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Land Preservation Services

I am a landowner and want to preserve my farmland.  How
can the Trust help?

Landowner Options

The Centre County Farmland Trust works with landowners to preserve their family lands through a variety of techniques designed to carry out the landowner's wishes. Some of these strategies also offer tax incentives for the landowner. 

Here are four of the most frequently used strategies to preserve farmland:

1) Fee Simple Donation
A fee simple donation is the transfer of a property by deeding it directly to a charitable
organization for conservation or other purposes. Tax benefits may apply to you, the donor.  (more information)

2) Conservation Easement Donation
A conservation easement is a legally binding covenant between current and future property owners and an organization such as the Trust which preserves significant natural areas (i.e. stream valleys, farmland, woodland, wildlife habitat, unique plant communities) of a property by restricting selected uses.  A conservation easement allows a property owner to retain ownership of his property, including the ability to pass the property on to his heirs or sell the property, while still providing for the site's protection. It assures that future use of the property will be consistent with conservation purposes through specific clauses in the easement document. The property remains in private ownership and does not need to be opened to the public. (more information)

3) Bargain Sale
A bargain sale is the sale of a property to a qualified tax exempt organization or government entity for less than the fair market value. A bargain sale provides a tax benefit to the property owner because the difference between the appraised value and the actual sale price is a charitable contribution.  Charitable contributions are treated in the same manner as the previous scenarios. (more information)

4) Conservation-Based Development
Conservation-based development is dually driven by a) the desire to preserve the ecological value of the property and 2) the economic goals of the owner. This balance is accomplished by limiting future uses and regulating changes that can be made to the land, while providing a reasonable return on the property owner's investment in the land.  A combination of the aforementioned preservation strategies are used to accomplish conservation-based development.  The property remains in private hands throughout the process. The right to sell or transfer it in any way remains with the property owner, subject to an easement. This option preserves a significant portion of the original tract as “open space” and may afford tax benefits if an easement is donated. (more information)

FAQ's (Frequently Asked Questions)