Protect your land and encourage others to protect their land

The concept of land ownership means little to forests, wildlife, water and soil. Yet to ensure that the wild lands of Massachusetts retain their capacity to support healthy ecosystems, we must permanently protect a substantial portion of our undeveloped land. Private landowners have an enormous role to play in this process as nearly all unprotected land is in private hands. Many are unaware of how their land fits into the network of large, protected land areas and interconnecting habitat that needs to be protected to maintain fish, wildlife, forests, wetlands and the other natural resources on which we depend.

For many landowners and families, the natural beauty and legacy values of their land are at least equally important as its financial value. Your land may be where you raised a family, explored nature, worked in the woods, and took walks. To meet their family’s personal needs or out of a desire to preserve nature, some landowners limit the types of activities that happen on the land in the future so that all or some of it will stay in its natural or undeveloped state through the use of land conservation tools.

There are several options landowners can use to protect their land. Some involve selling or donating the land for conservation; other options allow you to continue to own the land and protect it from development. In addition, these land conservation tools often provide some positive financial values through income or tax savings. Understanding these options is an important step in deciding the future of your land. Consulting with a land protection specialist from a local land trust can help you explore these tools and determine the best fit for your land.

Conserving Your Land

Decisions you make as a landowner can have long-lasting effects on the Massachusetts landscape that future generations will inherit, and on the wildlife that share this landscape with us. Not only will conserved land benefit people and wildlife, but it also offers the landowners tax advantages. 
There are many ways to permanently protect your land, including a donation or sale of the ownership of the land, or of a perpetual conservation restriction (easement).

Donating or Selling Conservation Restrictions

Your land includes several different types of rights, including the right to develop your land, farm, hunt, and manage your woods. A conservation restriction (CR) is a legally binding agreement that permanently protects certain conservation values of a property while allowing the land to remain in private ownership. It is a flexible tool that can be placed on all or only designated parts of your land, allowing you to reserve house lots to provide financial value or housing options for your family, or to address needs of the owner.

They are conveyed to a non-profit conservation organization or public conservation entity, which accepts the right and responsibility to monitor the property and defend and enforce the terms of the CR in perpetuity. CRs are placed on record at the Registry of Deeds and run with the land, meaning that they apply to all future owners of the property. 

When a landowner sells or donates a CR, s/he can continue to live on or work the land - in accordance with the CR's provisions - and can sell the land or pass it on to heirs. They usually involve the permanent extinguishment of some, but not necessarily all, of the development potential of the land, and can be gifted or sold. Properly crafted, CRs can generate significant tax benefits in the form of income tax deductions and estate or property tax reductions. A CR can be donated, which often provides the landowner with a tax deduction for a charitable gift. A CR can be sold for income if the land has exceptional natural resources. A CR can also be sold below market value for both income and tax benefits (see “Bargain Sale” below).

Agricultural Preservation Restriction (APR) Acquisition

An agricultural preservation restriction (APR) is a special type of CR. It prohibits non-agricultural, non-open space use or development of a parcel to preserve the land for agricultural purposes.

Donating or Selling Land

Land can be permanently protected by donating it or selling it to a qualified conservation organization, such as a land trust or state conservation organization. Donations of land may provide significant tax advantages as a charitable gift.

By donating or selling your land to the City or a local land trust, your property will benefit wildlife and people. Conveying your land outright may be the simplest and best way to conserve it. Your gift or sale of land will help connect people with nature while freeing you of all responsibilities of ownership and management, including property taxes. 

Landowners who donate or charitably discount the sale of their land for conservation may take advantage of several tax benefits, including reductions in federal income tax and reductions in estate tax, to name a few.

Bargain Sale

Landowners can sell their land or conservation restrictions at a price below its fair market value. The difference between the appraised market value and the sale price to a qualified conservation organization, such as a land trust or a state conservation organization, is considered a tax-deductible charitable contribution, providing some income and potentially some tax benefits.

Bequest

A donation of land or a conservation restriction through your will is another way to ensure your land’s permanent protection and potentially to reduce your estate tax burden. You can change your will at any time, and a bequest does not become effective until your death. This is a good approach if you need to keep the financial value of your property in reserve in case of unexpected medical bills or other needs but want to be sure the land will be conserved if you do not need to sell it during your lifetime.

Reserved Life Estate

Landowners sometimes negotiate a gift or sale of the property while reserving the right to occupy and use the property for life. Upon the death of the landowner, control of the property automatically transfers to a conservation organization. The gift of a property with a reserved life estate can qualify the donor for a charitable deduction based on the value of the property donated and the reserved life estate, which is all based on the donor’s age.

Limited Development

Limited development protects most of the land while a small portion is sold or maintained by the landowner for future development. In a limited development scenario, the areas with the greatest conservation value are protected through one of the tools described above, while other less sensitive areas of the land are set aside for future development.

Updated 2.4.25
Information sourced from Land Conservation Options | UMass Amherst MassWoods

Landowner resources for Land protection

Land Management Tools & Reports

• Land Conservation Benefits | Mass.gov
• BioMap Hub
• Protect land: Protect land in perpetuity | Massachusetts Wildlife Climate Action Tool
• Critical Linkage Phase II Report
• Caring for Your Land | UMass Amherst MassWoods
• MassWildlife Habitat Management | Mass.gov

Land Conservation Information

• Tools for Protection and Planning | Mass.gov
• How To Protect Your Land - Mass Audubon
• Their Land, Their Legacy
• Your Land, Your Choices
• Landowner Programs | UMass Amherst MassWoods
• Deciding the Future of My Land | UMass Amherst MassWoods
• http://masswoods.net/

Land Trusts & Land Protection Agencies

• Conserve Land in Essex County, Massachusetts - Greenbelt
• Massachusetts Land Trust Coalition
• Mass Audubon
• Department of Conservation & Recreation | Mass.gov
• MassWildlife land acquisitions | Mass.gov