Thinking about buying some hunting/farm ground. I've thought about it for years and now I have been approached by someone who is thinking about selling some land I've wanted for years and was asked if I'd be interested.
Part of me really wants to.( I try telling myself as an investment) and then another part of me thinks buying it to hunt some here and there is foolish and maybe self centered.
I'm leaning on yes if he really is serious If I can get it bought right. Any opinions?
Unless it is going to break you financially and make you family suffer I see no reason not to do it. It is a investment, no doubt about it.
Been there, it's a tough decision. I won't bore you with all my escapades but I once turned down $250/acre land that I thought I couldn't afford at the time. I kick myself everyday about that. I later decided I was committed to buying some property for hunting. I thought I had found a good deal and the older gentleman who owned it caught a lot of grief from his daughter and wife. I was embarrassed for him, his daughter (in front of me) said it wasn't for sale and she was gonna get it when he died. The old guy kept calling me and telling me he about had them convinced. I left the offer open but he passed and the daughter inherited it. Finally my grandpas farm surprisingly came up for sale. I never thought it would leave the family. I told my mom, aunts and uncles I would buy it, I didn't want it leaving the family. It's not a great farm for hunting and holds no turkeys only a few deer. It's basically a swamp that once had cattle on it. I don't regret buying it at all. It certainly wasn't what I had in mind but as public land around here gets worse, it gets better everyday.
I said all of that to say this. I know several guys who have bought property for hunting. None regret it and unlike the Dow, it's value never decreases. Interest rates are about as good as they will get, I would buy if the price is right.
Just before I met my current wife, I was looking at putting out some money for a good hunting/fishing boat... Convertible prop to jet, heavy-duty boat I could run anywhere...
Looking to pull some money out of my investments, I spoke to my money market manager... He noted that I certainly had the funds, but also knew I was thinking of investing into a duck club... He mentioned that the club would hold its value far better, and cost me far less on a yearly basis....
Duck clubs in our area work similar to a corporation. The club has so many acres and each member owns and equal share, but the property is run and managed as a club...
He told me NOT to look at it as a financial investment, but it would certainly hold its value better than a boat (which loses value as soon as you pull it off the lot).
As it turns out, I got an offer on a membership that was a decent deal... From 2004, that membership has tripled in value.... While I certainly could have made more money investing in other ventures, I do not feel like it was a mistake.
I look at my club as a recreational investment, NOT a financial investment, that has not been a money pit. I have received tremendous enjoyment, and have enjoyed taking out friends and family... And, it is financially worth more than I purchased it for.
Oddly the person that really talked me into purchasing the club was my mother... She told me "there is no wife ever that is going to think that purchasing a duck club is a good idea, but anyone you marry with any integrity who understands you, will not ask you to sell it once you have it."
She was oddly right, and when we unexpectedly had to move to a larger house that was tough on us financially, I was looking to sell my club, and my wife said "No." "I is something that makes you happy, and you will regret and resent selling it."
It is a investment they aren't making anymore land.
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Quote from: Sir-diealot on March 10, 2020, 12:49:39 AM
Unless it is going to break you financially and make you family suffer I see no reason not to do it. It is a investment, no doubt about it.
I'd have to agree
I made the decision when I was in my early 20's.I found some excellent quality hunting property and went and walked through it and purchased it for 1/4 of what It should have been selling for then as It was property that had been taken over by the county because of debts owed on it from previous owners.
That same property that I paid under 30 000 for 19 years ago would be worth well over 300 000 now,the thing is.It is outstanding hunting for huge whitetails and bears,I would never even think about selling it,built a nice camp with power,satellite tv and enjoy every minute I can,not to mention it is 17 minutes from home yet the way it is set it is in the middle of nowhere. I now have access to approx 1500 acres within a 5 minute drive of my own land to hunt as well,all with a handshake and a gift card or pack of pepperettes from a deer every year.
Best decision I ever made.I have so many memories just from that decision that I cant wait to see what the next 40 years brings me and my family.
I almost bought the property that adjoins mine a few years ago but the price was too much,glad I didn't as the people who bought it are great people that do not hunt much and gave us permission to hunt it,we had been hunting it for 19 years with permission from previous owners.
Land is the best investment there is in my opinion.
Quote from: Sir-diealot on March 10, 2020, 12:49:39 AM
Unless it is going to break you financially and make you family suffer I see no reason not to do it. It is a investment, no doubt about it.
This ^^. Let's face it, it all comes down to whether or not you can afford to pay for it.
One thing my grandpa said to me that stuck was if you can buy your own land , then do it because thats one thing no one can make anymore of.
I would do it, no second thought. It will hold its value and your kid's (if you have any) can retain it or sell for good amount when your gone. The other benefit is you don't have to retain permission each year to hunt it. If I can find a few acres for a decent price I'll jump on it quick.
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If you can afford it I'd buy it. Land is one of the few things that rarely go down in value. I've bought several pieces of property over the years and sold them for a good profit sometime later. The fact that you can get some Turkey hunting out of it is a bonus.
BUY. BUY. BUY.
You said it yourself, you've wanted it for years. You certainly won't regret it.
It's all about who your neighbors will be. Here in Mississippi where we still run deer dogs there is a lot of land I wouldnt pay $400 an acre for.
If it is financially feasible I say GO FOR it.
I own my land and it's paid for, I looking at my yearly taxes as my lease payment ... My suggestion is buy it . It's nice some days just to drive up to your own land and get that piece of mine , by just looking and walking around the place. Kids enjoy it also.
I'm all for owning your own property...if you can afford it. But where you live may impact how important it is to own your own ground. Most of the property in the area where I grew up was made up of small family farms and there isn't much public land available. Although I had permission to hunt and trap on several large farms with hundreds of acres to roam, I could see that eventually, if you didn't own your own hunting land...you might not have a place to hunt.
Around 30 years ago, my father and I went together and purchased a piece of property that was located across the road from his house. Two years later, I purchased a house that was about 1/2 mile away from his house and our property. Over the next 15 years I was able to purchase 3 other properties that were located between my house and the original piece of property. By doing this, I was able to tie everything together to create one large piece of property.
We do 100% of our deer hunting and 50-75% of our spring gobbler hunting on our own property. I can literally walk out my back door and hunt. I never worry about someone stealing a tree stand or trail camera and will never need to worry that I might not have a place to hunt, fish, hike, ride quads or just enjoy the outdoors.
We spend a ton of time on that property, pretty much year round year round doing...foodplots/habitat improvement, cutting firewood, maintaining the roads, riding quads, fishing (we built a pond) and just enjoying the property.
As a family, we have spent many hours together, building memories on that piece of ground and I wouldn't trade it for anything...it will be passed down to the next generation!
On top of everything else, real estate makes for great financial diversification!!!
Hope that helps!
I was faced with a similar situation 30 years ago. Bought the property (184 acres) and made a few minor sacrifices. One of the best life decisions I've made. For the hunter or timber companies its a highly desirable piece of property. Now it's paid for and valued over 8 times what I paid for it. Loaded with deer, and the turkey hunting ain't to shabby either. My advice, if you can afford it, don't hesitate. Buy it before It slips away. You can get a pretty good deal on money right now.
I'll offer my perspective. At least in my area, where timber is generally the only expected income(and that's only every once and a blue moon and you won't buy good timber because a mill owner will beat you to it 9/10 times), land is just not much of an investment unless you plan to sell it later. I own 9 different tracts for hunting that I started buying when I was 18. I don't have much in them but they certainly aren't an investment for me unless I sell. Had I put that same amount of money in the stock market, I would be much wealthier. Not to mention, it's easier to liquidate into cash in the stock market. You can't buy many groceries with your land or pay bills. I understand there are different situations where you may have crop leases, oil/gas, etc. Now, because of the memories made, the desire to leave it to my kids, etc, I wouldn't sell unless I had to. So, the best I can expect short of a miracle, would be to maybe double my investment on timber and that's best case. I'm okay with that but I do think often of how much better I could have done with the money. I don't even hunt my places much because I enjoy hunting public so much. Those private tracts get mighty small when your a run/gun hunter. Yes my properties are worth quite a bit more than I paid for them, but that amounts to nothing unless you sell.
land will only go up in value buy it if its possible and does not hurt you financially.
So a few things I'll add, I'm on 210 acres, half is tillable (rented to neighbor for crops), there is some pasture as well and another neighbor has cattle on it for a part of the year (June/July/Aug). Timber Value and had CRP too. I have a 40 acre piece in northern WI that I did a timber harvest on through MFL tax program and saves a bunch there too. I would guess property you are looking at has some of same "values" too. And then yes investment too, your kids :)
MK M GOBL