Will we try to sell again… or do something totally different?
Don’t worry, it’s not THAT green quite yet. Though things are definitely sprouting with our unusually warm March. This is the Tiny Food Forest in bloom, early July 2025.
Yes, John and Anika are still the owners of Stone’s Throw. (“I can’t believe I’m still here for another planting season!” —Anika) No, we didn’t manage to sell the place last year. There were so many real estate tours and nibbles, but no offers.
As autumn arrived, we took Stone’s Throw off the market because we were both too busy with our winter-season jobs to keep up with tour requests. And we genuinely couldn’t wrap our minds around trying to move in the winter. Though winter never actually came to Montana this year.
Anyway, during our weirdly balmy winter, we explored an interesting possibility. What if we stayed? What if we converted one of the outbuildings into a single-level tiny cottage for Anika. Several conversations with a builder friend and City Planning folks yielded an initial answer: We can’t quite afford what that would require.
Next question: What if we sold a one-third share of the property to a new co-owner? What if we turned the main house into two separate duplexes so that new co-owner truly had their own space?
It’s a micro-farm, micro-version of what many big farm owners do when staring retirement in the face with no heir. Sell a portion of the land to someone who might be interested in eventually taking on the whole operation after you’re gone.
Hmm. Co-ownership with a third co-owner? We’ve actually group-owned a property before and have an attorney who could set up the “Joint Tenancy with Rights of Survivorship” contract. Group-owning is not as scary as it sounds, especially when everyone truly has their own space and you’ve got solid legal boundaries in place from the start.
So, yes, we’re looking into it (!) and welcoming conversations with people who are:
Interested in the yard-farming/permaculture movement,
Longing for a place to put down roots in Southwest Montana but can’t afford the Gallatin Valley housing market,
And open to property co-ownership.
If that might be you, please reach out and share a little about yourself. We’ll share more about potential pricing and funding options. Then we can arrange a farm tour and meet each other. Can’t hurt to brainstorm!