Landowner Case Study: Drs. William L. and L. Susan Dixon

Summary

• Project: Dixon Trade Land
• Landowners: Drs. William L. and L. Susan Dixon
• Transaction: Donation of trade land
• Acres: 15
• County: Orange
• Conservation Values for TLC: Provides funds for other conservation projects
• Landowner Goals Met: Desire to support Triangle conservation efforts; tax benefit

Background

Suppose you'd like to support land protection, but the property you own doesn't rank high in terms of conservation value. That's exactly the dilemma that faced Drs. William L. and L. Susan Dixon, who owned a 15-acre property in Orange County, on Dimmocks Mill Road in Hillsborough. The Dixons had purchased the land in 1999 with the plan of possibly building a home there in the quiet, natural setting among hardwood and pine forests. However, a subsequent relocation to Asheboro spoiled that plan, and the Dixons decided to explore options for the land, including donating the property for conservation.

Dr. William Dixon at home with his standard poodles, Leopold (left) and Maya.

Dr. William Dixon, a retired professor who now teaches part-time at Alamance Community College, spotted a conservation group's phone number in his Audubon calendar, and through a few referrals, got in touch with TLC about the possibility of protecting his land.

The Strategy

At the Dixons' request, TLC conducted an assessment of the property and determined that it did not have a high conservation value. One of TLC's land protection specialists, Tandy Jones, suggested a "trade land" strategy that would meet the Dixons' desire to support land conservation while recognizing the limitations of the property. "We discussed the idea of the property being a donation to TLC that we could resell and use the proceeds to further vital conservation projects elsewhere,” Jones explains.

Trade lands can be developed or undeveloped. They can be single-family homes, condominiums, farms, vacation homes, vacant land, commercial properties, or industrial lots. TLC accepts these donations in the form of an outright gift, as a gift with a retained life tenancy, or through a trust that generates lifetime income. Gifts of appreciated real estate can provide capital gains tax savings in addition to an income tax deduction.

“We’ll always define for the original landowner who we will sell the land to and what will happen to it before finalizing the transaction,” Jones says. “That way the owner has complete control over what happens to his property.” In some cases, TLC may even put a conservation easement on a property before reselling it.

“Before we signed the deal, everything was arranged and made clear in terms of our donation being a trade land,” Dr. Dixon explains.

The Results

After receiving the Dixons’ donation, TLC worked with a real estate agent to sell the property to a couple who plans to build a home and retire there. The thousands of dollars earned from the transaction will go directly toward high-priority conservation projects elsewhere in the Triangle.

The Dixons benefited from the tax benefit that accompanied their donation, and were able to meet their goal of supporting land conservation in the Triangle. The value of their trade land contribution places them among TLC's top donors, and marks our first trade land transaction.

Copyright © 2006-2008, Triangle Land Conservancy Last updated on 11/22/2006.