How to make your land profitable with Longyards
A lot of commercial and industrial land earns less than it could. It's a back lot behind a warehouse, a vacant parcel waiting for the right buyer, or acreage that's been "for future development" for ten years. Meanwhile, local contractors, landscapers and truck owners are hunting for somewhere secure to park their trucks, trailers and equipment.
Longyards connects the two. The short answer: if you own 2 or more acres zoned commercial or industrial near a metro of 200,000+ people, Longyards can build a secure storage yard on it, fill it with local businesses and run it day to day. You choose how the deal works: partner with us, lease the land to Longyards or sell. It starts with a free feasibility overview, which arrives in about two weeks.
What Longyards actually does on your land
Longyards builds and operates outdoor storage yards: fenced, gated facilities split into individual yards for guests on month-to-month rental agreements. Guests are local trades such as contractors, landscapers, truck and trailer owners and equipment operators. They need more room than a storage unit and more security than a driveway.
In the words of longyards.com: "You own it, we build, fill, and run the yard." In practice that covers:
Site prep: clearing, grading and drainage to make the ground usable for trucks.
Site setup: fencing, gates, cameras and lighting, so guests have 24/7 gated access and the facility is monitored.
Filling it: marketing to local businesses, handling inquiries and getting guests signed up.
Running it: gate codes, guest support, billing and upkeep.
The infrastructure is modular, so a yard can be resized or relocated later. That matters if you have long-term plans for the parcel.
Does your land qualify?
Longyards looks for three basics:
Size and zoning: at least 2 acres, zoned commercial or industrial.
Location: within reach of a metro of 200,000+ people, where there are enough trade businesses to fill a yard.
Workability: trucks and trailers can get in and out easily, the zoning allows outdoor storage, and there's demand close enough to fill it.
The land doesn't have to be vacant. An underused section of an active property can work, such as the back of a contractor's lot, spare acreage at an industrial site, or a parcel you're holding for a future project. Longyards also looks at interim use: a yard that earns while the eventual plan for the site works its way through approvals.
Unsure about the zoning? Your county or city planning office can tell you how the parcel is zoned, and the free feasibility overview looks at zoning too when you submit your land.
Three ways to do the deal
Every deal is structured around the property. There's no one-size-fits-all offer.
Route | What it means | Who it tends to suit |
|---|---|---|
Partner | You keep the land and partner with Longyards on the yard. We build, fill and run it. | Owners who want to hold the land and share in the yard |
Lease to Longyards | Longyards leases the parcel from you and operates the yard on it. | Owners who want a hands-off arrangement |
Sell | If you'd rather exit, Longyards will look at buying qualifying land. | Owners ready to move on |
Longyards also offers done-with-you licensing of its system, or a done-for-you build, through Yard Launch. See how Yard Launch works if you'd rather run the yard yourself with our playbook.
What does each route pay? That depends on the parcel: its size, location, access, zoning, site work and local demand. Terms vary deal to deal, which is why they're worked out after the feasibility review, not quoted up front. Terms are structured around each property, and Longyards walks each landowner through the options during the free feasibility overview, which takes about two weeks.
How it works, step by step
Submit your land. Name, contact details, property address and approximate acreage. It takes about a minute.
Free feasibility overview. In about two weeks you get a light overview of what your parcel could support as a yard. It costs nothing and carries no obligation.
Full feasibility (paid next step). If both sides want to go further, the full study digs into zoning, layout, demand and projections for your specific site.
Pick your route. Partner, lease to Longyards or sell, with terms structured around your property.
Build and launch. Site prep and setup, then marketing to fill the yards.
Operate. Longyards runs the facility day to day.
Why storage yards?
Trade businesses need somewhere to put trucks, trailers and machines. HOAs and city codes push them off driveways and streets, and theft makes open lots risky. A fenced, gated, camera-monitored yard on a month-to-month rental agreement solves that, which is why demand exists wherever there's a strong base of local trades. For the full list, see who actually rents storage yards.
Longyards has proved the model on its own land first. Chris Long built the business from a single 9.7-acre location he bought for $470,000. Three years later it appraised at $3.64M (golongorgohome.com). That's the operator's own track record, not a forecast for your parcel. Every site is different.
Today the network has 180 active yards, 207 in progress, across facilities in Florida, Ontario and Texas.
What to have ready
The parcel address or tax ID
Approximate acreage, and whether it's all usable
Current zoning, if you know it
How trucks get in today: road frontage, driveways, gates
Anything on the land now: buildings, existing occupants or leases, easements, wetlands
Your preference: partner, lease, sell or not sure yet
Own land in Polk County or elsewhere in Florida? Longyards already runs a facility in Winter Haven, so tell us about your parcel.
Next step
See what Longyards can build on your land and submit it for a free feasibility overview, or read more on the Longyards landowner page. Prefer to talk first? Call (877) 566-4927 or email [email protected].
This article is general information, not legal, tax or investment advice. Terms are set deal by deal after review.
FAQ
How much land do I need to work with Longyards?
Longyards looks for at least 2 acres zoned commercial or industrial, near a metro of 200,000+ people.
How long does the free feasibility overview take?
It arrives in about two weeks after you submit your land. It's free, with no obligation.
Is the full feasibility study free too?
No. The free overview comes first. The full feasibility study, covering zoning, layout, demand and projections, is a paid next step if both sides want to go further.
How much will I earn?
It depends on the property. Size, location, access, zoning, site work and local demand all matter, so terms are structured deal by deal after review. Longyards doesn't publish standard rates.
Does my land have to be vacant?
No. Underused sections of an active commercial or industrial property can work too.
