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#516612 02/10/20 03:41 PM
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Greetings Pondsters!


Shawn here, checking in from Portland Oregon. Since our youngest is due to finish high school soon, we will happily be relocating to Texas! The Mrs. is an Oregon native raised around horses and I'm from Arizona raised around bass fishing. We intend to find a piece of property suitable to fill both of our dreams of pasture and pond. Disclaimer: I believe horses are beautiful and majestic animals...... as long as they don't come anywhere near my fishing pond. laugh

As I currently do not own fishing pond, I've spent the last couple months researching. I plan to order a couple books from the website that have been recommended in many posts. Perfect Pond and Just Add Water by Lusk and Otto. I believe that 90% of the information that I need to make an informed decision will be covered in the books. The other 10% I'll have to dig around in the forum some more and rely on member intel. The biggest hurdle we have right now is locating a pre-purchase land consultant to hire that has knowledge of pond design and construction. I want to test and inspect to make sure that a water structure is a viable option and not a waste of money. I'm sure in time we will find proper representation.

I want to create a balanced fishery that will one day produce trophies with time and patience. Of course the family will want to pop by and take a swim and one day I'll teach grandkids how to fish on it. My horse pasture up here in Oregon is about 3 acres and I think that's a good size for my dream pond. Plus the Mrs has been spending money on horses for the past nine years, so I need to catch up on pond spending! I plan to start from scratch and establish a food chain before introducing any LMB to the equation. I have read that it could take one to two years before added LMB, not a problem at all. Anything worth doing is worth doing right!

We are not Rockefellers but have been saving money for retirement for a while. That being said, I hope to hire a management company to help me establish the lake for the first year or two. I have no idea how much this cost but if I need to, I can put the Mrs back to work. grin I hope to have them there from day one, through forage introduction and until my predator fish are established and surveyed. I just look at it like going to college again but more fun.

I did recently find a nice piece of property in Lamar County but after researching, it's a quarter section away from a floodplain. That's the other thing fellow Pondsters..... where in Texas? Everyone loves their hometown and county but with so many counties and the vastness of Texas, we are truly overwhelmed on trying to find the best area. Are there more Pond friendly Geographic locations in Texas that can also support pastureland? One of many questions on my mind.

I appreciate you all taking the time to read my first post and introduction. I look forward to getting to know as many of you as I can and learning from each other. Need to chime in at any time with any advice or just to say hi. Thank you and have a great day!


Shawn


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Hello Uncle Shawn, welcome to the forum. I'm a Kansas fella so i cant help you out with Texas. There does seem to be alot of Texans on here so i'm sure they will chime in with some helpful knowledge for ya. Just curious you wanting texas to be close to the gulf or just like texas?


The people who say I can't do it can just sit the @^#% down and watch me. Friends call me Rusto I also subscribe to pond boss mag. http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=504716#Post504716
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Welcome to the forum
I live south of Dallas bout 100 miles beautiful country. How big a place you looking for? 102 acres with 1 acre pond just came up on the market near me pm me if that’s something y’all might want to look into

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Rstringer-


Thank you for the warm welcome. We poked around in Kansas a little bit looking for property, as well. It came down to a couple factors. The in-laws are snowbirds who usually spend the winter around Bullhead City and the summer up here with us. The other factor is but I have a ton of family in Tucson Arizona. Drive time. :-)


Pat-


Thank you for the welcome, as well. We were looking for at least 20 acres but are open to a little more.


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Shawn, in my biased opinion east Texas has a lot of advantages for a pond guy.

First and most important, it has more precipitation than west Texas. Given the typical hot, dry summers we have here, plentiful water the rest of the year is essential. Unless you plan to drill a well & probably have to treat the well water, an expensive proposition, east Texas is best. The further east, the more rain, right up to the Louisiana border.

Second, fish suppliers and pond consultants are more numerous in east Texas than west. That's mostly due to the fact that there are lot more ponds here, which in turn is due to reason number one.

Third, you have a ton of fellow pondmeisters in east Texas. Their advice & assistance can be invaluable at times.

Fourth, it's easier to hide your pond behind trees when there are trees, especially pines! wink


Last edited by anthropic; 02/11/20 12:40 AM.

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Anthropic,



All valid points that we have taken into consideration. We have narrowed down our search results right now to East Texas. I don't plan to dig a well to provide water for the pond. I will need to dig a well to provide water for the house that we build. Anyone out there have a well dug in the last 12 months in Eastern Texas? I'm curious to know average depth and average cost. I would assume that drilling itself would be between 15 and 30 bucks a foot for Eastern Texas type terrain. Right now I have two properties in my crosshairs. Both in Lamar County. Thank you all for the warm greeting and the Intel.



Shawn


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Uncle believe me I wasnt trying to persuade you to kansas. Its great for ponds but a place to retire....nope. I'm just a curious person that's all. My parents have been thinking bout a small place on the gulf for years now.


The people who say I can't do it can just sit the @^#% down and watch me. Friends call me Rusto I also subscribe to pond boss mag. http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=504716#Post504716
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Originally Posted By: RStringer
Uncle believe me I wasnt trying to persuade you to kansas. Its great for ponds but a place to retire....nope. I'm just a curious person that's all. My parents have been thinking bout a small place on the gulf for years now.


Rusto tell your parents that the taxes and insurance is astronomical near the coast. We just moved from that area in 2015. Sooo glad

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Shawn...not sure what your budget is for land and house...but you should look at this website and put in your acre range and price range for various Texas Counties you have interest in. You can cover a lot of ground searching the site at the link below.

For example this east Texas property has just over 16 acres, a pond, pretty decent house, close to small public lake, and within 15 minutes of the world famous bass reservoir...Lake Fork. About 1.5 hours from Dallas entertainment, airports, professional sports, big hospitals and specialty doctors.

https://www.landsoftexas.com/property/202-County-Road-1418-Quitman-Texas-75783/7578039/

Shawn I assume you already know, but Texas has relatively high sales and property tax...but there is no state income tax in Texas. Texas usually ranks as "Tax Friendly"...but there are other states more tax friendly.

The chart below shows that Kiplinger states you will be moving from a "Not Tax Friendly State" to a "Tax Friendly State".

Just wanted you to not get property tax sticker shock and know that over-all Texas is a tax friendly state. Plus there are ways to get Ag exemptions or other exemptions like timber exemption or Texas wildlife management exemption on primarily rural properties that can lower your property taxes.







Fishing has never been about the fish....

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Thanks for the heads up Pat. Step father was born and raised around Port Lavaca. They have check all that out and part of the hold up. But not looking for anything big just a small place close to beach.


The people who say I can't do it can just sit the @^#% down and watch me. Friends call me Rusto I also subscribe to pond boss mag. http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=504716#Post504716
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Originally Posted By: Uncle Shawn
Anthropic,



All valid points that we have taken into consideration. We have narrowed down our search results right now to East Texas. I don't plan to dig a well to provide water for the pond. I will need to dig a well to provide water for the house that we build. Anyone out there have a well dug in the last 12 months in Eastern Texas? I'm curious to know average depth and average cost. I would assume that drilling itself would be between 15 and 30 bucks a foot for Eastern Texas type terrain. Right now I have two properties in my crosshairs. Both in Lamar County. Thank you all for the warm greeting and the Intel.



Shawn





Great, you are way ahead of me! Visibility to the public was a serious consideration in my case, particularly since I'm not on site all the time. Cormorants and otters aren't the only poachers we have to look out for!


7ac 2015 CNBG RES FHM 2016 TP FLMB 2017 NLMB GSH L 2018 TP & 70 HSB PK 2019 TP RBT 2020 TFS TP 25 HSB 250 F1,L,RBT -206 2021 TFS TP GSH L,-312 2022 GSH TP CR TFS RBT -234, 2023 BG TP TFS NLMB, -160




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Originally Posted By: Uncle Shawn
...I did recently find a nice piece of property in Lamar County but after researching, it's a quarter section away from a floodplain. That's the other thing fellow Pondsters..... where in Texas? Everyone loves their hometown and county but with so many counties and the vastness of Texas, we are truly overwhelmed on trying to find the best area. Are there more Pond friendly Geographic locations in Texas that can also support pastureland? One of many questions on my mind...

First, welcome to the forum.

I'm not sure how to break down TX, but I tend to divide it by I35. For the most part, East of I35 gets more rain and is greener than west of I35, which is filled with big ranches, oil and gas wells, and desperadoes. The last sentence may not be exactly true, but last time I went mule deer hunting in Sanderson TX, we stopped at a gas station looking for the property we were hunting on. The guy said to stay on the road we were on and it was the 3rd gate on the left. IIRC, it was a 6-7 mile drive to get to that gate. Big country out west.

We're about 45 minutes south of the Lamar county property you're looking at, and here it's horses, cows, hay for cows, and dairies for milking cows. The Paris TX area should be close to the same, so maybe Brian L will chime in. I think he lives up that way.


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Antro, Rstringer, Pat, Zep and Fire,

Firstly, thank you all for the time you've taken to consider, read and participate in my post. It's like the good old days when people just wanted to talk for the sake of having a conversation with opinions and point of view. It's only been a couple days on this form but I really enjoy it.

We've been bled by Oregon taxes long enough. We are taking into account taxes and insurance which are astronomical in the Eastern portion of Texas.. That being said, the pros outweigh the cons for us. Our original plan was to find a piece of property without a home. We would stay in our travel trailer for a few months while we build a barn, pond and put up fencing. Then we can get to the business of building a home to our liking that is well-balanced with the rest of the structures.

Because there are so many beautiful properties that have existing homes on them in Texas, we are considering those as well. We currently have property in Oregon and have an Ag exemption status. I plan to use that status as well, if available and applicable.

We do like the distance to Dallas from the properties we are considering in Lamar County. We live in the country now but enjoy occasionally heading into the big city for Blazer game or some of the twinkle. As far as desperados go, I grew up in the desert of Southern Arizona. We had our share of local trouble and passing through trouble. Like any home located anywhere in the world, you just have to let your presence be known and don't give thieves or criminals the opportunity to take advantage of you. At least that's the way I have lived my life.

Things just got a bit more interesting for us here. Without the property being on the market, I've been approached by two different parties interested in purchasing  our home. We were planning to meet our realtor this week to discuss our property value. We put a lot of time and money into the property in the last 2 years. The most painful for me was putting a hundred hours on my brand new tractor. frown We shall see what the next week brings! Thank you all again for your time, effort and interest in our lives.



Shawn


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Originally Posted By: Uncle Shawn
We do like the distance to Dallas from the properties we are considering in Lamar County

I think close to Lamar County....maybe one county over..is where they are building that brand new lake..."Lower Bois d'Arc Creek Reservoir".

"Bois d’Arc Lake is the first new major reservoir in Texas in nearly 30 years"
https://boisdarclake.org/





Fishing has never been about the fish....

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Zep,


Looks like that lake is quite a piece away from Lamar. Which is okay with me. I love that governments and other enterprises are building new Lakes for people to enjoy. I'm just not a big fan of the big public Waters anymore. It's always such a competition with so many people. They think that the cameras are flying overhead and they're in a tournament when everyone's just trying to get out and wet a line. They have what they call "hog lines" up here in Oregon. Boats tied side to side like a barricade for salmon and steelhead. Usually harsh words and fists eventually fly. Another reason to get out of Oregon and off the public water for me. But I do appreciate the information Zep. smile


Shawn


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Sounds like you've thought this through really well, Shawn.

As for Ag exemption, it is a very big deal in Texas due to high property taxes. No income tax, so the state makes it up here. If my property weren't growing timber, the property tax would be quite literally ten times higher.

Last edited by anthropic; 02/11/20 11:37 PM.

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I might just have to go back to work in Texas to see what it feels like to not pay income taxes laugh


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Zep that map really hits home with the taxes for me. GGGGRRRR


The people who say I can't do it can just sit the @^#% down and watch me. Friends call me Rusto I also subscribe to pond boss mag. http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=504716#Post504716
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Originally Posted By: RStringer
Zep that map really hits home with the taxes for me. GGGGRRRR


Yes RS...nice to not pay State Income Tax. One thing about that map that kind of surprised me was Texas and California were basically rated the same as far as taxes. I would have just assumed Cali was much worse as far as taxes.


Fishing has never been about the fish....

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I have always lived here (43 years). So I guess that's all I know. Just don't understand how we (Kansas) pays more. But just last year they was 1 day away from shutting down the schools. I guess that's life but seems like it needs to be managed a lot better.


The people who say I can't do it can just sit the @^#% down and watch me. Friends call me Rusto I also subscribe to pond boss mag. http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=504716#Post504716
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One thing I've learned about buying rural property of any kind: Drive around and look at the neighbors. Some years back I was driving around and noticed a for sale sign on a place about 5 miles from mine. It had a trashed out trailer house that I figured would have to go. That didn't bother me. I figured that I could keep it for about 5 years, hunt it, improve it and resell for a profit. I contacted a realtor that I know and found that it was pretty well under priced. Then I drove down a dead end road that it fronted. I found a couple of "residences" that looked like a scene out of the movie Deliverance. A bunch of guys were standing around that were absolute white trash. No way I wanted to be involved with or even around that bunch. It took 3 or 4 years for the place to sell. And, the price kept dropping.


It's not about the fish. It's about the pond. Take care of the pond and the fish will be fine. PB subscriber since before it was in color.

Without a sense of urgency, Nothing ever gets done.

Boy, if I say "sic em", you'd better look for something to bite. Sam Shelley Rancher and Farmer Muleshoe Texas 1892-1985 RIP
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I agree 100% with Dave. Neighbors have an influence on the price of a property.


Do not judge me by the politicians in my City, State or Federal Government.


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Uncle S., We are as deep east Texas as you can get in the piney woods of Sabine County. I sold real estate here for 20 years but have recently retired from it.We are at the Texas Louisiana border right between Lake Sam Rayburn and Toledo Bend Lake!! You can find 20 acre tracts of timberland for as little as $3,000 per acre if you look hard enough. My 2 acre pond on my 25 acre tract of land cannot be seen from the road or even my house for that matter and that's the way we like it.I built a little cabin down on the pond to hang out or spend the night if I want.That being said...a local rural trash pickup company contacted me to get a description of the entrance to my property to know where to drop the new trash can. We were on the phone doing this and they said" Oh, Do you have a big pond on the back of your property?" They were using Google map aerial view!!!!!


Dear Alcohol, We had a deal where you would make me funnier, smarter, and a better dancer... I saw the video... We need to talk.
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I totally agree with you gentlemen on looking into the neighbor's before jumping to close to purchase. Being in Oregon right now here's how I've been attacking the situation:

1) find appropriate properties for sale in my size and price range.

2) get all of the ariel and street view mapping possible for the property and surrounding neighbors

3) research crime rate, taxes and all the basic must do when moving into a new area

4) contact Mike Otto to inspect the property and have soil sampled

5) if they pass steps 1 through 4, I'm on a plane and in a rental car to check things out. I'm trying to line up at least two properties before I get on a plane. laugh


I will definitely have to look into Sabine County. I like that price point! Running into a lot of properties with existing pawns but they all look like they have been neglected for some time. I'm waiting to hear back from Mike Otto regarding cost difference is to rehabilitate an existing hole in the ground or dig a proper pond. Thank you all for your continued support and information in are scary but exhilarating experience of moving and being a pond owner!


Shawn


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I heard back from a consultant in Texas today. Amen! Sounds like it could be a good fit for us. He sounds passionate about the kids fish`n program we want to start, that's a HUGE plus! I had to cut our phone call short due to "chef'n" up dinner for the family. Talk about being pulled in two directions! I feel I made the right decision continuing to cook. laugh grin Tomorrow should be a great day filled with answers we've been hunting for some time.

It's a Pondtacular Journey!


Uncle Shawn
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