Buying Land

Looking at Property in the Winter Can Be Very Productive, but Plan Ahead

Looking at Property in the Winter Can Be Very Productive, but Plan Ahead

If you’re looking to buy recreational land for sale in northern states, you might wonder whether you can have a productive property visit when its’s cold and snowy.

The answer is yes: There is no reason you should have to wait until spring to figure out where you want to buy. In fact, seeing property in the winter can be great fun and is often an experience many buyers have never been exposed to.

In the Ely, Minnesota area, where our company, Bear Island Land Co., sells property, land showings often involve driving, then unloading snowmobiles, and finally strapping on a pair of snowshoes. But the effort is well worth it.

Even if there’s snow on the ground, an experienced land broker can show you the property in a way where you’ll have confidence in knowing what the terrain is like.

But first, plan ahead for your outdoor property visit. Wear proper clothes and headgear. If you’re going to be snowshoeing, practice ahead of time. Carry extra batteries for your GPS unit. Bring water. And make sure you are with someone who knows the area and is experienced in the outdoors.

With the proper precautions, here are four reasons why looking at property in the winter doesn’t have to be a hindrance, offered by myself and from Brett Anderson of real estate brokerage LandRadar.com by Close~Converse, which also sells properties in northern Minnesota:

  1. Between using topographical maps and knowing what kinds of trees are found in lowlands, you can learn a property’s topography even if there’s snow on the ground.
  2. Winter is a great time to get wide views of a property, because there are no leaves on the trees or in the brush.
  3. Often, there is greater access to the wetland portions of a tract due to freeze-over.
  4. Winter visits can provide an excellent opportunity to see wildlife habitat due to the visibility of tracks in the snow. (And there are no bugs!)

Also, with the help of your broker, you can still see how a property looks during the spring, summer and fall with the help of photos and videos of the property.

Written by Charlie Chernak, broker/owner of Bear Island Land Co. in Ely, Minnesota, part of the PotlatchDeltic Preferred Broker network.

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About the author

PotlatchDeltic

As one of the top 10 landowners in the United States, managing nearly 2 million acres, PotlatchDeltic is committed to passing well-managed forest land on to future generations. A small percentage of our overall ownership is available and sold exclusively through a Preferred Broker Network in Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Minnesota, Louisiana and Mississippi. Recreational, hunting and timberland opportunities range in size from 10 to over 200 acres with something available for every budget. Whether buyers are looking at land as an investment, for personal recreation, for a first or second home or because of the memories that can be made on it, the PotlatchDeltic teams brings together foresters, land managers and real estate experts who can guarantee each buyer finds the right property, at the right price, in the right time.

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