land poor

Definition

Adjective - land poor: Owning land (especially farmland) that does not generate enough income to cover the taxes, maintenance, or living expenses, resulting in financial hardship despite having valuable land.

Usage Examples

• (He had land wealth but no liquid cash.)
• (They are trapped with land they cannot afford to keep.)

Advanced Usage

• "to be land poor": to experience a state of having property that is a financial burden rather than an asset.
  • After inheriting the estate, she found herself land poor, unable to pay the upkeep costs. (She owned the land but could not afford to maintain it.)

Variants and Related Words

• Land-poor (hyphenated form): used as a compound adjective before a noun.
  • The land-poor widow had to sell her farm to pay the taxes. (She was in financial distress due to her land.)

Synonyms

• Asset-rich, cash-poor: having valuable assets but lacking available money.
• Property-rich, income-poor: owning property but not generating enough income from it.

Related Idioms

• "More land than money": a phrase describing someone who has extensive property but little liquid wealth.

  • He has more land than money, so he can't afford a new truck. (He is land poor.)

• "Land rich, dirt poor": a colloquial expression meaning the same as land poor.

  • The rancher was land rich, dirt poor, struggling to pay for feed. (He owned much land but had little cash.)