Free Land in the Heart Land CNN.com

[flygal]

http://money.cnn.com/2004/12/22/real_estate/buying_selling/thursday_freeland/index.htm

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In June, Kimberly and Paul Bayless sold their house in Las Vegas and moved their family to the tiny town of Ellsworth, Kansas seeking a better quality of life - a parcel of free land didn't hurt either.

The family had been looking for an escape route out of the city, where their commutes were long and quality time was scarce, but didn't know how they could manage such a move. "Each year I felt more and more claustrophobic," said Kimberly.

Then, after Paul was downsized from his job as a software engineer, Kimberly read a newspaper article about free land in Kansas.

Ellsworth, population of 2,900, is one of many communities throughout the Great Plains looking to reverse decades of population decline by offering free parcels of land. Not only that, they're also giving down payment assistance, tax rebates, breaks for small business and even the promise of high-speed Internet access.