Quote Originally Posted by rspears View Post
Wes, we have good friends who were in that situation, and he took a unique approach. They found a corner property in an area that had not yet "popped" with the developers and bought an 80 acre field. Then they built a big metal building on slab, spending a bit extra to give it a better "look" than just a pole barn - some front facade to resemble an old time store front or barn, plumbed it for full bath, fully insulated it and finished a large area as living quarters. They then lived in the "barn" for a year while the house was being built, and the guy "helped" with construction as he wanted to, especially when it came time for special features and finish work. Ended up with a fantastic setup, the house they wanted, plus a very, very nice shop. The big upside, after about eight years the developers started surrounding them with upscale houses, $350 to $600K on 1/3 to 1/2 acre lots, and he sold off the extra land, keeping an acre or so for his back yard. They did very well....

Good luck on your hunt.
That's pretty much what we did.
But we subdivided about 14 acres off our 329 acre block and sold the 315 acres.
Built the shed prior to that, and lived in it for twelve months while the house was being built.
So we now have a set-up that when sold would appeal to any small business, complete with showers, m & f toilets, smoke-oh room, manager's office, secretary's office, front counter area, lots of mezzanine storage, truck access, three phase power throughout, and large ancillary buildings . . .