Conservation Property
One of the latest movements and areas of interest in Georgia and South
Carolina is conservation properties. This area of land investment is
becoming increasingly popular as individuals, partnerships and
corporations learn more about the present and future benefits of owning
these properties. Conservation properties may come in a myriad of ways
that can all produce value or benefit to the land investor. Typically,
the property size is determined by the need of the investor and the
willingness of the easement holder to accept the property.
Almost all conservation properties are characterized by one component,
the conservation easement. The concept of a conservation easement can
best be described in real estate by acknowledging that owning real
estate involves the physical property and the “bundle of rights” that
typically come with each property. In land, some of these rights may
include, developing the land, residentially, industrially, commercially
or otherwise, the right to grow and harvest timber and mining rights
just naming a few. Through entering into a formal agreement with a
qualified easement holder, a land trust or some other qualified entity,
the landowner surrenders some portion or all of these rights to the
easement holder into perpetuity while continuing to retain the physical
property . The landowner receives either immediate remuneration from
the easement holder or benefit of future state and federal tax burden.
Each easement given can be specifically tailored around the needs of
the landowner as long as the easement holder is willing to accept the
easement given.
Land that could also qualify as wetland and stream bank mitigation
banks can become conservation properties. Once certain aspects of these
properties can be restored to their original state, and value is
created for the land owner, then the affected area by the mitigation
bank will be placed into a conservation easement for protection.
Another aspect of conservation properties is a landowner voluntarily
placing his land or some portion thereof into a conservation easement
to protect it from escalating property taxes in an area of growth for
future generations enjoyment. Any surrendering of these property rights
should be entered into with much though since these easements are
perpetual and run with the land so they also affect future of the land.
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