Two families in Upstate South Carolina just proved that you can protect your land and keep it at the same time. Ed Lomas’s 110-acre Moore Farm has been in his family for over a century, and Alice Smith’s 146-acre Duck Haven traces back to her grandparents in the 1940s. Both placed their property under conservation easements through the nonprofit Upstate Forever, which now safeguards more than 40,000 acres across a 10-county region. The result: the land can never be developed, no matter who owns it in the future.
The mechanics are simpler than most people expect. An easement is not a sale. You retain the title, you keep using the land, and you hand over the development rights as a charitable donation, which can come with tax benefits. Lomas watched friends around him feel pushed into selling as growth closed in. Smith’s motivation was more personal, a promise she made to her mother to keep the family land in one piece. Scott Park of Upstate Forever puts it plainly: these families just want to protect their property, and they see what’s coming around them.
We know that pressure here on the Suncoast. Beach communities, working parcels, offers arriving from out of state. Minutes from our own shoreline, families are making the exact same decision. If your family owns land you’d hate to see paved over, an easement may be the tool you didn’t know you had.
Have you ever thought about what happens to your family’s land after you’re gone?
