Bargain desert properties are being snapped up due to the ‘billions’ in untapped gold that lies underneath.
Potential buyers are rushing to Johannesburg – a small mining town in the Rand Mountains mining district, located in California‘s Mojave Desert – after realizing there are pockets along the ground that could potentially lead to boatloads of cash.
The holes, or abandoned mines, are sparking a real estate boom in the West Coast town with a tiny population of around 80 residents, because of the ‘modern day gold rush’.
David Treadwell, a real estate agent based in Hemet, has seen the dramatic shift in the small town ever since word got around about the potential to make money after purchasing properties in the desert for less than $50,000.
‘The market is heating up. I get 2-3 leads per month on buyers looking for patented mine claims. If you can get the gold out of the ground, there’s money to be made,’ Treadwell told the LA Times.
Over the last couple years, the realtor has sold several gold mining properties to professional miners and even amateurs who are looking to cash in on the underground gold.
In 2017, Treadwell sold his uncle’s 47-acre property, and shared the news in a local mining journal, which sparked interest from others.
‘From there, people would call and say, «I saw you’re selling a gold mine. Wanna sell mine too?»,’ he told the outlet.
Buyers are rushing over to Johannesburg – a small mining town in the Rand Mountains district, located in California ‘s Mojave Desert (pictured) – to scoop up cheap land that sits on top of gold worth ‘billions’
David Treadwell (pictured), a real estate agent based in Hemet, has seen the dramatic shift in interest in the small town ever since word got around about the potential to make money after purchasing properties in the desert for less than $50,000
Just last year, Treadwell sold the St. Elmo mine – a historic location with 11 mining shafts – to Sean Tucker, the founder of Gold Discovery Group.
Tucker immediately got to work drilling into his land in search of gold, as his team dug holes in the ground two feet at a time until they created an eight inch-wide hole in the dirt.
He and his crew soon examined the soil they dug up as Tucker revealed: ‘There’s gold here. It’s a modern day gold rush. People are snapping up claims as quickly as possible.’
He and his crew continue to dig into the ground until they reach bedrock, and are determined to complete the process before the season starts to change.
This is not the first time gold was discovered in the small town, as the chemical element was found at Sutter’s Mill in 1848, leading approximately 33,000 gold-seekers or forty-niners to flock over to get their hands on a fortune.
Although most gold was found in the northern part of the state and the Sierra Nevada Mountains, one of the largest gold rushes took place in the Rand District, right in Kern County, in 1895.
The Yellow Aster, the area’s largest mine, soon became known for producing the modern amount of more than $25 million over the span of 30 years.
Sean Tucker, the founder of Gold Discovery Group, has capitalized on the new trend as he and his team have been drilling into the desert ground in search of gold. (Pictured: Aerial picture of the Mojave Desert)
When the Great Depression hit, the cost of gold was lowered significantly to about $40 per ounce. Currently, the price of gold has soared to $2,630 per ounce
Randsburg has long been known as a special place for the mining community as the largest known golden nugget – the Mojave Nugget- was found in 1977.
The 156 ounce piece of gold was found by a metal detector and is currently on display at the Natural History Museum of L.A. County.
When the Great Depression hit, the cost of gold was lowered significantly to about $40 per ounce, leading miners to move on to the next best location.
Since then, the price of gold has skyrocketed to $2,630 per ounce, as people again set their sights on the desert area.
Tucker, who founded his gold mining operation in 2020, currently owns 97 acres along five properties, and also leases out mining rights to 2,519 acres across 37 properties.
He estimates that there is $2 billion worth of gold under his properties, based on historical documents and geological surveys.
Despite discovering the ‘modern day gold rush,’ the process isn’t as simple, as Tucker has to obtain drilling and mining permits from the Bureau of Land Management.
The entrepreneur also has to produce reclamation plans that prove he will restore the land after he’s done mining it.
Through his hard work, Tucker estimates that the cost of digging up the high-valued element will cost about $1,220 per ounce, leaving him with a profit margin of about $1,400 based on the current price of gold.
Tucker plans to start placer mining by next fall, and wants to hire 80 employees to help out and live in the area
Presently, his team – comprised of ‘master driller’ Martin Delgadillo and his assistant Roderick McVay – have been granted access to drill 393 holes in the area, and so far, they have completed 226.
Through the grueling desert heat, Tucker and his team have continued on their journey, as he’s spent $5 million doing so, anticipating that the cost will rise to about $4 million more before they start to produce gold from the mines.
He specifically plans to conduct placer mining, where gold is separated and sifted out from dirt below the ground, which Tucker believes got there from past flash-flooding and heavy rainfall.
‘It’s primal. There’s something in the ground that we want, and we’re getting it out,’ Tucker said. ‘It’s what California was founded on, but now we’re coming back with modern technology.’
The determined businessman plans to start the specific mining by next fall and will hire 80 employees over the next three years to assist.
Tucker – who previously owned the pro bicycling team Toyota United and founded Galleon Ventures, a deep-sea treasure hunting company – also plans to house the miners in the city block he owns in Johannesburg. ‘Now, we just have to hope the market stays where it is,’ he told the outlet.
Every property in the area comes with patented mining rights, meaning people can mine there, but cannot build anything on top of it
Every property in the area comes with patented mining rights, meaning people can mine there, but cannot build anything on top of it.
If you buy a home that is already built, owners typically do not get the same rights, allowing them to only dig about 20ft into the ground. Treadwell explained that obtaining a patent in the past wasn’t as easy as it is now.
‘In order to receive a patent back in the day, you had to prove the existence of significant mineral production.
‘This one I’m listing is 1,700 feet north of the Calico mines, so chances are there’s something down there,’ the realtor said.
Gregory Kuchan, a real estate agent for Douglas Elliman, who is currently listing a property with two mine shafts on it for $49,950, told LA Times: ‘You only need to find about 18 ounces to make this property pay for itself!’
