Buying horse property on the Front Range

Amy rides and competes in eventing and lives on a small horse property with her family, two dogs and a cat. This guide is the conversation she has with buyers before they start touring.

Water comes first

In Colorado, the right to use water is separate from owning the land, and a residential well comes with a permit that says exactly what the water may be used for. Read the permit before you fall in love with the barn.

• Household-use-only permits are common on parcels under 35 acres. They allow water inside one home and nothing outside it: no lawn, no garden and no livestock.
• Domestic permits, typical on parcels of 35 acres or more, generally allow up to three homes, irrigation of up to an acre of lawn and garden, and watering of domestic animals and livestock.
• Many smaller parcels fall in between, with permits that allow a set number of animals or a limited irrigated area, sometimes under a subdivision’s water plan.

The permit number is public and can be looked up through the Colorado Division of Water Resources. If a property has been watering horses on a household-use-only well, that is a problem you would inherit. Ask also about the well’s depth and production, and get the water tested.

Properties with irrigated pasture may come with ditch shares or other surface water rights. Those are valuable, they transfer separately from the land, and they should be named specifically in the contract.

Zoning and covenants

Whether you may keep horses, and how many, is set by the county or town zoning and then, often more strictly, by any covenants on the property.

• Zoning usually limits animals per acre and sets minimum setbacks for barns, corrals and manure storage. Rules differ a good deal between Jefferson, Douglas, Elbert, Arapahoe, Adams, Boulder and Weld counties, and again inside city limits.
• Covenants can restrict the number of horses, outbuilding size and materials, fencing type, trailers, arena lighting and commercial activity such as boarding or lessons.
• Boarding or training for income is frequently treated as a commercial use that needs its own approval.

Never rely on “the sellers have always had four horses here.” Ask for the zoning designation and the recorded covenants and read them.

The ground

Front Range pasture is dryland pasture. Without irrigation, a few acres will not feed a horse through the year, and overgrazed ground turns to dust and weeds quickly. Plan on feeding hay year-round and think of pasture as turnout, not groceries.

Walk the property and look at:

• Drainage. Where does water go in a spring storm? Low spots near the barn become mud for weeks.
• Soil and footing. Heavy clay, rock and prairie dog holes are all common and all matter.
• Slope and shelter. South-facing ground dries faster. Natural windbreaks are worth more than they look.
• Weeds. Some plants found along the Front Range are toxic to horses. A local extension office can identify them.

Fencing and facilities

Budget for what is missing. It adds up faster than most buyers expect.

• Fencing. Safe horse fence is visible and smooth. Barbed wire, common on former cattle ground, should be replaced. Colorado is a “fence-out” state: in open-range areas the burden is generally on you to fence other people’s livestock out.
• Shelter. A barn or a three-sided loafing shed, oriented away from the prevailing wind.
• Hay storage. Dry, ventilated and reachable by a delivery truck in winter.
• Water in winter. Frost-free hydrants and heated tanks or automatic waterers, with power where you need it.
• An arena or level work area, and what it would cost to build one where the ground allows.
• Manure management. A plan and a place, at the setback the zoning requires.

Access

Hitch up, mentally, and drive in.

• Can a truck and trailer turn around without backing onto the road?
• Is the driveway passable in snow and mud, and who plows the road it connects to?
• How far is the nearest equine veterinarian, and will a farrier and a hay supplier come out this far?
• Where would you ride? Check for trail access, nearby open space that allows horses, and the distance to the venues you actually use.

Septic, power and outbuildings

Most acreage properties are on septic systems. Many Colorado counties require an inspection and a transfer permit when a property with a septic system sells, so find out early what the county expects. Confirm that barns, arenas and additions were built with permits, and that the electrical service can carry what you plan to add.

Buying well

The right horse property is usually not the one with the prettiest barn. It is the one with the right water, the right zoning and ground that drains. Everything else can be built.

This guide is general information, not legal or engineering advice. For questions about a specific well or water right, the Division of Water Resources or a water attorney is the right source. If you would like company on the first walk-through, get in touch with Amy.