Mojave, CA Land for Sale: A Prime Location for Wind and Solar Farms

Mojave, California is situated at an elevation of 2,762 feet in Antelope Valley at the southwest tip of the Mojave Desert. The city is home to the first civilian spaceport in America and boasts a rich history. While it has a small population, the town offers favorable opportunities for land investment.

Brief History and Space Travel

Mojave first began as a construction camp along the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1876. Between 1884 and 1889, the town served as the western terminus of the 20-mule borax wagon route, which originated in the Death Valley. Later on, the town would be the construction headquarters of the Los Angeles Aqueduct.

The town’s close proximity to Edwards Air Force Base, Palmdale Regional Airport and Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake has played a hand in its rich aerospace history. Aside from being a public airport, Mojave also has three main areas of activity: space industry development, flight testing, and aircraft heavy maintenance and storage.

Many World War II veterans received gunnery training at Mojave, and during the war, the city hosted three Air Warning Squadrons, four Carrier Aircraft Service Detachments and 29 aircraft squadrons. At the peak of its operation, the air station had a total of 145 training and a variety of other aircraft. Today, the airport is home to a number of different aerospace companies as well as the National Test Pilot School for civilians. With such a rich history in transportation, it’s no surprise that the city has its own transportation museum.

Here’s the great thing about Mojave: even though it doesn’t have a bustling population, it has a well-established history in the transportation and aviation industries. Normally, when these industries are prominent in a city, there’s generally a lot of open flat land nearby. And that’s exactly what Mojave has to offer. Prices for land are dirt cheap, too, but we’ll get to that momentarily. First, I want to discuss the town’s climate, demographics and population.

Population, Climate and Demographics

Mojave is a cold desert, and its annual average temperature is less than 64 degrees. In January, maximum temperatures reach 57.8 degrees, while in the summer, maximum temperatures will reach 97.7 degrees. And because it’s a desert area, Mojave receives very little rainfall each year. On average, the city gets about 6.43 inches of precipitation each year.

As of the 2010 census, Mojave had a population of 4,238, with a density of 72.6 people per square mile. The town is growing in population, but not by much. In 2000, the population was just 3,836.

The current population is spread as follows:

- 30.6% under the age of 18
- 12% between 18-24 years of age
- 22.1% aged 25-44
- 24.8% between 45 and 64 years of age
- 10% 65 years of age or older

There are about 1,817 household units in the city, and the majority are occupied by renters. Mojave also boasts a favorable rental vacancy rate of 13.7%. This indicates that there’s great potential for investors to come in, build a home and rent it to locals. And you’ll be surprised by just how cheap land is in this California town.

Mojave, CA Land for Sale

There’s plenty of open space, which means you’ll find plenty of land for sale in Mojave. And prices are well below what you would expect in the state of California.

Let’s review some of the listings that are live right now:

- A 7.5 acre lot on Rose Ave is selling for $9,500
- A 2.5 acre lot on St. West is selling for $5,500
- On Aqueduct Rd, there’s 158.2 acres of land selling for $119,000
- A 6 acre lot right off Highway 58 is selling for $230,000

The 6 acre lot is right off the highway, which offers a great opportunity for commercial development in the food or fuel industries. The 7.5 acre lot is also located right near a freeway, and is just down the street from an energy solar project.

As far as property taxes go, you can’t get much lower. The median property taxes paid on real estate with a mortgage in 2013 was $863. Land without a mortgage or structure has a median property tax rate of $697. Even if you waited a few years to do anything with your land, you won’t have to worry about paying high property taxes. And because the area is mostly desert, you won’t have to deal with costly upkeep costs either.

As for home prices, Mojave is on the lower end. The median sale price for homes in town is $54,500, and the average listing price is $100,019. That said, sales prices have appreciated roughly 58% over the last five years.
Just doing a quick search of current home listings, we see:

- A 1,964 sqft home with 4bds and 3ba on 5.02 acres selling for $199,000
- A 1,500 sqft home with 3bds and 2ba on 2.6 acres selling for $125,000
- A 1,360 sqft home with 3bds and 2ba on 19.4 acres selling for $200,000
- A 2,932 sqft home (equestrian estate) with 4bds and 3ba on 20.4 acres selling for $439,900

These listings were higher than average, and many homes are still selling in the $70k-$100k range. You can however always bump on a bargain house deal here. With land being as cheap as it is, it’s possible to purchase land and place a manufactured home on it while still turning a nice profit.

Potential Land Uses

You’ll find plenty of land that’s for selling in Mojave, CA, and a fair amount of that land can be used for commercial purposes.

Energy is also a major sector here, and because you can purchase several hundred acres at one time, you have the possibility of developing your own wind or solar farm. As you know, desert areas are prime locations for solar and wind farms, and with the city getting less than 7” of rain each year, you’ll be able to generate a lot of solar power here.

It’s also possible to invest in land to use for agricultural purposes, but you’ll need to pick your land plots wisely here. With desert-like conditions, it can be difficult to make such a venture sustainable, but it’s still possible if you have the expertise.