us, it seems just about right. It's all so very personal. 

Internet service is sketchy. Some times it works. Some times it doesn't. We've installed repeaters and boosters. Verizon will never install its high speed connections here unless their CEO has a getaway place nearby. You have to get used to it. It's a personal choice. 

We still like reading a paper newspaper. We just like the feel of it - the turning of pages, the ink on our fingers. But, it's expensive to get delivery here. We want to stay connected with the rest of the world because we still live in it regardless of how far away we may seem. That's just where our minds are. And as long as we have our minds we want them to be part of the world with others. We're not so far away that we don't drive to lectures, meetings, forums and the such. We couldn't give that up. 

So, your decisions are many and varied. Good luck and rethink your angst about liberals. Consider some of them concerned and active to protect the land where you think you may want to live.


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## Jenn (Nov 9, 2004)

GTX63 said:


> Word of caution-Leaving the city means many times leaving stable phone, internet, tv service, short commutes to Drs, hospital,grocery stores, work, school, and the loss of building codes, regulations, covenants, and in general, rules.
> A 911 call from our home would bring emergency/LEO in about 20 minutes in order to write a report about whatever happened.
> You can live like a hermit or as you do now. A small parcel even an acre or less might suit you, BUT, do not think that living in the country will eliminate issues with smells, noises or neighbors. It can be just as bad, only different.


 We finally have DSL but that might not be adequate for the online IT work you do. Sort internet out so losing that job is not a surprise. Also cell phone signal can be iffy! We could not go with some providers.

Partly because I'm one of those NE liberals imported to this area, I've had a lot less trouble here with urban folk black or white when I'm in town, no matter what part of town, than I have had with white teenage boys living in my neighborhood. I'm more worried for my safety or sanity locally in a crowd of whites than blacks. Two boys were motorbiking in our adjacent woodlot and even cutting down my smaller trees there! THese kids both have 6-10 acres of their own but chose to trespass on our property. Added another string of bobwire and blocked the easy access they were using. A third boy, after we bought the lot next to his where he HAD been legally motorbiking (their landlord had owned both lots), started shooting at the no trespassing signs and tossed a shot up soda can into our yard and hit my front door with a rock which sure sounded like gunfire when it hit (if not a bullet- but guess he used a slingshot?). All while my husband was deployed to Iraq. Way to support the military. I had fenced and signed the area after I saw that, even after we bought it, they were tearing huge erosive trenches through the lot with their dirtbikes. If they'd walked through it only I would not have cared but these rural kids are lazy- golf cart just to go 1/4 mile.



HomeStead said:


> probably not a requirement....Although, I like being within 2-3 hours of ocean.


 FL and even us in S AL are very close to the Gulf. Might be way too warm for you here though after MA.

I sit looking out my kitchen windows at greenery. Luckily there's 50+' between my house and driveway and the next 3 acre lot so I can't even see their house for the dozens of trees in that 50'. That owner believes in landscaping the Brazilian style so if my house were closer to his I'd be looking at his lawn and house and I'd have to get dressed every time I ran out on the back porch for something.

But it sure is noisy- owls going all night, buzz of cicadas and chirp of frogs, neighbors mowing or sawing starting at 7 am, worst of all (luckily he moved) a contractor across the road who met all his workers before 6 am most days I had off and could sleep in, with 3-7 diesel trucks idling for up to half an hour until they all set out to their worksite. So if you can only buy a few acres spend a few visits at various hours of day and week to suss out if you could stand it (are there dogs barking all night?), maybe meet the neighbors and find out if they might lynch a Trump voter or a Hillary voter (or a Bernie voter!) whichever you were.


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## shaky6 (May 15, 2015)

Jump right in and you won't have to make any choices about wanting to do this or should I do that. You won't have a choice because you have to do it. Come on down to Southeast Alabama near Dothan. Lots of country land available from sub-rural plots to boonie tracts of land. Deer, birds, turkey, fox, coyotes, maybe a gator or two if you're close to the river or lake. Satellite internet if Spectrum doesn't serve your road. Low property taxes, warm weather year round, and UPS and FedEx still deliver. Just don't bring your East Coast politics with you, please. 

Or maybe you should just get a camper and buy an RV lot off the beaten path. Stay a weekend or a month here and there.


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## IndyDave (Jul 17, 2017)

sagonatefarm said:


> I hear from you, "Homestead" your dislike of liberals. Before I get on with my thoughts with specific answers to your good questions, let me say that I agree there's a lot of noise (political) out there but it's certainly coming from all sides of the political partisanship. Secondly, if it weren't for the liberals who want to preserve public lands, who created refuges, parks and wilderness areas (yes, once those were Republicans, too, like Teddy Roosevelt), who passed rules and regs preventing the abuse of land, you wouldn't have a choice to find such a place. For example, in Maine Gov. LePage wants to rescind the "gift" of 80,000+acres of land that Burt's Bees co-founder, Roxanne Quimby, gave to the federal government. He, and some others, think it should be open for development and not protected as was the intention of Ms. Quimby. Liberals want to uphold the intention of the gift and conservatives agree with LePage. Rather than group everyone into one basket or another, take each issue separately, independently of other issues, and make a choice of what's important for you. That's the only way we will ever come to an understanding of why our neighbors may differ from us.
> 
> Regarding specific questions you have - I moved to the country a few years ago. I had to learn a lot given that I was not brought up on a farm. But, I did have significant life experiences in the country. Go into the process of making the decision open-minded and honest. Think about such things as your age and health. Are you young and healthy enough to tend a garden - how large a garden? If it snows, can you get someone to plow a long driveway or are you wiling to do it yourself. There was a reason that farmers, in days past, had large families - to help with the chores.
> 
> ...


You raised an excellent point in that partisan politics is worse about 'bundling' than any internet/phone/television company you will find anywhere. I find it disturbing that we are basically told you have to 'pick a team' and you cannot be, for example, against both GMO food and abortion at the same time, or support laws that prevent rivers from catching on fire while simultaneously opposing government micromanaging your personal life.


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## melli (May 7, 2016)

Jenn said:


> We finally have DSL but that might not be adequate for the online IT work you do. Sort internet out so losing that job is not a surprise. Also cell phone signal can be iffy! We could not go with some providers.
> 
> Partly because I'm one of those NE liberals imported to this area, I've had a lot less trouble here with urban folk black or white when I'm in town, no matter what part of town, than I have had with white teenage boys living in my neighborhood. I'm more worried for my safety or sanity locally in a crowd of whites than blacks. Two boys were motorbiking in our adjacent woodlot and even cutting down my smaller trees there! THese kids both have 6-10 acres of their own but chose to trespass on our property. Added another string of bobwire and blocked the easy access they were using. A third boy, after we bought the lot next to his where he HAD been legally motorbiking (their landlord had owned both lots), started shooting at the no trespassing signs and tossed a shot up soda can into our yard and hit my front door with a rock which sure sounded like gunfire when it hit (if not a bullet- but guess he used a slingshot?). All while my husband was deployed to Iraq. Way to support the military. I had fenced and signed the area after I saw that, even after we bought it, they were tearing huge erosive trenches through the lot with their dirtbikes. If they'd walked through it only I would not have cared but these rural kids are lazy- golf cart just to go 1/4 mile.
> 
> ...


Sorry to hear of your troubles with teenagers not respecting your property nor space. 50' is much too close to a neighbor...imho. I do hope they grow out their behavior real quick. 

I used to be 25' from a neighbor's house and deck (in the 'country'). Gong show in summer, as it was their weekend getaway cottage, and they lived it up til the wee hours of morning. Police even attended a domestic issue after a heavy night of drinking. I was the daytime noise maker, and they were none too pleased. But I also found myself living differently on the 1/2 lot, than I do now on 5 acre lot (I'm parked dead center of lot, so nearest neighbor is 500ft away down a hill through heavy forest). I'd find myself being mindful of neighbors and (not a bad thing per se, but the point of living in country is to be free of city etiquette), not doing certain things that could upset them. I'd even forgo quiet chores as they had a front row seat of my yard (and they complimented me on it, while I was gardening etc., they'd be on their deck taking it in). And since they had no clue how to turn their yard into a lawn, they had to use 2 weedwhackers over the course of two days to knock it down (pothole rubble yard). Yet, they had the temerity to whine about my noise making...lol

The final straw of many, was enjoying my morning cup of coffee at kitchen table, in the wee hours of morning, watching the sun rise over the hill, dew covered grass, when I noticed my neighbor walking their dog in the middle of my yard and take a dump (their yard, as I noted, was too dangerous to walk on, unless ankle sprains is your thing). I was taken aback by the brazen lack of respect for my private property and arose from chair. They saw me, and scurried over to their property, leaving the present behind. Eventually, they relented and put up fence (fences make good neighbors is true). 
I felt like I at least owned my land again. Their expectations were wholly unrealistic, and could be summed up by what they told me about their dogs. "We don't want to have to worry about our dogs when we are up here." I think they lived under the assumption that private property in country is different from city. 

Back on point with OP: critical to find a property that is in a good neighborhood. It seems there always will be the odd volatile neighbor in a hood. Just try to avoid that scenario...talk to folks before you buy. Like me, I didn't do much due diligence on first country property, but second one I did a lot...I spoke to neighbors. And overall, finding a like minded community makes a big difference (not in terms of politics, but what they are doing here). My area is settled mostly by retirees or urban professionals looking for a getaway retreat. Both are right up my alley. There is a smaller class of folks who are artisans, support services for the two larger groups (home builders to excavation). We all mesh.


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## HomeStead (Mar 5, 2010)

Great info. from everyone.


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## big rockpile (Feb 24, 2003)

I hunt and fish on Public Land most of the time I'm very alone and enjoy it very much.

big rockpile


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## Bellyman (Jul 6, 2013)

Something that really gets me here in TN... we're looking for a place right now... is that there are these 10 acre or 15 acre or 20 acre places that will be either super long and skinny with the neighbors being like 50 feet from your house, or a decent plot of ground with the house 50 feet from a busy road. AARRGGHH!!!!!! That's probably 95% of the stuff for sale. 

As someone who wants privacy and wants to be back off the road, there isn't nearly as much to look at as I wish there were. 

I saw a place a couple of days ago that I'm considering. It's 16 acres and no close neighbors. But it has a lot of open space in areas that let the property on display pretty well to the neighbors that are in the area. I had thought about planting a bunch of trees along the property lines. It would take a few years to really make a difference but when it did, it would be a really cool place, and very private.


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## SSRD (Jul 13, 2017)

Bellyman said:


> Something that really gets me here in TN... we're looking for a place right now... is that there are these 10 acre or 15 acre or 20 acre places that will be either super long and skinny with the neighbors being like 50 feet from your house, or a decent plot of ground with the house 50 feet from a busy road. AARRGGHH!!!!!! That's probably 95% of the stuff for sale.
> 
> As someone who wants privacy and wants to be back off the road, there isn't nearly as much to look at as I wish there were.
> 
> I saw a place a couple of days ago that I'm considering. It's 16 acres and no close neighbors. But it has a lot of open space in areas that let the property on display pretty well to the neighbors that are in the area. I had thought about planting a bunch of trees along the property lines. It would take a few years to really make a difference but when it did, it would be a really cool place, and very private.


The state is just too crowded anymore and people keep coming. Everything is exploding. Properties are being cut up and sold. People are retiring to Tennessee from the west coast and the northeast. Its a shame. Used to be a wonderful place.


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## In The Woods (Apr 27, 2017)

Bellyman said:


> Something that really gets me here in TN... we're looking for a place right now... is that there are these 10 acre or 15 acre or 20 acre places that will be either super long and skinny with the neighbors being like 50 feet from your house, or a decent plot of ground with the house 50 feet from a busy road. AARRGGHH!!!!!! That's probably 95% of the stuff for sale.
> 
> As someone who wants privacy and wants to be back off the road, there isn't nearly as much to look at as I wish there were.
> 
> I saw a place a couple of days ago that I'm considering. It's 16 acres and no close neighbors. But it has a lot of open space in areas that let the property on display pretty well to the neighbors that are in the area. I had thought about planting a bunch of trees along the property lines. It would take a few years to really make a difference but when it did, it would be a really cool place, and very private.


If I ever move again it will be a minimum of 50 acres (100 preferable) with the house smack in the middle.

I don't have any visible neighbors where I live but can hear the weekend warriors at their camps.

And watch those strips of 5 or 10 acres all in a row - that spells development to me and may someday bring a home owner's association or something similar.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Long skinny parcels of land mean the developer is trying to maximize profit. He can't cut the back off the land without roads/infrastructure so it sounds better to offer "12 acres of timber and 3 acres of pasture" and yet your so close to the house next to you that livestock, shooting, outdoor get togethers and how each person maintains their property becomes more of an issue. That isn't just in one state; it is happening everywhere there is rural property.


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