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This five-bedroom farmhouse on the market with Stags in Cornwall, together with a large private garden and in need of complete refurbishment, could cost you about £250,000.

THINKING OF buying a smallholding? Do you want a large garden to allow you to become almost self-sufficient? How about owning a piece of land?

You may have to move house to do it and it depends on where in the country you go as to how much you have to pay, but one thing is for certain, land prices are currently at a premium and it may pay to get in now before it goes any higher.

One auction recently reported land going at well over £6,000 an acre - a talking point after the sale among many who attended.

There can be little doubt that buying a smallholding or a piece of land on which to grow a few crops, house a few animals, can be a life-changing decision but is a move not to be rushed.

Interest in keeping animals and growing food is rapidly gathering pace in both rural and inner city areas and television programmes have certainly played their part.

But when it comes down to it, price is the big question. I for one do not wish to move house but I do want to buy or rent a piece of land, hopefully nearby, on which I can grow a few crops or even keep a few chickens.

There will be those of you who will hold your hands up in despair and call me mad while others will be saying "good on you, have a go".

Problems such as planning or change of use are other issues which may or may not cause delays in getting that fork into the ground - minor problems it is hoped.

Local councils write rule books with the sole aim of making our lives as complicated and as miserable as possible. But I am not going to let that bother me although I will take a close look just in case corners can be cut and prices reduced as a colleague advised in these pages a couple of years ago. His findings are well worth reading and can still be seen on the "Smallholder" website at www.smallholder.co.uk. If you buy a property with an agricultural occupancy condition attached to it you are almost certainly going to have to demonstrate that you earn your living from agriculture or forestry. If you can't, the local council can take enforcement proceedings against you, leading to a court appearance and a heavy fine. But such restrictions can greatly reduce the price of the property which suits anyone wanting to become a smallholder and wants to live on site.

So how much land constitutes a smallholding? There are no hard and fast guidelines but it is surprising how much can be done on less than an acre let alone 20 acres and don't forget, smallholdings do not have to be in the country. What's more, the more money you spend, the more land you have and the larger the property.

Then there is the chance for diversification or extra money earners such as holiday lets, selling produce or running a bed and breakfast.

It really depends exactly on what you want to do. It is your decision and one which is well worth taking for whatever reason.

A run-down property may not be of concern as long as it is fit for habitation and it could be a lot cheaper than a well-maintained property with the same amount of land - yes the land is the important bit.

If you just want the latter, then the price could be lower than you think. Agricultural land is still not as expensive as development land or land with buildings and in the right area a small section of a large field will be more than enough for your requirements.

Let's look at some properties currently on the market:

At Leek in Staffordshire, a three-acre residential property with three bedrooms and two bathrooms (one en-suite), hall, dining room, kitchen, utility room, cloakroom, sitting room and conservatory on the ground floor, garden room, tool shed and greenhouse is on the market for £369,000.

The same price will get you 29 acres in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales. A period house comprising porch, cloakroom, kitchen/breakfast room, living room, dining room and bathroom on the ground floor and with two bedrooms and cloakroom on the first floor. Two-storey stone barn with light, power and water. The land a mixture of woodland, pasture and scrub land enclosed by stock proof fencing.

Just under four acres near Oswestry with a detached property will cost £365,000, while on the Cambridgeshire/Norfolk border two acres with a detached house and ideal for equestrian use will cost £365,000 including outbuildings.

In Devon, just one acre with a semi-detached barn conversion and outbuildings, is on the market at £364,000 while in Evesham, Worcestershire, a smallholidng currently used as a pony stud with 8.5 acres will cost £350,000 as would 3.5 acres in Newport, Yorkshire with stables and lake.

If one acre is all you want a Georgian farmhouse with gardens and paddock in Boston, Lincolnshire is on the market for £349,995. A similar price will secure a property currently with kennels and equestrian facilities in Feltwell, Norfolk.

Over in Wiltshire, at Purton Stoke is 3.25 acres with village property, poultry enclosure and other buildings with planning permission for a manege priced at £299,950.

At Wainfleet, Lincolnshire, approx 0.4 acres is on the market with planning permission to extend a cottage at £185,000.

Many of the properties described are listed with Rural Scene, an independent agency specialising in smallholdings. Their website address is www.ruralscene.co.uk.

3:28pm Tuesday 22nd July 2008

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