A Michigan farmer reclaimed his family’s 131 acres after decades apart and found a way to keep homes off the land forever

For John Boyer, the 131 acres near East Jordan, Michigan, are more than farmland. The rolling fields of corn, oats and wheat were once part of his family’s property, but over the decades, the land changed hands and eventually left the family. Years later, Boyer made an unusual decision: he bought it back.

But owning the land was only part of his plan. In 2026, the Michigan farmer took another step to protect the property, selling its future development rights through a conservation easement. The move means the 131 acres cannot be divided and developed for housing or commercial purposes, even if the property changes owners in the future.

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Why John Boyer bought his family’s land back

Boyer grew up surrounded by the farmland in East Jordan. Although the 131-acre property eventually passed outside the family, he eventually had the opportunity to bring it back.

He bought the land in 2018, with the intention of continuing to farm it and keeping it connected to the agricultural community. For Boyer, the property carried an emotional value that went beyond its market price.

“For any farmer, everything’s personal,” Boyer said, describing the countless hours spent working the land. “Every piece of property, every stone you pick up, you spend countless hours out there.”

That personal connection also shaped what he wanted to happen to the farm in the future.

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He wanted to stop the land from being divided

Boyer worried that the property could eventually be split into smaller parcels and developed for housing. That possibility is becoming an increasingly important issue for farmers as farmland values rise and development puts pressure on agricultural communities.

His solution was a conservation easement. Instead of selling the entire farm, Boyer retained ownership of the 131 acres while transferring the development rights to the Little Traverse Conservancy. The arrangement restricts future residential and commercial development on the property.

Most importantly, the restriction remains attached to the land. That means the protection doesn't simply disappear if Boyer eventually passes the property to his children or sells it to someone else.

“It’s gone forever”

Boyer's concern is not simply about what happens to one farm. He fears what can happen when productive agricultural land is gradually broken into smaller pieces.

“Then suddenly a productive farm field or ground is gone, and it’s gone for generations,” Boyer said. “It’s gone forever.”

That is the trade-off behind his decision. Selling the development rights can provide some financial value from the property while ensuring that the land remains protected from future development.

However, a conservation easement can also mean giving up the possibility of benefiting from a potentially higher development value later.

Michigan farmland is facing growing pressure

Boyer's decision comes as Michigan farmland faces several competing pressures.

The state had about 9.5 million acres devoted to farming in 2022, down from approximately 9.8 million acres in 2017, according to USDA census data cited by the report. Farmland values have also increased, making agricultural land increasingly valuable to owners and developers alike.

For farmers, that creates a complicated choice. Selling can provide a significant financial return, while keeping the land may preserve a family farm for another generation. Leasing, conservation agreements and other arrangements offer additional possibilities.

Conservation easements offer another option

The Little Traverse Conservancy uses conservation easements to protect land from future development.

Joe Graham, the organization's chief financial and operating officer, said the approach gives landowners another way to benefit from the value of their property without necessarily giving up ownership.

“We’re offering them another alternative,” Graham said. “We’re offering a way to capture some of the equity and the value they have in that land without having to sell it and see it leave their ownership.”

The conservancy protects around 30,000 acres through conservation easements across five counties in northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula, including about 6,000 acres of farmland.

The bigger fight over America's farmland

Boyer's story reflects a much larger question facing American agriculture: what happens to farmland when farming families can no longer keep every acre in production?

Some farmers are selling. Others are leasing land, placing conservation easements on their properties or looking for new ways to generate income.

For Boyer, however, the priority was clear. He had already gone through the effort of bringing his family's 131 acres back. Now, he has taken another step to make sure the fields remain farmland rather than becoming another housing development.