Hunting Land

[Tim]

i grew up hunting a lot.

leasing is common nowadays.

it would be very, very hard to make money doing this

Extremely hard to make a profit.
Easy to make a little cash flow.
Many threads about how difficult it is for an individual to transition to farming (actually working) or ranching (livestock). Hunting leases need amenities, money and upkeep. Money pit.

[BryanMD]

Extremely hard to make a profit.
Easy to make a little cash flow.
Many threads about how difficult it is for an individual to transition to farming (actually working) or ranching (livestock). Hunting leases need amenities, money and upkeep. Money pit.

I disagree. Hunting leases require nothing other than having land you are willing to let other people use. You are correct if you are running a hunting game farm or a hunting lodge. Most leases include nothing but the opportunity to hunt the land. The hunters put up their own stands, maintain their own trails and food plots if that is allowed in the lease agreement. If I'm providing amenities like a place to sleep, shower, and eat then I'm running a rustic B&B not a hunting lease and the cost will increase accordingly.

[Tim]

https://www.maximumhunting.com/rules-and-regulations-for-night-hunting/

State specific. For most hunters, a daybreak start means someplace to stay. There are also regulations on feeders etc. The work involved is possible, not many will pay for just access.
I did have a buddy that was an avid bow hunter.
On soccer trips he would through connections get access for a day. You are right the price is variable.
There is maintenance, Someone has to do it. Even a barebones camp site. Maintenance is not a money maker, it is a cost.

[K82]

I’d be interested in hearing more about this tree farm. Is it Christmas trees? 200 acres of tree farm seems huge and awesome. I have family in northern Wisconsin that taps all their maple trees and sells the sap to a big syrup producer. They also rented out about 60 acres of tillable land to a ginseng farmer for a pretty penny. You can definitely squeeze some money out of land but I think I’d rather just keep it as pristine as possible. I’ve always wanted to own 1 square mile, 640 acres. Mostly just to know that I own a whole square mile myself.

It's not a big money maker at all, I bought it because I love being outdoors and working on it. Its a mix of mostly red and white pine with a few hard wood stands. I have it all in something called a "managed forest law" which limits what I can do with the land but gives me significant reduction in property taxes.

I have a large tractor with a grapple bucket, 4 wheelers, chainsaws, and some other assorted machinery which I love messing with. The equipment is all depreciable and deductable. When I bought it the previous owner had planted a few stands of Scotch Pine for Christmas trees which were popular many years ago but now no one wants. This is an invasive species in our area and essentially a junk tree so I had to remove all of it. What a pain, these things are like weeds they just keep coming back, so every year I have to go through those stands that I replanted in red and white pine and remove them by hand (pole saws, chain saws or if large enough my tractor). Its good exercise.

Its fun to watch the large equipment come in when the trees get harvested. Amazing. They have a huge machine that goes down the tree rows and cuts an 80-100 ft tall tree, grabs it, strips all the limbs off it, and then cuts it in 8 foot sections, all in about 30 seconds. They then have specialized equipment that comes along and picks up the 8 foot sections and brings them to an open area where it gets stacked and semi's come and get them. Harvests only happen around every 15 years or so and the last one brought me around 40K if I remember correctly, so its not worth it if only interested in the money. I'm currently due for a harvest of a few stands of my hardwoods but its mostly oak and oak prices have fallen through the floor so this won't amount to much money.

What I get out of it is enjoyment, diversion, exercise, helping the environment, a tax haven as a side benefit, wildlife (lots), learning a lot of new and interesting things, and hopefully appreciating of the value of the land. It's awesome hunting land but I don't personally hunt (not opposed to it, just never got into it) so I just give the deer somewhere to hide!

[Tangler]

i grew up hunting a lot.

leasing is common nowadays.

it would be very, very hard to make money doing this

It would however be a cool consumption item. Just realize you are spending.

Some want a Tesla, some want some land over-run by wild pigs.

I personally would love a home with a kayak launch site into the salt and/or a cabin with my own stocked pond.

My wife won't let me. She is correct that at this point in my life it is not a great idea.

But....if we get lucky and we end up with more than we can spend I hope to talk her into it.

Lots of variables in how my finances will look in 5 years but that is when I plan on buying something.

I don't want to spend millions but even a small property is not only an opportunity cost (won't beat VTSAX) but it can quickly become a money drain.

Buy it if it will make you happy, but don't consider it and investment. Consumption item. Experience generator.

[Tangler]

It's not a big money maker at all, I bought it because I love being outdoors and working on it. Its a mix of mostly red and white pine with a few hard wood stands. I have it all in something called a "managed forest law" which limits what I can do with the land but gives me significant reduction in property taxes.

I have a large tractor with a grapple bucket, 4 wheelers, chainsaws, and some other assorted machinery which I love messing with. The equipment is all depreciable and deductable. When I bought it the previous owner had planted a few stands of Scotch Pine for Christmas trees which were popular many years ago but now no one wants. This is an invasive species in our area and essentially a junk tree so I had to remove all of it. What a pain, these things are like weeds they just keep coming back, so every year I have to go through those stands that I replanted in red and white pine and remove them by hand (pole saws, chain saws or if large enough my tractor). Its good exercise.

Its fun to watch the large equipment come in when the trees get harvested. Amazing. They have a huge machine that goes down the tree rows and cuts an 80-100 ft tall tree, grabs it, strips all the limbs off it, and then cuts it in 8 foot sections, all in about 30 seconds. They then have specialized equipment that comes along and picks up the 8 foot sections and brings them to an open area where it gets stacked and semi's come and get them. Harvests only happen around every 15 years or so and the last one brought me around 40K if I remember correctly, so its not worth it if only interested in the money. I'm currently due for a harvest of a few stands of my hardwoods but its mostly oak and oak prices have fallen through the floor so this won't amount to much money.

What I get out of it is enjoyment, diversion, exercise, helping the environment, a tax haven as a side benefit, wildlife (lots), learning a lot of new and interesting things, and hopefully appreciating of the value of the land. It's awesome hunting land but I don't personally hunt (not opposed to it, just never got into it) so I just give the deer somewhere to hide!

Wow! Awesomeness! I need to keep in touch with you and figure out how to do something similar!

I want to build / dig / stock / plan a pond and stock it with fish and fish it or buy some land with a pond on it.

Maybe in 5 years. Need to be a little more bulletproof financially.

[CK36]

We purchased a relatively small tract about a year ago. Pretty much all wooded with pine and old hardwoods. Some floodplain land on it. Has a navigable creek/lake on it that we can fish in. Only about 40 minute drive from our home so my wife and I take our young kids to it almost every weekend and enjoy building a fire, cooking out, gathering sticks, throwing fish food into the water, hiking, and just being outside. Big enough to hunt but won’t be killing any trophies, and I don’t really care to shoot deer anymore anyway, but I love to just watch them. Although I believe it will appreciate over time and probably already has considerably, our hope is that our kids will cherish this time and place because we certainly enjoy being there with them while they are young. Even if a total financial loss, would be worth every penny. I also enjoy getting down there myself to clear trails and fix up an old cabin that was abandoned. Therapeutic for me.

[K82]

Wow! Awesomeness! I need to keep in touch with you and figure out how to do something similar!

I want to build / dig / stock / plan a pond and stock it with fish and fish it or buy some land with a pond on it.

Maybe in 5 years. Need to be a little more bulletproof financially.

We actually just put in a 1.6 acre pond last year on that property and are stocking it with fish. So far we have walleye, crappie, blue gill, perch and feed minnows. We put a sandy beech on one end of the pond. Great recreational fun having our own private mini lake! That project was not tax deductible though. We had two acres set aside from our MFL (managed forest law) that we built a cottage on in middle of the 200 acres this past year as well. Its very private, right on the edge of the pond. The gravel driveway to the cottage is 1/2 mile long. We love spending time out there.

[Tangler]

We actually just put in a 1.6 acre pond last year on that property and are stocking it with fish. So far we have walleye, crappie, blue gill, perch and feed minnows. We put a sandy beech on one end of the pond. Great recreational fun having our own private mini lake! That project was not tax deductible though. We had two acres set aside from our MFL (managed forest law) that we built a cottage on in middle of the 200 acres this past year as well. Its very private, right on the edge of the pond. The gravel driveway to the cottage is 1/2 mile long. We love spending time out there.

Wow! Fantastic! Very cool!

Roughly (if you are OK saying) how much does it cost to build a pond theses days? I know it is regional but just curious. Send me a PM if you don't want to discuss publicly. thanks

[K82]

Wow! Fantastic! Very cool!

Roughly (if you are OK saying) how much does it cost to build a pond theses days? I know it is regional but just curious. Send me a PM if you don't want to discuss publicly. thanks

Our situation was a little unique since we have very sandy soil where we wanted to pond to go, so it had to have a huge liner installed to keep the water from draining into the sand. We had a well drilled with a high volume pump to fill it and top it off when needed. We installed a couple of small air compressors hidden along the edge to supply 5 aerators at the bottom of the 20 foot deep pond to keep things fresh and algae down. So, the cost of all that was around 200K. The excavation was a big expense. It has a ledge all the way around with 4" rip rap stone in place going 20 feet down into the pond edges. If you have a situation where the soil is more clay like and a natural source for the water you can put a pond in for a lot less. The down side to that is your unable to closely manage the composition of the water, ie, bacteria, algae etc, for optimal fish habitat. There are trade offs. We just put it in so its new to us but so far we love it. The wildlife love it too!

[Hank]

I could buy an awful lot of sashimi grade ahi for $200K.

[dennis]

Our situation was a little unique since we have very sandy soil where we wanted to pond to go, so it had to have a huge liner installed to keep the water from draining into the sand. We had a well drilled with a high volume pump to fill it and top it off when needed. We installed a couple of small air compressors hidden along the edge to supply 5 aerators at the bottom of the 20 foot deep pond to keep things fresh and algae down. So, the cost of all that was around 200K. The excavation was a big expense. It has a ledge all the way around with 4" rip rap stone in place going 20 feet down into the pond edges. If you have a situation where the soil is more clay like and a natural source for the water you can put a pond in for a lot less. The down side to that is your unable to closely manage the composition of the water, ie, bacteria, algae etc, for optimal fish habitat. There are trade offs. We just put it in so its new to us but so far we love it. The wildlife love it too!

Our "pond" is a 6 square mile lake built by God during the last ice age or so. It isn't private but I love it as a getaway and it is priceless to me. Plenty of fish and some whitetail and turkey. Is it a luxury? Sure but well worth the soul soothing benefit.

[Tangler]

ponds are wonderful. Another reason to keep saving. Totally a “want” not a need but an amazing one.
Thanks for info!

[jfoxcpacfp]

Is it really? I always thought that if you didn't have land to hunt/fish on then you just asked the landowner of where you wanted to hunt and then they'd let you hunt. At least that's how it seemed to work in the past. Where I'm from, I can't imagine it would be a good deal financially to buy land (without mineral rights) and it be a savvy financial move just to let people hunt it but I confess that I am not privy to these financials. Land can be a good investment for a number of reasons but I never thought of hunting it or letting someone else hunt it would be too high up on that list.

I’ve known several around here who buy land to hunt and then rent it out to others. There are plenty of people who don’t want hunters on their property, even in the South. My hubs allowed hunters on the farm connected to ours and I was always afraid of a stray bullet when out walking the dogs. Glad we’re selling it (to my doctor neighbor coincidentally) who wants a lot of privacy for their family and will drive miles away to hunt.

[K82]

I could buy an awful lot of sashimi grade ahi for $200K.

Very true. If I had told my younger self of 20 years ago that I would be spending that kind of money to put in a pond I would never have believed it. A lot of very long hours early on in my career along with following the principles touted on this website have allowed me this awesome privilege.