40 Acres And A Mule – Free Land Still Available In The United States
Ever dreamed of packing up and moving away from your hectic stressful life for the peaceful, rural, prairie beauty of the Midwest? Here is a great oppurtunity for you: some places in the US will actually give you free land, if you move to their town. That’s right, free.
This dated article from CNN Money chronicles one family’s move from Las Vegas to Kansas, where they were given free land to build a house. Some places will even provide monetary credits for each member of your family.
Here is a little flavor of how it works in Ellsworth, Kansas :
In Ellsworth County, for example, there are 23 lots available for free to individuals, assuming they’re pre-qualified to build a house that is at least 1,000 square feet and agree to build a house on the land within two years time.
In addition to the land, families with children stand to receive $1,500 to $3,000 toward a down payment when they buy in the area. “Each new child is worth an additional $6,000 to our school district from the state,” said Anita Hoffhines, executive director of Ellsworth County Economic Development.
Here are some free land opportunities in Kansas. There are similar incentives in North Dakota, although as the site says that the “odds are, you are not a candidate for NW North Dakota.”. You need a portable job, financial security, and a solid moral fiber to qualify. The North Dakota site was written by some good marketers, because just reading through it gets my mind thinking through the possibilities. The article also shares that towns are willing to work deals with new business owners that plan to bring economic value to the area.
Living on the east coast, I would have never thought that the Midwest was so desperate for new residents. I have been to and through most of the northern US states and they are astonishingly beautiful, although if you are used to suburban/city living there isn’t much of anything there. In Wyoming it could be 200 miles between gas stations! It is still quite fun to dream!
It makes me think that they must be desparate to give away land for free. I know the idea isn’t for me (no desire to live in the sticks, and no visa either for that matter).
I’d be a bit concerned about the type of neighbors I might have in the free land neighborhood. 🙂
Very interesting to hear that these opportunities exist though.
It’s not exactly free, in most cases they have to qualify for a loan to build a home or be able to move their business into the area and help the local economy. So, the neighbors would probably be a respectable group of people. And, before a person moved out there they could go and check it out first and meet some of those neighbors.
@plonkee – It must be that bad, or they are just being proactive. I would think lack of decent jobs in very rural settings would be a huge problem. As would a Visa.
@FinanceAndFat – With a free land program, I wouldn’t worry too much. A town doesn’t want to bring in the type of people that would damage their town, so they just wouldn’t get free land(I hope).
I’m with Plonkee – it’s not for me, but it is amazing that these states are so desperate to attract taxpayers.
The thing is, land is already really cheap in those areas, so how much value are you really getting? If they offered a free house on that free land, I bet you’d have some takers. Oh, and install infrastructure for high speed internet. I think I’d move there!
@BripBlap – You got it right, they want taxpayers.
@Jon – From what I could tell the high speed internet was available, at least in NW North Dakota. As for your comment about the house vs. the land, you make a good point, though I don’t have a clear picture of what lots are worth in rural towns.
N/w North Dakota is Oiil country there a major jobs dirty but profitable there burnout housing. Motorhomes are a must Spanish is mandatory
The NY Times published an article about this last year which painted a fairly realistic picture of the pros and cons for new settlers to North Dakota.
poetloverrebelspy – Thanks for the great article link. I gave it a mention on today’s post.
I live in North Dakokta and was just looking around to see how much land costs. The cheapest land near me is $550 an acre, so it’s not like they’re giving away anything too valuable. I think there’s only about 600,000 people in the state, so we could definately use some more people. The emptiness is awesome. I can drive a couple miles out of town and there’s nothing around me, just the flat plains and the huge open sky, it’s beautiful. It’s great because I can smoke weed out in the open on a beautiful day without worrying about getting caught, ’cause if anyone’s coming I can literally see them from a mile away. By the way, we’ve had broadband here for years.
Woo Hoo !! Just what i’m looking for. Meet ya there and we can smoke two or three while i get my land. Need a job anyway. Oklahoma sucks big time !!
I see that he titled this post “40 acres and a mule” but from what I’ve heard, rural North Dakota is not for Black people. It would be dangerous for them, I’m told. Is this true?
@Melody – I am sure there is racism in North Dakota, but I really wouldn’t know if it is any worse than anywhere else. The optimist in my would like to think that it wouldn’t be dangerous or seriously harmful.
There are free houses available in Detroit. The plumbing and fixtures are all ripped out, and any metal siding for up to about 8′ high is ripped off.
I HOPE NOT ! I thought that was in some areas of the Old Deep South.
I would hope that if not Freindly,
the people of North Dakota are at least tolerant, possibly even God fearing.
I live in rural North Dakota and it is definitely safe for black people here. A couple of my friends throughout high school were black and they rarely encountered racism, and never violence. The black people who go to the rural North Dakota college that I attend have not experienced any violence. Pretty much the only violent crime in the state is stupid drunk people getting in bar fights and domestic violence. I’ve never heard of any hate crimes, and throughout the whole state there’s probably less than 5 murders a year. Last year I think there was 5 murders, 3 in Minot and I think a couple got killed in some small town down south, and that’s the most in a year that I can ever remember. Now that I think about it, there was a murder in East Housing(East of Dunseith) where a woman was murdered in her house by a couple of teenage girls, but I can’t remember if that was late last year or early this year.
@John – Thanks for the first hand information. North Dakota sounds pretty ‘normal’ for a rural area, and pretty pleasant.
Actually, I believe having to pay money for land is quite the idiotic concept. A couple of hundred years ago, paying money for land was not the typical way of obtaining land in America. One would merely put in for a land grant with the stipulation that you improve upon the land and it was yours. Where I live (Texas) every single tiny inch of land is owned by someone and, don’t climb over a fence or ‘you jes mite git yo beehind shot off! (literally)’ As one drives down the highway with infinite miles of fences on either side of the road and the rancher watching suspiciously from the window of his ranch house, shotgun in hand, you feel like cattle being herded from town to town, city to city, like pastures, and then it’s back in the cattle chute again (the road) to head to the next town (pasture). It’s sad really. Anymore, we are born unto this earth and basically told that there is no self-sustained lifestyle anymore. You either get a nine-to-fiver (boring) or become a homeless POS. You either work to make the almighty dollar (as opposed to homesteading), or have no place to exist. It’s not the work I have a problem with. I love hard, manual labor, such as that endured by the pioneers. It’s the not having a choice of what kind of life to live that bugs me. So here I am, renting, and probably will be for the rest of my life…..:-( My pioneering spirit has no place in Texas. Get me out of here!!!!
Homeless in Texas
(aka Texas Tenant)
Hello, Tex!
Looks like your post is nearly 3 years old. Are you still around? Are you male or female? Do you still have a pioneering spirit? I am in Oklahoma and trying to single handedly build a self-sustaining life/property/home and could sure use someone around with the same spirit to join in with me. tfjunk at ymail and then the com
Hi rusticlivin,
I saw your comment on “40 acres and a mule” and thought I would drop a line. Contact me. I am curious as to what’s going on out there. I am in Illinois.
I’m not homeless in texas but I have a homesteaders spirit
Dear Homeless in Texas: you are not entirely correct. My gggrandfather and family migrated from Tennessee to Texas in 1845. He bought his land at the price of a nickel per acre. Before 1845, “a league and labor” of land in Texas was given to some settlers from the U.S. to encourage settlement in the sparsely settled state. Some areas of some other states was opened at various times for free settlement, but it is wrong to say all settlers received free land. Some did but others had to pay. For example, when my gggggrandfather came to North Carolina in 1791, he had to pay 25 cents per acre for land. And on and on and on.
I like the idea of getting free land in the middle of no where to raise our family but I’m not sure I like the plains of North Dakota, I’m more for forest and mountains. Does any one know of any states like that that are offering free land, such as Alaska, washington or colorado?
Could only wish Glen ! Lived in beautiful Gunnison colorado for years and absolutely loved it till the economy took it’s bite out of my business and forced me to put liens on homes and businesses of people who were and are still good friends, Just victims as i was. Now i have closed my doors, Tried marriage again after closing my doors, moved to okc to marry a gal i thought would be my world ( Only to find i married an online crook who took many men for a ride they wouldn’t enjoy) Emptied my wallet and savings, And now i just want the peace and relaxation for myself and family. Just not the city kind of guy. Soooooo, If there are jobs available anywhere that leave a man and his kids room to breath and grow, Then it sounds great to me. I’ll plant my own trees and veggies. Better eating than what i can buy at the market anyway. And i think i’ll leave online romance alone. Rather start from scratch and meet someone who is not all about money and willing to pioneer it as did our ancestors. Good luck all.
i am 37 years old ,farm raised. I have 2kids. Id like more info on this if i could
@Glenn and james – All the information I found is in this article. I haven’t heard of more opportunities outside of the ones listed here and I haven’t been researching it any further since I will never move out there. It was just so interesting though.
Glenn, those are some amazing choices for states! Just beautiful.
The way things are going here in Myrtle Beach, we may be giving property away pretty soon…or something pretty close to that. But seriously, this sounds like a fabulous opportunity for those who love small town life.
I personally believe that people should not really be able to “own” land. But it’s probably impossible to find a decent job, and individual owned farms are impossible to make enough money to live on anymore. This is perfect for people who don’t really want a fancy life and are perfectly content with living off the land.
Isn’t ” homesteading” still in effect? If it’s open gov’t land, you can stake a claim, right?
There is no such thing as free land !!!
Its not like you get 40 acres and can pull up and build a cabin out of tree poles and dirt. In Kansas you get a free lot, the cost of the house is yours and you then have to pay taxes, get a job etc.
Check out http://www.kansasfreeland.com/
Chetopa takes my fancy …
While driving through Colorado last week I saw a sign for free land – near the Kansas border …. which means its much like kansas – flat, dry and windy !
Personally I’d look for ‘cheap’ land near Amarillo – there you can find a 20 acre plot with trailer for under $10k …. I love Texas !
I don’t feel like living anywhere else traveled most of adult life all over the world. I now live nine miles from the old hospital now “retirement home” I was born in. Its a small town in southern Oregon my home. my friends are here my family has been here for gernerations. I’m a logger and I’m always seeing new land. These properties are always owned by the BLM or Forest Services. I would like to know how the government can hold these lands hostage from serving a better purpose like a home for my family or some other native Oregonian. why can the government go and claim land and you and I can’t. What happed to the old homestead act.
As for the Baracuda68 Question sure you can stake claim on government land. Until they kick you off and charge you with trespassing, Its labeled by the Feds as Scwatting. There throw you in jail.
I can’t believe this is still going on! I am going to have to look into this further – thanks for the heads up!
I have lived on the MS gulf coast all my life. After Katrina it is not the same. There have been all kinds of people moved down here thinking they were gonna make a killing and have taken away jobs from locals (they can do the work cheaper because they usually don’t have a family to support). The volunteers have built house for people had plenty of money to pay for their house to be built, which has taken away jobs from the locals. At 50 I have had to support my two sons because they cannot find work, (someone else will do it cheaper). I would love to be able to get away from here. If I had a sure fire way to support myself I would jump at this chance in a heartbeat.
I’m a math teacher. Do you think they would build me a one room school house to educate the people moving to these rural places? I need to live in a place where there is little to no violence. I grew up in Chicago. And I am sick of all the violence.
gentlemen/ladies
i am interested in having a free land,if
anyone could be of assistance,i appreciate it.
i also feel with the teacher above,who wants
to live in a nice small town crime free and safe.
may god give all that inspiration,and
opportunity,since i believe there is no price
for health,good name,safety,a tranquil life,time
these are priceless.
Yes, there are small towns in Kansas which have free land still available. Eureka which is an our out of Wichita, is a nice little town. The deal is, you have to commit to building a house within two years. Some towns offer additional assistance.
Free land?!?! It seemed to good to be true at first. But, you’re right; if you are willing to live “out in the middle of nowhere” then you can get this free land you speak of. Kind of makes me want to reconsider living in the urban-ish are I currently live in…
Interesting read, indeed..
-Scott
I live in Kansas and it’s a pretty state. There’s lots of trees and rolling green hills in the east where I’m from, but I prefer the western part of the state which is wide open spaces. I loved living out there. I got a cool, old building on the Main Street of a small town for $3,000. Ironically, the free lots wouldn’t be affordable for me because you have to build a house, and houses aren’t cheap to build. It’s perfect for someone who can build their own house (cuts down on the costs) or for someone who works from home (lack of jobs). There’s lots of other options in the U.S. for cheap land without building restrictions if you want to put up a small cabin or convert a school bus or find an old RV or mobile home to put on it. Just know that you may not have any utilities, which is not that big of a deal if you don’t mind hauling water, using propane and maybe having a generator. Some states to check out are southern Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, west Texas, the Ozarks of Missouri and Arkansas, and upstate New York.
Oh, I thought I’d add that the banner for this blog looks a lot like Kansas, so if you like the picture, you’ll like it here. And in response to the comments: it’s not really about desperation, it’s just a lot of small town kids like to get out of their hometown (pretty common story for anywhere) and a lot of people moved to the cities, so the towns want new residents. No big deal. I know ideally they’d like new business owners to come to town to help out the local economy. Nothing wrong with that either. And with so many people telecommunting nowadays, you can live anywhere. Your neighbors would be small town people, low crime, pretty nice, normal people. And yes, there is free and cheap land in Alaska. I don’t have the link. Just keep in mind, the further out in Alaska you are, you have to have a snowmobile or have a small plane fly you in and out, plus food costs are astronomical outside of the cities. Best of luck to everyone in your land search!
I am very interested in finding out more about how to make this happen, anyone know where to start?
i am interested in 40 acres and a mule free land still available please let me know any infofmation about it
I’ve always dreamed of having my own land and hardly any neighbors. Would love some information if anyone can provide it.
This would be a dream come true, my family and I have lived more off the land then most people I know. We hunt for meat, farm for vegetables and I have built numerous homes for family and friends. I even studied and worked on soils/proctors, elevations, soil densities and so on. After being let go from my job due to cutbacks 5 months ago and now my home of 8yrs. is in foreclosure we have nothing to lose at trying something new. Anyone with info to help PLEASE let us know.
OK, reality check folks – there is no free land, no 40 acres and a mule.
Thee ‘free’ land opportunities are in small rural towns and are for 1/4 acre lots.
The idea is to give you a free lot, but you have to build a house within a set period, like two years.
All these towns are interested in are growing the tax base – its a nice idea, and there are some great little towns in Kansas that do this. South/North Dakota too. but you have to be willing to live there, get a job, work hard … and pay your taxes.
Now ‘cheap’ land is another option, but 40 acres in west Texas or Amarillo is still going to cost you $10,000 to $50,000 and may come with a decent trailer or cabin. If you want to get away from it all then this is a better option. The ‘free’ land deal in the small towns still is going to cost you $50,000 +
hmm, there is a way to get 320 acres but it is a long shot!
http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/more/lands/desert_land_entries.html
On March 3, 1877, the Desert Land Act was passed by Congress to encourage and promote the economic development of the arid and semiarid public lands of the Western United States. Through the Act, individuals may apply for a desert-land entry to reclaim, irrigate, and cultivate arid and semiarid public lands.
The public lands have been in the process of being settled for many years. Most of the suitable lands for agricultural development have already been placed into private ownership. The remaining acres are managed for multiple uses. There is competition among users for these public lands. With the problems of finding suitable public land, limited water available for irrigation, and the high cost of development, it is extremely difficult to acquire a desert land entry.
You may apply for one or more tracts of land totaling no more than 320 acres. The lands are located in the States of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. You must be a citizen of the United States or have declared your intention to become a citizen. You must be 21 years old. You must be a resident in the States of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, or Wyoming. No State residency is required in the State of Nevada.
The lands must be surveyed, unreserved, unappropriated, non-mineral, non-timber, and incapable of producing an agricultural crop without irrigation. The lands must be suitable for agricultural purposes and more valuable for that purpose than for any other. The tracts of land must be sufficiently close to each other to be managed satisfactorily as an economic unit.
You must find lands that you feel can be economically developed and determine the legal land description. You must contact the BLM State Office where the lands are located and verify that the lands are available for desert land application. If the lands are available for desert land application, acquire an application from the State Office and also find out which BLM District administers the lands.
You have four years from the date your application is approved to develop an adequate water supply to reclaim, irrigate, and cultivate all of the lands. One eighth of the land applied for must be properly cultivated and irrigated.
i am amazed to see that these options are available and yes a lil curiouse as to (what the cach is) but ijm fairly young made plenty of mistakes lol but now i find myself at 32 yrs old and my wife and i living paycheck to paychek and i having spent the last 15 months out of work due to an on the job injury that left me requiring a shoulder replacement surgery and not knowing how much im going to be able to do as a result so i am definately going to investigate these ads i for one have lived most the states west of missourri would love to find free land in an area devoid of the multitudes and my wife being a cna can get work almost anywhere ..
Owning land is as sensible as owning the sun or the ocean, it just doesn’t make any sense, but since we are here on earth we need somewhere to be, and the fact that it’s impossible to find land that is truely free to live on is just not right.
i think every acre of land should have a number and that everyone gets one acre sortof like a timeshare free, where we can trade online for different acres, etc. just think how easy it would be to travel and see other places. Also think of all the unused land that would be put to use. Also it would end homelessness, or should i say landlessness. The earth is our true home, not our man made houses.
It’s really not true that it’s free if they are forcing you to build a house or pay taxes on it. Free land should be truely free to live on
SO IF YOU KNOW OF ANY LAND THAT IS FREE TO LIVE ON WITH NO STIPULATIONS>>>>LET ME KNOW!!!! selbyrain@yahoo.com
Can the land in some of these states be developed for solar or wind farms? If so this would be a great way to bring in taxes and renewable energy. Even if you had to be a nonprofit org it would be worth it. You could take a modest pay check employ people produce renewable energy and as an NPO donate to local economy. Sounds like it could be a win win win scenario. If anyone has any info on this please let me know.
I read about these programs extensively when this article originally came out. The idea was to attract families with children so they could keep local schools open and not have to bus kids 40-50 miles each way to the next town with a school. It is not cost effective to keep a school open with very few children attending.
Free? Freedom? Ok,,, remember there is evil in the world. We have nations cause there are folks you are not thinking about that wish to dominate you. Sorry,, just a fact. My indian ancestors had the same problems. Mexico used to have a dictator.
While we wish we could go off in a corner and raise our families with no interference,,, we would not if we were always on alert for the next set of marauders.
The next thing to remember is all that OPEN LAND… is ours to share. If we chop it all up, we never have any open spaces. We share it. You go to it sometimes and I go to it other times and jill down the road goes another. We all get the benefit. If we cover it all with people, we are all in boxes.
Just think it through. You took all my ancestor’s lands. There is little left for us to all go and know what open space “was” Thank you.
Hi there. being that i am part Indian and my father is on the roll for Cherokee. I have often thought of living off the land. I know its hard living. And being that I am trying to get my disability I have no way to work land really. But I need a place to be and im sure I could get someone able bodied to move on land with me. with that being said how do you get to live on reservations. I have been trying to get on the roll with my father in Oklahoma. I know there is a way but I don’t think I want to live in Oklahoma, But i am interested in free land To be back to where i dont have to have alot to sustain myself. I am an artist that can sell my work but honestly i have to have a place to sell it as well. any information would be great
Jon, this I don’t believe is the place for a political discussion. We all share a common history.
I think if anyone really has a look at these so called ‘free land’ offers, you will find it is going to cost you money in the long run. The best option is to look for cheap land which has little or no tax. You can find such land in New Mexico, West Texas, Montana, Wyoming, West Kansas, North and South Dakota.
What you need to do is find your 20 or 40 acres that is either up for auction, an estate sale, or a tax sale. If you do your homework, you can find good land for $500 an acre, or small-holding with a cabin or trailer for under $20k. Most of these places are out of town and have little or no annual taxes. I found land 20 miles outside of Amarillo Texas, 10 acres for $8k with a trailer. The trailer was worth the value of the land.
If you are a teacher and want to move to one of these small towns, then Kansas may be the place for you. If you can find a job in the little town you are moving to, you can get your ‘free land’ and have your house built for $100k. You will have a safe happy life, but you will still be paying taxes and a mortgage!