THE CLUELESS GENE JOURNAL
A farm. A birthday. A plan taking shape.
Follow my search for a farm by my 50th birthday: the visits, the questions and what I learn along the way.
Before you fall in love with cheap land, check whether the full project—and your intended use—looks workable.
Check a farmHOW PROPERTY LED ME HERE
The farm is the destination. Everything before it has been preparation.
Every purchase, renovation, mistake and difficult decision has taught me something about costs, documents, risk and what kind of life I actually want. Farm by 50 is where those lessons meet the bigger goal: finding a farm I can legally buy, realistically improve and genuinely enjoy—not simply another complicated project to rescue.
Start with the 50×50 ChallengeTHE JOURNAL
All stories
FARM BY 50 · THE 50×50 CHALLENGE
Farm by 50: The 50×50 Challenge
Can I find a farm for around 50k before I turn 50? One budget, one birthday and a very big dream.
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FARM BY 50 · SPAIN
I Found Four Possible Farms in Spain. Then I Ran Them Through My Farm Reality Checker
I found four possible rural properties in Spain and ran each through my Farm Reality Checker. The same result led to four very different decisions.
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Farm by 50
What I’m Actually Looking for in a Farm
The idea of owning a farm sounds wonderfully simple.
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Switzerland
Can I Buy a Farm in Switzerland for CHF 50,000? I Found Something I Wasn’t Expecting
I expected CHF 50,000 and Switzerland to be an impossible combination. Then I found rusticos, barns, land—and a much more important set of questions.
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Switzerland
Switzerland Wants to Tighten Lex Koller — What Could Change for Foreign Property Buyers?
Switzerland has proposed stricter rules for some foreign property buyers. The important word is proposed: the consultation has closed, but the changes are not yet law.
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Switzerland
I Was Looking for a Farm in Switzerland — Then a Ski Property Made Me Stop
The farm is still the goal. But a Swiss ski property made me compare land and potential with usability, liquidity and the amount of work I actually want.
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FARM BY 50 · SARDINIA · PART 1
Why Sardinia Is One Place I Still Want to Invest
Some property markets have fallen off my list. Sardinia hasn’t. I’m still looking—but rural property has made the paperwork, taxes and permitted use more important than the photographs.
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FARM BY 50 · SARDINIA · PART 2
The Sardinia Farm That Came With a 2,000 m² Warning
A seller inferred something from my Swiss phone number and gave me a 2,000 m² warning. I didn’t assume he was right—or wrong. I checked.
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FARM BY 50 · SARDINIA · PART 3
My Sardinian Neighbour Gave Me One Warning About Buying Property There
The warning sounded simple: check the paperwork and the taxes. The more rural property I examine, the more I understand how much sits behind those words.
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