Housing

LIVE IN COMMUNITY AT OLR

The Holy Spirit is currently enflaming vast populations with a burning desire for a more wholesome lifestyle that prioritizes the home and the family, while remaining deeply connected to the earth. Our Lady’s Ranch offers several opportunities for families, individuals, and religious to enjoy a more traditional homesteading way of life in community. We have created real-estate options that respect both private ownership and shared land for a practical approach towards economic freedom within a shared vision.

The main creek that flows through Our Lady's Ranch, offering hydrating resources to the beautiful grass and trees that provide the basis of the sustainable agriculture practiced there.

LAND

Our Lady’s Ranch, LLC owns approximately 160 acres of property in Grass Valley, California. The property development plan designates 12 home sites as shown on the OLR Master Plan.

A birthday party at one of the small farmhouses in the Catholic Community found at Our Lady's Ranch. The house is a darling yellow surrounded by a white picket fence under a blue sky.

HOUSING

Housing options include land/home ownership, land lease with home ownership, and land/home rentals in order to create opportunities for several different economic situations.

A group of Family Friendly Farms cows grazing on a grassy field with a hillside and fence in the background.
A group of Family Friendly Farms cows grazing on a grassy field with a hillside and fence in the background.

FARM CLUB

Each Home Owner and Leaseholder benefits from the farming and recreational opportunities available on the property through a membership with Our Lady’s Ranch Farm Club.

Two men having a conversation outdoors in a rural setting with trees and a wire fence in the background. One man is wearing a wide-brimmed hat and white shirt, and the other is wearing sunglasses and a light blue T-shirt.

LEADERSHIP

Decisions for property management rest with an executive director while larger decisions involve varying levels of a majority, approved through a community vote.

The Master Plan below displays an aerial photograph of Our Lady’s Ranch that highlights the property boundaries along with existing and proposed Structures, Home Sites, Waterways, Farming Improvements, and Landscaping Features. The 160 acres of land that comprise the OLR common area is shown with green shading and includes parcels A, 1, 2, 3, and 4. Parcels 2A and 3A are privately owned adjacent properties that represent land/home ownership within the OLR Farm Club Membership.

OLR Master Plan

  • Existing Structures include a spring water cistern, raised garden beds, two greenhouses, a work shop, a chicken coop, a concrete bridge, livestock corrals, and miles of irrigation pipes and fencing. The remaining structures listed on the Master Plan drawing are proposed construction projects to be designed and build over the next several years.

  • The available Homes Sites for new members are defined by the yellow shaded squares with building areas listed in the Home Site Legend on the right side margin of the map. All of the home sites are established with legal descriptions for life-long, generational land leases as described in the Real-Estate Program Explanation below.

  • All water features are shown with blue lines and blue shading, highlighting the existing streams, ponds, and farm irrigation systems. Dashed lines are used to show underground irrigation.

  • Agricultural fencing is shown with a magenta color and used to create animal paddocks for pasture-raised livestock and poultry. The combination of barbed wire with lower field fencing allows for the containment of various species of livestock including cows, sheep, goats, pigs, and chickens. It currently exists around the complete perimeter of the OLR property along with much cross fencing which divides over 12 separate paddocks.

A detailed site layout map of Our Lady's Ranch showing various structures, roads, water features, and designated areas labeled with numbers and descriptions, meant to describe the homesteading real-estate program.

The Easement Plan below displays the common roadways and walking paths accessible to everyone who lives at Our Lady’s Ranch. The 160 acres of land that comprise the OLR common area is shown with green shading. The thin black hash marks designate additional common areas that are reserved for natural preserves.

OLR Easement Plan

  • Roadways are gravel based allowing for automobiles and emergency vehicles, along with tractors and farming equipment. These commonly used roadways access each Home Site and all commonly used facilities. Additional walking pathways are available throughout the property, and are marked on the Easement Map with a brown color.

  • Some areas on the property are reserved for a natural setting to remain available for picnics and recreation. These common areas are designated on the Easement Map with thin black hash marks.

  • The intention of Our Lady’s Ranch is to make all Home Site areas exclusive to the leaseholders, while allowing for the common use of all other areas on the property for recreation and farming. For those families and individuals who wish to use a portion of the property for farming, we have created Our Lady’s Ranch Farm Club in order to rent selected farming areas to several farming households. Basically each member of the OLR Farm Club can rent agricultural land by the acre to accommodate whatever enterprises their farming passions entail.

A detailed land survey or subdivision map showing parcels, roads, easements, creeks, ponds, wells, and various property lines with labels and a legend explaining common roadways and walking paths accessible to everyone who lives on the property.

Real-Estate Program Explanation

New members join Our Lady’s Ranch through a discernment process that benefits both the applicant and the existing community.

First, prayerfully read all of our Founding Documents, then reach out via email to express serious interest.

Step 1 - Reach Out

During visits, interested parties participate in daily rhythms to experience community life directly.

Step 2 - Extended Visits

Discussions to explore spirituality, family dynamics, financial readiness, and alignment with community values.

Step 3 - Careful Discernment

Reach out to Our Lady’s Ranch