Land Doesn’t Come Cheap

The now famous quip “Buy land … they’re not making it anymore,” is often attributed to humorists Mark Twain or Will Rogers. In truth, though, nobody can definitively say where it came from.

But the wisdom behind the remake is as unswerving today as it was when it was first uttered years ago. And a new study of land costs throughout the country shows land ain’t cheap, no matter where you go.

Mississippi has the least expensive land, but prices there average around $67,000 per acre, the study from home warranty experts Cinch Home Services revealed. In Bay Saint Louis, however, ground goes for $207,100 an acre.

Such a divide is “not unusual” and could “outpace the state average by several hundred percent,” said a Cinch spokesman, adding that the “gap has widened over the past decade.”

“Ultimately, affordability comes down to knowing where to look,” the spokesman said. “Even in pricier regions, pockets of opportunity remain for buyers who focus on local data.”

One place you may not want to look is Hawaii, where an acre of land runs a whopping $3,490,400 on average. Honolulu is the most expensive spot in the Island chain, at $7,318,500 per acre. But the price of an acre in Mountain View on the Big Island is just $56,500 per.

The second least expensive state for land is West Virginia, while Arkansas ranks third, according to the study. Land runs $76,700 per acre on average in the Mountain State and $89,500 per acre in the Natural State.

Alabama and Indiana round out the top five, or is it bottom? Anyway, the average cost of an acre of ground is $93,600 in ‘Bama and $126,300 in Indiana.

The next five, in ascending order, are Oklahoma at $137,200, Kentucky at $150,700, Kansas at $161,000, Ohio at $163,000, and Tennessee at $164,200.