Plan → Find Land

Find the Land

The first checkpoint of the whole plan: ~10 acres in a rural outer-DFW county, Zone 8, ideally with road frontage for the stand and water already at the road. Live leads, pre-filtered searches, and the checklist to vet a parcel before you make an offer.

01 What we're looking for

The land is the biggest lever in the budget — every $10k off the price is $10k of farm. The targets below come straight from the layout and cost pages.

The non-negotiables

~8–12 acres · rural / unrestricted (ag use OK) · road frontage on one edge for the south public front + farm stand · USDA Zone 8 · legal access & a build-able spot.

Worth real money if present

An existing pond (saves ~$8–18k) · water/electric or co-op at the road (cuts utility run-in) · an ag/wildlife valuation already in place (slashes property tax) · existing perimeter fence.

Budget

Plan line is ~$150k. Realistic today for 10 ac with frontage is ~$150–250k depending on county — achievable on the outer edges of Fannin, Hunt, Hopkins, and Navarro.

02 Candidate parcels (verify availability — leads, not listings)

Surfaced from a search run on this plan's criteria. Prices and availability change daily and the big portals block automated reads, so treat these as leads to confirm with the listing agent — not guaranteed-live listings.

CountyParcelWhy it fits
Hunt10+ ac, unrestricted, on CR 1040Asphalt road frontage, co-op water at the road, and a pond already at the back
Fannin~10 ac N of WhitewrightOpen pasture + tree lines, paved county-road frontage, partial fence, ag exemption in place
Fannin10.5 ac, ~1,125 ft of FM 274 frontageHeavy paved frontage — easy entrance/cattle-guard + U-pick visibility
Hopkins10 ac near Jim Chapman Lake / Sulphur SpringsWater + electric at the street
Hopkins11 ac sandy-loam pasture; also 10.01 ac in DikeFenced two sides, wet-weather creek; easy-working sandy loam
Cooke8.21 ac, Myra — ~$175,000Closest to DFW but priciest county; slightly under 10 ac

The Hunt CR-1040 and Whitewright (Fannin) tracts are the strongest matches — they already have the two things the layout leans on: road frontage and either a pond or water at the road.

03 Pre-filtered searches

Set to ~10 acres in the target counties — open, then refine by price and frontage.

Cheaper / best $-per-acre

Closer to DFW (pricier)

Cooke & Ellis sit closest to the metro, so 10 ac with frontage usually runs over the $150k line — good if commute matters more than acreage price.

04 The buyer's checklist — vet before you offer

A cheap parcel with a fatal flaw isn't cheap. Walk this before earnest money.

Land & access

  • Road frontage & orientation — frontage on the side that becomes the south public front; legal, deeded access (not just an easement).
  • Survey — current boundary survey; confirm true acreage and corners.
  • Floodplain — check FEMA maps; keep the home pad and barns out of the 100-yr.
  • Topography & soil — gentle slope for swales/pond; get a soil/perc read for the septic.
  • Restrictions / zoning / HOA — confirm ag, livestock, a farm stand, and a second income use are allowed.
  • School attendance zone — a parcel's zone (not its county) sets the school; check the current A–F rating at txschools.gov / GreatSchools / Niche.

Water, utilities & rights

  • Water — co-op tap available? Well depth & yield for neighbors (Trinity aquifer)? Existing pond water rights?
  • Electric — distance to the nearest line; cost to bring service in.
  • Septic — aerobic feasible; no perc-killing clay or high water table.
  • Mineral rights — who owns them; is there an active lease, pipeline, or pad risk? Get a title/mineral check.
  • Taxes — is an ag/wildlife valuation already in place (keep it) or will you re-qualify?
Tie-in: this page is the roadmap's first checkpoint — "find & close on land." Everything else (well, drive, fence, house) gates on it.