I WANT HALF OF WHAT YOU FIND.

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CURIOUS ON HOW YOU RESPOND TO LANDOWNERS WHO GIVE PERMISSION TO SEARCH THEIR LAND BUT WANT 50/50 OF YOUR FINDINGS. FOR EXAMPLE, ALL YOU FOUND ALL DAY WAS A 1917 WHEATIE AND A 1878CC SEATED HALF IN XF SHAPE. DO YOU GIVE THEM THE WHEATIE AND GO HOME OR FORK OUT $700(half the book value) AND KEEP THE HALF DOLLAR? :roll:
ANY OPINIONS, STORIES OR EXAMPLES OF THIS?
DAVE.

 

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[Lowbatts]

My agreement with landowners is simple. I'll keep coins unless there is a stash of them, then we will split it half after sale or determination of value. Jewelry is theirs if they have told me in advance that it may exist and what it may be, else it goes in my bag and they see none of it.

I have however given away some mercs, buffalos and IH's to kid's at sites to show good intentions and that will usually keep the invitation open.

In your example, I would make sure the coin is graded and certified, then decide on the course of action. Do you want the coin? Half price is a good deal!

 

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ANYONE ELSE GONNA REPLY (LOTS OF VIEWS!) OR THERE SOMTHING WRONG WITH ME?(IT CAN'T BE BAD BREATH).
DAVE.

 

[Thonolan]

Only once have I ever agreed to give up half of whatever I found. It was just last fall, at an old home (the first in my hometown to have a telephone). I found nothing more than a couple of bucks in clad, and despite a standing invitation to return, I never did go back. I probably wouldn't make that agreement again.

 

[[email protected]]

I think it can be difficult, especially if the land owner is watching you behind your back. It depends on the situation and it can't be a perfect split down the line every time. I would not fork out cash for something I used my skill and equipment to find. Of course I would gladly return jewelry they had lost. So, I give a small handful of common dates and keep the good stuff(I know some might disagree, that's o.k. I want to hear your opinion). If I found a cache or something really valuable, I would try to split it fairly. When I first started MD'ing at the age of 13, a woman gave me permission to search her yard UNCONDITIONALLY. I found a silver nickel (1911) and excitedly went to her door to show her (it was a big find to me at that age!). She looked at the coin and said "I'll be taking that" and became cold, telling me not to return again. Big lesson!
800 small nickels later, I still remember that day and I am a little cautious of who I show my finds to!
I try to get a good feel for the person and then make my decision if I will agree to 50/50. I like 100% in my pocket the best! Dave.

 

[Thonolan]

deneyedli,

I believe that if you agree to a 50/50 split, then you should live up to it. Personally, I don't agree to an even split these days, and I probably never will again.

 

[[email protected]]

Thonolan, you are right. I should fully honour the agreement. It pretty hard to split a rare button or a musket ball. So I probably won't agree to this arrangement. Only a few landowners have made this condition, most don't care. I always give them something anyways.
Dave.

 

[coinshooter]

Take some old wheaties and misc clad with you. Put it in your bag ahead of time. Keep the good stuff you find in your front pocket and give them the clad. Not the most honest thing to do, but it saves hassles and arguments over who gets what. Once they see a bunch of dirty pennies (after they ask you what you've been finding, they usually leave you alone and don't stand ovwer your back so much. Always make sure you work with your back to your audience. Most folks I've met just want to see what you found, but I did have one guy who said yeah, go ahead and then his wife came out and asked him what he had said go ahead to and then she told me and her husband very forcefully, "no!, what's in that ground is ours, no way, I don't want him doing that in our yard!" Their yard was trashed out anyway, but she was just plain rude and mean. Since that day it has been hard for me to ask permission to hunt people's yards. They think they have a gold mine and are very protective of it (even the parking strips in front of their houses that technically the city owns). I can understand to some extent if I had a nice yard, but if it was trashed as this one was, digging up dirt in it would not make any matter to me. After all, there are tons of places out there, just got to find the best ones. If you had shown these items to the man you made the agreement with already, I guess your obligated to the split. He said half, give him the wheatie and tell him that's one half of two coins.

 

[lab rat]

What a basket of snakes this can be! I prefer to stick to houses that are up for sale and sidewalk strips (which are property of the city, not the homeowner). I'm sure there are a lot of great coins in people's yards, but I'd want a written agreement (if it comes to that) drawn up by a lawyer in my favor. What good is it to spend time and effort digging up something that goes to someone else?

You could consider a 30 day evaluation period to get coins graded independently, and have the homeowner pay you in cash for some percentage if he keeps the coin. Or bring a Redbook with you and show the homeowner what the listed value is. Or, like CS has suggested in the past, agree to keep all coins and yield back all jewelry.

I agree, honesty is the best policy, and all agreements should be made in advance and lived up to. Even if you don't get to keep the coin, you have the benefit of knowledge. Chalk it up to the learning experience.

In the case of the half dollar, I'd probably take it (with the homeowner with me to a coin dealer and sell it, and split the cash, if that is what the agreement calls for. $700 cash for a hunt is not a bad take!

 

[lab rat]

On houses for sale: Well, the owner is probably not interested, and the buyer doesn't know. If you are 'interested' in the property, you can ask for permission to look for water lines, sprinkler heads, property markers, etc. Or just go at night after measuring the risk factors.

On sidewalk strips: If a homeowner gets furious for working the strip, I'll say "I'm sorry to disturb you. This is city land, but if it bothers you that much I'll leave." There is plenty of strip around the neighborhood.

 

[Thonolan]

lab rat, I've often toyed with the idea of searching yards that have "for sale" signs, but I've never had the nerve. Never wanted to get arrested, either...

 

[[email protected]]

Oh, I've had lots of fun on boulevards, which is city property. People yelling and threatening me because they think they own that grassy strip.
What I do is tell them to phone the cops. Most of them will simmer down, and some will call the police. I make sure that I wait untill they arrive and everytime the cops say "find anything good?" and I'll show them my finds, then they wish me goodluck and a good day and leave. Works everytime.
I have been caught a few times searching vacant lots or ones for sale. With a quick friendly response they usually let me continue. Of course some will ask me to leave, very rarely. It all depends on how you present your self. Those people who are anal about their yards, thinking they have a gold mine, can go out and buy their own detector!
I beleive that yards are the last frontier and are worth building up courage to ask for. When I started 17 years ago, I realized that I was to become the "Leftover King", as all the obvious places were close to being cleaned out. But most yards still remain virgin territory and some of my best finds come from them. Thanks for all your input. Dave.

 

[Lowbatts]

Wow, what a lot of horror stories! I have only ever had one lady question my legitimacy on a parkway. Her consternation was quickly assuaged when she saw the number of nails I had in my pouch. One thing about sidewalk/curb work, there will be nails available for you to clean up. Well grab a small handful and then go into discriminate mode. If anyone asks, explain that it's a passing fancy of yours and the benefit is obvious, those rascally construction workers never clean up all the nails after themselves.

I have however noticed that you can hunt in front of a crack house and get less suspicious looks than in front of some nicer neighborhoods. But hey, the crack houses are usually in the older part of town anyway.

 

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Watch you don't step on any siringes!

 

[Thonolan]

Those sidewalk strips are great places to hunt if you don't mind being threatend, harrassed and generally annoyed by every third person you come across. I have found that if you ask permission, most people will let you hunt. A few will demand half (I just move on to the next house), and a few refuse permission. Getting permission is inconvenient as hell- you have to wander around looking for people who are out in their yards. I just can't bring myself to knock on doors, dragging people from the dinner table, phone coversations, favorite television shows etc. just to ask if I can search their sidewalk strips.

 

[Chiz]

also, a lot of the parks you can get permits to hunt certain areas at certain times. Check with your States laws or stop by a State Park Office is the best thing to do.

Chiz
8)

 

[[email protected]]

In regards to one of the posts, the grassy strips (boulevards) are public property owned by the city/town. There's no need to ask for permission. You pay for that land with your tax dollars, whether it's your street or someone elses. Some people like to yell and complain anyway, metal detector or not. They have no legal right to demand 50/50 on city property. If someone is really being ignorant, just step 10 feet ahead and start in front of the next house to advoid a yelling match. People like that are jealous that they don't have a M.D.
Dave.

 

[Lowbatts]

Hey Govcheese, State Parks in Illinois are at the discretion of the local park managers with the exception of historic sites. Starved Rock for example is plainly marked off limits to metal detecting but others can be done if the local ranger allows. Not sure about neighboring states but always keep the inquiries low-key to avoid scrutiny as well. If you ask a legislator, he/she will write a law, that's all they know how to do.

 

[ppratt]

Well I don't cut deals and I don't show no one anything until I have known them or evaluatred their intentions. For example the lesson I learned for this hard nose detecting. I was 16 and I was detecting this old home site and the owner watched every move I made. For those of who I know have experienced this. It is very uncomfortable. Well anyway I found a very nice IH Penny. I thought it would be nice to show off my new find to him since he had eyes like an eagle. As soon as I showed him he ask to see it well I never thought anything about it so I droped it in his hand. Well the hand closed and he walked away. I asked him to let me see the coin one more time before he took it in the house. Well as soon as he did I took the coin and threw it as far as I could in the nearby woods. I told him do deal was made before hand, and no one was keeping it. I got in my car and left. Ever since if thier is even a joke brought up like I get half. I just walk plain and simple. It maybe rude I maybe an A$$ but it's my time and effort not theirs. If it wasn't for someone like me the coin would never see the light of day again.

 

[boomer]

land owners

Here is the text you can use to form a legal contract between you and the Landowner/Farmer.

Wording of Contract is as follows:

LANDOWNER/DETECTORIST
Todays date _________

CONTRACT
Date: from __________ To ____________


I .............................. the occupier/owner of the land/premises



known as?..situated at??..hereby grant a



licence to??. (hereafter called the 'licensee').



1. In consideration of payment of??..% of the value of any property found the owner/occupier hereby grants to the licensee the right to enter the said land (which land is called the licensed area) and subject to the conditions herein to search for treasure, metals, buried coins and artefacts.



2. The licence shall, subject to determination as hereinafter provided, continue in force from (time and date)??until? (time and date)



3. The licensee hereby covenants with the owner as follows:

i) to fill and make good any excavations

ii) to protect any livestock upon the said land and prevent their escape

iii) to protect the Wildlife, whether plant or animal, upon the said land

iv) to prevent fire

v) to bear full responsibility for any damage to the property, including all livestock, wildlife, plant and animals thereon and including any injuries suffered by the licensee or any other person as a result of

the licensee's activities thereon

vi) to immediately inform the owner/occupier of the said premises of any finds of gold or silver objects which might be considered treasure trove

vii) to deposit any property found with a named and agreed independent person/authority in the event of

any dispute over the ownership of the property until the determination of ownership is finalised

viii) to report any archaeological discoveries to the owner/occupier of the land

ix) to report any bombs or other like missiles to the police

x) to respect the country code

xi) so far as the licensee may validly do so, at all times to keep the owner/occupier effectually indemnified against all actions or proceedings, costs, charges, claims and demands whatsoever, which may be made or brought against the owner by any party in connection with this license or any matter or thing done or purported to be done in pursuance thereof.

4. The licensee shall not assign or part with any rights granted by this licence in relation to the whole or any part of the licensed area or grant any sub-licence in respect of any such rights.

5. If there shall be any breach or non-observance by the licensee of any of the terms and conditions of this license, the owner/occupier may revoke this license, and thereupon the same and all the rights granted shall cease and be determined with or without notice by the owner/occupier and immediately on being requested to do so the licensee will vacate the land or part thereof.

6. The value of any objects will be determined by agreement between the parties named herein or by sale for the highest available price or by appraisal by at least two independent persons jointly selected. Thereafter payment of any monies due to either party to this license must be made upon the sale or within days of any valuation or sale.

Signed and agreed


Also you need a code of ethics, look at lost treasure mag. to get the code it goes a long way. the land owner once reading the code of ethics, will be more incline to give his or her consent for a search. good luck. boomer