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Ghost Towns for Sale in the USA
May 15, 2020
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Ghost Towns for Sale in the USA
Having private property, like a house or flat, is a common wish for anyone. The matter becomes especially urgent when it’s time to create a family and have children. After all, you have plenty of expenditures except for rent. The problem lies in the pricing factor. Unfortunately, it’s rather challenging to collect a tidy sum to buy the place to live.
It’s only a logical approach to use a large amount of money reasonably. Assessing all the options before making a decision must be a fundamental step. For instance, in terms of property, you can count on buying a village or a town for the price of a house.
It’s estimated that a home in the USA will cost $246,333 on average in April 2020. In some regions, for example, San Francisco, the average price is expected to be as high as $1 million. Why bother yourself with limited space and neighbors, when you can get a whole town all for yourself?
There are plenty of ghost towns in the USA. Some of them have been renovated; others remain untouched. It’s a frequent place of pilgrimage for those who seek adventure and like to explore local history. In this article, you can find some abandoned towns for sale in 2020 or those that have already been purchased. By the way, it can become a decent investment due to its historical value.
Ghost Towns in Florida
Florida is full of abandoned properties that come with huge lands. For example, a 56.48-acre area with a farmhouse is on sale now for $225,000. It’s a family-owned farmhouse that requires partial renovation. However, the place is ready for those who are occupied in agriculture. The vast land is perfect for row cropping or transformation into a cattle farm. All you need is the necessary equipment. It is not far from Lake City or Gainesville; therefore, you can easily find yourself in the street buying groceries or communicating with locals.
Apart from farms and small villages, Florida boasts a great number of abandoned places with historical value. It can become a good investment. All you need is to renovate a building or, at least, prevent it from being demolished.
Rader Memorial United Methodist Church is currently available. It has already been sold several times: in 2007, for $3.6 million, in 2011, for $1.1 million, in 2016, for $3.2 million. The location’s history has been lasting for almost a century already. It saw great success during the 1950-1960s period. However, the church lost nearly 1000 members between the late 1960s and 1980s, and has experienced financial difficulties since then.
The church helped many people in the neighborhood during the 2015 Hurricane Wilma. The congregation distributed stored canned goods and medical supplies. A bit later, Rader Memorial United Church merged with Fulford United Methodist Church that is located a couple of miles north.
The following owners aimed to establish a convent for nuns, or a mixed-use space with tenants: retail, restaurants, and art galleries, for instance. Unfortunately, all suffered from a lack of resources or partners.
Ghost Towns in Texas
If you are looking for exquisite towns for sale in Texas, pay attention to this lot. It offers a complete city with plenty of buildings, a large mine, and a railroad track. Villa de la Mina is a 62-acre town, located near the Big Bend National Park in West Texas. The place has been built at the beginning of the previous century. All the city was constructed from handmade bricks and local rocks.
The location will attract you with its unique look. It’s reminiscent of old Italian villas that are capable of withstanding the battalion. The offer includes:
- Twenty rock buildings with cement foundations,
- The largest mine in the Big bend & Terlingua
- A railroad track
- A pool
- A huge rock and water holding tank.
The buildings have different purposes- for example, there is an 8-room, 2-story hotel, a central house for entertainment, a jail, watertight storage buildings, a kitchen house, miscellaneous buildings, and many more.
The town is placed in a location that shows high potential to attract tourists. According to Booking.com, Terlingua will be the most attractive spot for visitors in the following years in Texas. The owner is selling the resort for $1.75 million. However, he is ready to discuss any other options, including partnership and partial owner financing.
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GET STARTEDAbandoned Towns in Oklahoma
Plenty of abandoned cities in America are located in Oklahoma. Some of them have become a historical community; many are completely destroyed or abandoned, while others remain inhibited until now. For example, Byron – a small town, whose population was only 38 residents in 2017. It’s an area with a low cost of living index. The figure amounted to 76.2 in March 2019, while the US average is 100.
Another good option is Whizbang (or Denoya). It’s an abandoned location that was considered to be an Oklahoma petroleum town between the 1920s and 1930s. It appeared in the state’s highlights within a night, when, in 1921, Marland drilled a 600 barrel per day oil. However, it experienced a decline as the petroleum reserves became exhausted in the late 1920s. The place still has several buildings that can be seen from the road. Some inhabitants remain in the nearby area till now.
Although it’s not available for sale as an entire town, you can buy a house there for as low as $54,000. Considering there are no neighbors, it can be compared to purchasing a small village. The place isn’t dangerous in terms of natural disasters, including low earthquake and flood risks. However, the locals may experience a tornado.
Ghost Towns in Utah
If you have been wondering- can you buy a town at the price of a house or not- this example will prove that you actually can. A 154-acre property can become yours just for $199,000. It’s even less than an average price for a house throughout the country. The main disadvantage is that it’ll require effort to reestablish the buildings. The place still has foundations of 30 buildings that were destroyed in a fire ninety years ago. Originally the property used to be a part of a mining town – Helper.
In case you consider this option, keep in mind that the place may have paranormal phenomena. Some visitors have claimed to see ghosts there. It gets even creepier if you remember that it’s hardly possible to find cell phone reception in the mountains.
Helper can’t be attributed to the list of completely abandoned western towns, as some locals still remain. Basically, it’s partially located in the mountains and used to be primarily dedicated to mining activity. It even has a constructed railroad. At the very end of the 19th century, the town had already boasted with a grocery store, three saloons, a school, and a clothing establishment.
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GET FREE QUOTEAbandoned Towns in Oregon
Oregon is a home for more than 200 ghost towns and is considered to be among leaders throughout the country in this matter. The reasons for that are its frontier history, as well as the influx of pioneers that emerged there two centuries ago. Some of the cities are abandoned while others are inhabited till now.
The town of Tiller is, probably, the most high-profile trade among all ghost towns in Oregon ever available for sale. It was finalized in 2018. Although the final price wasn’t announced, initially, the whole location was listed for $3.8 million. It includes 257 acres territory, together with a 13-acre pre-platted subdivision, water storage tanks, agricultural and commercial water rights, about a mile stretch of the South Umpqua River, and several buildings like:
- The old Tiller general store
- Elementary school
- A dozen of buildings for commercial use
- Four lots for industrial use.
The previous owner has, basically, collected a town piece by piece. He owned almost everything except for a church and parsonage, a general store, the volunteer fire department, and some others. Such a strategy is an excellent example of how to make long-term investments in property.
The town is not far from Canyonville – only 25 miles east. The locals hope that new owners will establish there a tree-laden river resort that will be opened to the public.
Ghost Towns in Colorado
You can find a Colorado town for sale that comes at the price of a bit higher than an average house. For example, Cabin Creek was listed for $350,000 and sold at the beginning of 2017. It’s located only 11 miles outside of Byers on the Eastern Plains.
Although the lot was rather small – only 5 acres – it is placed in a picturesque place: miles of farmland and grassy plains in every direction. The new owner has acquired a vintage gas station, an RV park, two quaint houses, and an eight-room motel. It can become a unique place, once fully renovated.
Originally, it was only two gas pumps and one shack. The owners – the Stephens family – have expanded the town to what it’s today. They even built there a garage and service station in the 1950s, turned an old gas station into café, and started the construction of the motel. The place was pretty popular before the 1970s.
Another ghost town worth mentioning in Colorado is St. Elmo. It was founded at the end of the 19th century and is considered to be a part of the US mining history. About 2000 people inhabited it, who were mining gold and silver. Today St. Elmo is considered to be one of the best-preserved ghost towns in the state.
If you aren’t afraid of paranormal phenomena, consider buying an abandoned house that is 1.6 miles south from the town. It’s listed only for $84,000. Although the wooden building requires renovation, the amazing view around and the meager price are two main advantages.
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get help nowLiving in a Ghost Town
The idea of becoming your own mayor or buying vast lands for a relatively low price is tempting. It holds immense potential for commercial or agricultural usage that can eventually become your main source of income. For example, buying a farm with dozens of acres allows you to start a farming business. You can grow plants or breed cattle. Most importantly, the land must be suitable for such kind of activity.
Buying an abandoned land with some buildings as an investment or a future occupation is a reasonable approach. You are going to create a home and business at the same time. In this case, all the accompanying expenses can be considered to be an additional business-related investment.
It’s vital to understand what happens to your financial resources if you buy a town. First of all, you need to assess the amount of further spending to establish at least all the basic facilities – such as hot and cold running water, electricity, gas, and others. Sometimes the cheap lucrative offer will make you pay more than double after the deal is sealed.
Building renovation is another essential issue to consider. First of all, if it’s not suitable to live in, you are going to need to find a long-term place to live. Repayment may take more time, money, and effort: first, you need to destroy; only then can you build again.
The property and all the constructions must follow the official regulations. Even if it’s sturdy and appropriate for safe living, you will have to meet all the rules. It may imply construction redesign, which is a costly activity.
It goes without saying that you must not only prepare your wallet but also be ready mentally. It’s hardly going to be an easy journey. You will have to deal with the abandoned area, which may be somewhat remote and even scary. But, if you have a real passion for historical heritage, the outcome is likely to meet your expectations. After all, not only comfort matters.
Possible Financial Struggles
Buying the town implies a long process of finalizing documentation. It becomes even more challenging if you don’t have the whole sum. In this case, you are going to have to apply for a loan, which may take a lot of time and effort.
Getting a loan isn’t always easy, even if it’s a mere credit card. Such factors as your credit history, occupation, credit score, etc., highly influence the decision-making process. Usually, if you have a good record and your money is attributed for a low-risk purpose, the loan is likely to be accepted fast. However, if the creditor gets suspicious about your reliability, they may invite you for an interview, provide bad terms, or directly reject you.
Acquiring an abandoned town is very appealing in terms of finance. You can get a whole city, with plenty of land, and, probably, several buildings. However, the bank may not be as enthusiastic as you. The same applies to the insurance company. Mike Metzger – real estate broker – thinks that mostly you need to look for private banking that features personal relationships between a creditor and a borrower rather than ‘traditional square box financing’.
It’s not easy to find ghost towns for sale. Nonetheless, it’s always possible to buy a huge property in such a place or near it. What is vital to keep in mind is a reasonable and cautious approach. It’s always better to turn to competent financial consultants who can guide you in the right direction.
