Your Land If you are a property owner in the Northstate, you may be wondering if Shasta Land Trust can help you find ways to conserve your land.  Each property and each landowner is different, and Shasta Land Trust can utilize several different tools to accomplish conservation goals.  The most common tool used by Shasta Land Trust is the Conservation Easement, but the Trust can also purchase property outright or assist other organizations’ projects. Conservation Easement A Conservation Easement is a legal agreement which permits certain uses of the land while permanently prohibiting other uses which are incompatible with protecting the Property’s conservation values.  Conservation Easements ‘run with the land,’ meaning the Easement is attached to the property’s deed so that the property is forever subject to the terms of the Easement.  Under a Conservation Easement, however, the land remains in private ownership and can be sold or passed down to heirs. Donate a Conservation Easement The most common type of transaction for the thousands of local land trusts nationwide involves the donation of a Conservation Easement.  In these instances, the value of the easement can often be used to obtain substantial tax benefits for the landowner.  Some of these tax benefits may be realized immediately, and some can be received upon the eventual transfer of the property, whether passed down to heirs or sold outside the family.  Shasta Land Trust assists property owners to complete these transactions and craft the terms of the Easement. Sell a Conservation Easement In some cases, Shasta Land Trust may be able to secure funding to purchase a Conservation Easement from landowners.  This strategy works only for large properties which have substantial conservation values.  Purchasing Easements generally requires longer to complete the transaction, and the tax benefits to the landowner may be reduced as compared to a donated Easement. Donate Land to Shasta Land Trust Shasta Land Trust may also accept gifts of land to the organization, and the owner may receive substantial tax benefits in addition to the knowledge that their land will be permanently protected. Sell land or an Easement to the Land Trust at a discounted rate Another common method used by land trusts involves a purchase of land or an easement sold to the Trust at less than the market value.  Such transactions are called “Bargain Sales,” and can offer a blend of cash and tax benefits which can be a very appealing combination to some landowners. Leave land to Shasta Land Trust in your will Called a Life Estate, landowners can place a provision in their will so that Shasta Land Trust receives property in the future.  In the meantime, the landowner can continue to live on the property and use it as they wish.