Farm prices in Lancaster, PA area?

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Countryside : One Thread

I took a bus trip with my quilting guild to Lancaster, PA this Saturday and had a great time. But what really impressed me was the beautiful farms and the horse drawn carriages and the wonderful atmosphere of the Amish. I came home and told hubby I'm ready to move. It is impractical for us to move there now but I'm keeping it in the back of my mind to move there when I retire. I was just wondering if anyone lives in that area and knows what the price of real estate is in that area. Anywhere in Central PA where there are a lot of Amish would be fine with me. I went on the internet for real estate listings and couldn't find much about farms in the area. Hubby says he expects that most of the farms are being passed down in the family because of the Amish lifestyle. Even United Country didn't list anything. The only listings seemed to be just for homes in subdivisions without acreage and I want to have a large farm. Can anybody give me some insight about farm prices for that area?

-- Colleen (pyramidgreatdanes@erols.com), November 05, 2001

Answers

Colleen, you might want to consider Amish Ohio. It has a much bigger amish population (largest in the world). Check out the areas of Holmes County and surrounding counties. It has much less tourism, lots of farms and land for sale and the taxes are much less. The area is also hilly much like that in PA. We also found the amish to be much more hospitable to outsiders there. There is also a lot of Mennonite population. Although it is very rural, you also have access to the larger cities for medical facilities, shopping, etc. in Ohio (not too far from Cleveland and Columbus) also very near a nice college town. There is also lots of farm related businesses in the Amish area for things like tractors, feed, etc. Besides the amish, the entire area is farms. There are some beautiful non-amish farms in the area and you should see the unusual barns!

-- Karen (db0421@yahoo.com), November 05, 2001.

We have allot of Amish in upstate NY too ! I couldn't believe it when we moved here .I love Lancaster , but to move there you better hit the lottery .I am planning a trip in spring I hope .When I get down I head for the Amish farms local.It always inspires me.

-- Patty {NY State} (fodfarms@slic.com), November 05, 2001.

Contact the Chamber of Commerece in Centre County, Pa. they have a large population of amish in the county along with menonites and farm families. Surly their has to be non-amish farms for sale. The chamber can give you a list of real estate offices there. It is beautiful country, they have the "clean and green" deal for tax purposes. Sally

-- (mallardhen67@hotmail.com), November 05, 2001.

We have a Amish community in Parke County Indiana. That is where they have the BIG Covered Bridge Festival every fall. I would say you could get retirement land here for $1500 to $3000 per acre. There is a lot of old farm homes for sale in this area. It is a buyers market now.

-- Mel Kelly (melkelly@webtv.net), November 05, 2001.

Check auction listings. That's how most farms in that area are sold. Lancaster is getting pricey, even for the Amish. It's getting crowded too. That's why so many are leaving the area. Chester county south of there is even more expensive. Areas of Dauphin county north of there have quite a few Amish and more reasonable prices. I grew up on a 70ac farm in upper Dauphin county. We sold it to an Amish family. Half of our neighbors were Amish and quite a few have moved into the area since then. The last few years I was going to farm auctions in Dauphin county, it's was nearly all Amish that were buying them. Juniata and Cumberland counties still have alot of large farms, nearly half the price of Lancaster county.

-- Dave (something@somewhere.com), November 05, 2001.


forgot to mention, $5-6k/acre in Lancaster county. Nearly half that price or better in counties north and west of there. You might be interested in the PA Farm Show in Harrisburg, early January. It's a big event.

-- Dave (something@somewhere.com), November 05, 2001.

Hi! I live just one mile from the Lancaster County line. Although, Lancaster County is much cheaper than Chester County (where I live) this is still a very expensive area. The overdevelopment that has plauged my county has moved to Lancaster County with a vengence! I guess bargains are still to be found but, I wouldn't count on it. Next time I'm out where the listing books are kept out I'll see if I they have a book like you're hoping to find.

-- Pam Pitts (msjanedoe@hotmail.com), November 05, 2001.

You can forget about a large farm, 50 acres in our town 7 miles north of Lancaster goes for $600,000 with run down house and some out buildings. There are Amish in our area, most rent their farms since they can't afford to buy either. The subdisions are eating up all the open land and the traffic is getting like Long Island, NY. UGH! We bought a farm in NY a few years ago 250 acres for $300k. Gave that up to move to lancaster county, PA and paid $6250 per acre, undeveloped land. We are excited about our little gem and are subdividing the parcel acres into a few parcels to be able to keep more than 15 acres to ourselves.You definately pay the price to have it all, Amish and close shopping. Good luck in your search, it is lovely here!

Jennifer

-- Jenn (jricciardi@dejazzd.com), December 04, 2001.


Moderation questions? read the FAQ