Advice needed on renting my land

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We have 9 acres is Southern Maryland that we live on. The problem; my husband is not interested in doing anything to the land other than mow around the house and I have a 5 month old so I don't have the time to maintain the land the way I used to. I want to rent a portion of the land out to someone who could put it to better use than we do currently, but I just don't know were to begin. I don't even care about money, the rent could be labor and/or improvements. I need advice about how to find someone who might like to use the land, what kind of lease should be drawn up to protect myself and any other advice you can give me. My husband is not thrilled with this idea, but if I don't do it this land is going to revert back to woods, vines and bramble. Thank you for any response.

-- Andrea Robinson (Andreaandnate@aol.com), May 28, 2002

Answers

What kind of land is it now? pasture, woods? tilable? A little late for this year to use it for tilable land unless someone wants to do winter wheat. Is there any water on the property? if so then it might be usable for pasture land

As for finding someone, place and ad in the local newspaper, post a note a the local feed store, coop or tractor supply house.

For the contract yes you need something, I would suggest getting a lawyer to draw somthign up. You basicly want to protect the land. List start and stop date for the contract, what CAN and cannot be done on the land. State the the land is for farm use, pasture use or whatever, State that the land use does not include any mineral rights. state that the land must be put back into orginal condition and the end of the lease. State fee is land is not back into orginal condition that will be charged (make it big). state lease rate and payment schedule.

-- Gary (gws@columbus.rr.com), May 29, 2002.


Talk to your neighbours and see if anyone would be interested in using it. If for grazing, some of Gary's concerns don't apply; if for farming, they do.

-- Don Armstrong (darmst@yahoo.com.au), May 29, 2002.

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