Some home buying stories start with a listing. This one starts with an empty yard and a plan. @sharel.moore shared on social media how she and her husband bought an abandoned acreage in Iowa, then moved an entirely different farmhouse onto it, and she says the change is so big that your eyes are not playing tricks on you.
@sharel.moore
An abandoned acreage with a plan
She says she and her husband purchased the property in September of 2024. It came with an unlivable house, and she shares that the land had sat empty for over eight years. All of the buildings needed a lot of work, and most of them looked rough on the inside. But the couple could picture raising their family there, so they took a chance.
Then the timing got interesting. The day after their offer on the land was accepted, a two story farmhouse came up for sale to be moved four miles away. The original house on the property was, in her words, beyond what they could afford to fix. So they had the local fire department do training on it.
Moving a house in an Iowa winter
Next came the groundwork. They started digging for a new basement and poured it just in time, with a strong Iowa winter on the way. Then, in February of 2025, the farmhouse was moved to its new home.
The most common question she gets is how much it cost. She says moving the house four miles was $30,000, and they paid only $12,000 for the house itself. Because they saved so much compared to building brand new, they decided to gut the entire house and make it exactly what they wanted as their forever home. These are her figures, and costs for house moving vary widely depending on distance, size and permits.
The husband and the hired help
She says her husband did the majority of the work himself, with some help from family and friends. His list includes all of the demolition and the new electric and plumbing. The couple turned two of the bigger closets upstairs into a full bathroom and laundry room, and he installed all of the insulation and drywall himself.
There were some jobs they hired out. A new septic system went in, a new HVAC system was installed, and a crew removed the old siding, wrapped the house and put in new windows. She tried to help where she could. In the middle of all the chaos, the couple also had their third baby.
Savings where they could find them
She adds that they tried to save money everywhere. Their cabinets were on sale at Menards. They are not custom, she says, and that is totally fine because they are functional. She also shares that taking out walls and turning closets into bathrooms helped shape the layout they wanted.
Looking back, she calls it crazy to think about where they started a year and a half ago and where they are now, actually living in the house. The couple hopes it becomes a home that generations will grow up in and come back to. She says the house is done, but there are still lots of projects left to share.
What to know if you are considering a moved house
Her story is a good springboard for anyone wondering whether moving a home is realistic. The following is general information, not specific to her project.
Moving a structure is a specialized job. Professional house movers handle lifting the building, loading it onto a carrier and transporting it along a planned route. Routes may require permits, utility line adjustments and coordination with local authorities. Distance, the size of the house and obstacles along the way all influence price.
The foundation matters. A moved house needs a prepared foundation to land on, which is why timing the basement work before cold weather, as she describes, is so important. In colder climates, concrete work is far more difficult in deep winter.
Expect the house to need updating. Even a sound house that has been relocated usually needs work to reconnect utilities, repair any damage from the move and bring older systems up to date. That is why many owners, like this couple, gut the interior and replace electrical, plumbing and insulation.
Know which jobs to hire out. Doing a lot of the work yourself can save a great deal of money, but some jobs call for licensed professionals. Septic systems, heating and cooling systems and exterior envelope work often fall into that group, and many areas require permits and inspections for them. Her list of hired jobs follows that pattern.
Smart ways to save on a big renovation
She mentions buying cabinets on sale, and that is a classic budget move. Stock cabinets are usually cheaper than custom ones and can look great with the right hardware and paint. Keeping an eye out for seasonal sales on big ticket items, comparing quotes from at least three contractors and choosing a few spots to splurge while saving elsewhere are all tried and true tactics.
Another tip is to plan the sequence carefully. Demolition, then rough electrical and plumbing, then insulation, then drywall is the typical order. Getting inspections at the right moments avoids having to open finished walls later.
A forever home takes time
There is something quietly inspiring about how this story fits together. An empty acreage, a farmhouse that happened to come up for sale at the right moment, a husband willing to learn and do, and a growing family. She shared that she hopes people will follow along, because even though the house itself is done, there are still plenty of projects ahead.
For anyone dreaming of land, her story suggests that starting with what you can afford, being open to unusual solutions and taking things one project at a time can add up to a place that feels like home.
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