Purchasing a Lifestyle Property – What to Do With the Land

If you are thinking about buying a lifestyle property in NZ you certainly won’t be short on options in terms of the type of land and soil conditions available. Rural areas may not have as many large holdings operating anymore, but that is no reflection on the high quality land that is on offer throughout the country.

Some real estate companies will offer blocks that are ready to be framed for a particular purpose such as olives, orchards or a vineyard. All of these are a good option if you want something that can produce small boutique quantities of something rather than anything that may give you a high yield.

If you know that your bit of earth is primarily an escape from a city job, and you won’t have a lot of time to give to maintenance and growth, then it’s important to talk about the time investment for a particular crop or if you plan to have livestock, will they require daily attention or can you leave them for a few days? Some people choose to farm goats for this reason as they can spend longer days in the office over the week, and check up on the goats at the lifestyle property during the weekend.

You might like to think you can do anything you want on your own land, but there are a range of factors to consider including soil quality, sunshine hours, whether the spot is protected from the wind and how many frost free days you are likely to experience. If you have a particular plan in mind, it’s important to check whether it’s going to be possible on your spot of land by asking an expert.

Often the initial costs to develop new blocks of land can be costly, but if you plan it well and think for the long term, even a small piece can provide you with a good amount of dividend. It’s about doing your research, treating it like a business and investing in your own ideas and aims.

Lifestyle property in New Zealand is increasingly common. If you’ve always wanted your own little bit of dirt, doing a little forward planning can turn it into something that brings in its own return, without causing you to be exhausted.