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5 US cities that will give you a free house or land
5 US cities that will give you a free house or land
Jordan PandyApr 6, 2024, 18:14 IST
Lincoln, Kansas.max voran/Shutterstock
Some cities in the US try to lure people to move there by giving away property for free.
In some spots, land is given for free, but the recipient is responsible for building a home.
A decent plot of land can be hard to come by.
According to the latest data from the Realtors' Land Institute, sales of American land increased 1.2% from 2022 to 2023, while its cost jumped 1.9%. Home prices hover around record highs in most of the US, while mortgage rates haven't dampened enough to make Americans feel they can easily afford homes.
Some towns, meanwhile, are offering movers land or entire homes at low or no cost. Smaller spots — mostly Midwestern towns with small populations — are establishing programs for current and future residents to acquire a home or land to build one on for free. In Kansas, multiple cities are giving away land, and one city in Iowa has an entire community full of lots up for grabs.
These cities' programs, which might help generate property tax revenue or revive sometimes-blighted areas, are designed for whoever wants to take advantage of them — whether they're already a resident of the area or moving from somewhere else.
Here are a few places across the country that are offering land or property to movers.
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Elwood, Nebraska
Elwood, Nebraska.Ryan McGinnis/Getty Images
Lincoln, Kansas
Lincoln, Kansas.Bob Weston/Getty Images
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Manilla, Iowa
Manilla, Iowa, a city 100 miles west of Des Moines, is in the second phase of its Sunrise Addition project, which provides single-family lots to qualified individuals.
Participants must build a home on the property, and the city is making it easy for you. Utility hook-up fees will be waived and there is a five-year 100% tax abatement, according to the city.
Six lots have yet to be claimed, while 22 homes have already been built.
Mankato, Kansas
Mankato — a northern Kansas city with a population of less than 1,000, according to the US Census — has 26 residential lots available.
According to the city's chamber of commerce, applicants must be pre-approved by a lending institution and interviewed by the city council.
The homes must be a minimum of 1,200 square feet, and construction of the home must start within six months of acquiring the lot.
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Monessen, Pennsylvania
According to the US Census, the population in Monessen, Pennsylvania, decreased 10% from 7,720 in 2010 to 6,876 in 2020.
Vacant homes that have accrued large amounts of back taxes can have their debt forgiven by the city if buyers present plans to rehab the properties, mayor Ron Mozer told Business Insider in April 2024. The renovations must be worth at least three times the amount of the back taxes.
Buyers most first go through the trouble of tracking down the homes' owners.