Buying Land

[Beef08]

what hurts around my area, and especially in the south is hunters buying land then jacking the price up when trying to sell it.

 

[I luv herfrds]

You guys are going to hate me for this; about 4 years ago pasture land was going for $150 an acre. Just had a guy buy some land for $1000 an acre. Private hunting preserve.
There is some land near us with pasture asking for $250 an acre, but the seller doesn't want to split it off. Asking $600,000 for about 2000 acres.
Know where you are coming from CB. Got 40 acres in the middle of our north pasture that belongs to some people. Keep trying to buy it, but they never respond.

 

[GMN]

Beef, keep your eyes out for land that someone needs to sell in a hurry. Also look for land with few, if any improvements, so the price will be less.
Caustic, you are absolutely right about the land not always going up. Every so often it crashes and washes out the people who are in a tough financial situation. They lose everything.
Cfpinz, the things that caused our land to drop from 2,000 per acre in 1980 to 200 per acre for the next 15 years were, Horrible droughts for 3 years, 2 years of grasshoppers destroying everything, interest rates going to 23 percent, cattle prices falling from 1000 per cow to 200 per cow, feeder calves dropping from 1.10 per pound to 40 cents per pound, Round bales of hay going from 10 dollars to 60 dollars, dairy feed going from 3.50 per hundred to 17.00 per hundred, milk price going from 10 dollars to 3.25 per hundred, the outlawing of foreign ownership of Missouri farm land. All of these things and more contributed to the crash in sw missouri that destroyed most of the farmers and left hundreds of thousands of acres owned by banks for 15 years that they couldnt sell for 200 per acre. All of these with the possible exception of the foreign ownership rules could happen today. Also the other possible crash instigators today are fuel prices, fertilize prices, equipment prices, recession, depression, inflation. We live with those possibilities every day as farmers. It doesnt matter what land appraises for, it is only worth what someone will actually pay for it at that given time.

There is a lady that has 15 acres that butts up to mine. I have been trying to buy for years. Her and the husband bought the land in the early 80's when the S&L's were going. He died and she is still wanting what they paid for it and can't sell it as it is still overpriced for the area. Every year I offer what the going rate is and she comes back but we paid this for it, I just shake my head and walk away.

I know you think you should be able to buy it for less, but it would be foolish for her to sell it for less than what she paid for it. She should do something to make it worth that, perhaps build a shed on it, and look as it as a investment to make more than what she paid for it. I wouldn't sell it for less either-who would?

GMN

 

[Caustic Burno]

Well she has had it for over twenty years and it is still priced at over market value plus paying taxes on it and not using it. Sounds like they made a smart finicial move.
Well she is in her upper 80's, know the kids will sell it for a song and dance as they are Dallas yuppies and have no interest in the place.
Talk about an idiot who would give 4000 an acre when it is still marketed at 2500 today and cheaper. Thats what they gave for it. And why she can't sell it.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Just like the ladies land I have been talking about she got bit by a developer that had came in and bought a couple hundred acres and survryed them off in 5 acre tracts. He was going to dam up the creek and make little lake front parcels. He ran into a major stumbling block the creek fell under the National Clean water act as well as he couldn't get the upsteam owner and downstream owner me to sign off on it. Once we found out it fell under the Clean water act he was done. Even if it hadn't fell under the act he couldn't dam without all the landowners consent downstream. All of the land was repurchased by the timber companies except hers.

 

[backhoeboogie]

I have never gone wrong buying land but have gone wrong selling land by not keeping mineral rights. Land has always sold for significantly more than what we paid. Maybe we have been lucky.

If you are just starting out, 10 acres can always serve as a place to live and hold heifers. Maybe to feed out steers, or hold your bull until breeding time if you wind up with a larger place near by later.

A new pick-up is going to lose its value absolutely. Land will always be worth something. Even if the price of land drops, it won't be as bad.

There are people spending a lot of nickels on 4 wheelers, ski rigs, and cars. It is all financed and by the time its paid for there is not much value in it.

If you are not going to invest your money in growth, invest it in something that will not lose most of its value. I think land is good investment if you don't over extend or don't over pay for it.

Sadly there are many who have not much of anything saved from a whole life of work.

 

[Caustic Burno]

I have never gone wrong buying land but have gone wrong selling land by not keeping mineral rights. Land has always sold for significantly more than what we paid. Maybe we have been lucky.

If you are just starting out, 10 acres can always serve as a place to live and hold heifers. Maybe to feed out steers, or hold your bull until breeding time if you wind up with a larger place near by later.

A new pick-up is going to lose its value absolutely. Land will always be worth something. Even if the price of land drops, it won't be as bad.

There are people spending a lot of nickels on 4 wheelers, ski rigs, and cars. It is all financed and by the time its paid for there is not much value in it.

If you are not going to invest your money in growth, invest it in something that will not lose most of its value. I think land is good investment if you don't over extend or don't over pay for it.

Sadly there are many who have not much of anything saved from a whole life of work.

Good advice Boogie but people need to do there homework on the potential value in the future.
The county I live in is 96% forest land and owned by the timber/paper companies. Who do you think is controlling land value here.

 

[dun]

A couple of years ago we sold 160 acres of timber for 1000/acre. The idiot that bought it built a 60X100 all metal building with a house sort of deal in one end. He died and his widow had it logged and mow wants 325k for it. Number one it's been logged, number 2 the building is way, way over built for the area. I offered her 200k and she was insulted. Ah well, in another 10-15 years it may be worth almost what she's asking for it.

 

[Caustic Burno]

A couple of years ago we sold 160 acres of timber for 1000/acre. The idiot that bought it built a 60X100 all metal building with a house sort of deal in one end. He died and his widow had it logged and mow wants 325k for it. Number one it's been logged, number 2 the building is way, way over built for the area. I offered her 200k and she was insulted. Ah well, in another 10-15 years it may be worth almost what she's asking for it.

Kinda like this 15 acre parcel I have been talking about, it has some great timber on it that would make it worth the price except the road to the place also has a cementary at the end. Texas has some strict laws about impedeing egress and ingress to one and the road being passable. Secondly the road would have to be rebuilt back to standards and limerock here is 400 dollars a dumptruck load. That would wipe out your timber profits and then some.

 

[stocky]

There is a nice place of 160 acres that joins me that I would really like to have. The family didnt sell it, one of the children wanted it. The land had no buildings and was worth 1500-2000 per acre, which I would have given. However, they built a huge, fancy house that cost them over 300,000 in actual costs to build. He died of a heart attack, and now they are trying to sell it, but the house pushes the asking cost up to 700,000. Take me out of the equation.
I have a question about the comments about mineral rights. I have never seen a piece of ground around here with mineral rights. The companies who got the ground in this area in the form of grants or government purchases never sold any mineral rights. All of those rights are still held by companies. I didnt realize there were areas where people actually owned the mineral rights with their property. I guess I am naive. I just thought it was the same everywhere. I also guess this wasnt a question.

 

[GMN]

Well she has had it for over twenty years and it is still priced at over market value plus paying taxes on it and not using it. Sounds like they made a smart finicial move.
Well she is in her upper 80's, know the kids will sell it for a song and dance as they are Dallas yuppies and have no interest in the place.
Talk about an idiot who would give 4000 an acre when it is still marketed at 2500 today and cheaper. Thats what they gave for it. And why she can't sell it.

I guess that is a lil different scenario. If I understand you right they over paid for the land originally, gave $4,000 an acre when it was only worth $2500 or not?

GMN

 

[ETF]

For what it's worth, St. Joe Paper Company is the largest landowner in Florida. They are in the process of getting out of the timber business and into the development business. They harvest timber near desirable areas, then plan a development and sell the land. Their latest plan near Tallahassee was to sell 10 acre ranchettes for $40,000 per acre!! That got knocked in the head with the collapse of the housing market, but they will just wait and dust off the plans when the market recovers.

 

[dyates]

I already posted this somewhere else, but 5 acre tracts here sell anywhere from $35,000-$50,000 with no improvements. I justify the purchase of my little farm because it had a house and I needed a place to live. I don't foresee land prices ever getting back down where you can pay for it farming. Don't forget about the tax advantage as far as interest goes. It still doesn't make farming profitable, but it helps.

 

[Caustic Burno]

For what it's worth, St. Joe Paper Company is the largest landowner in Florida. They are in the process of getting out of the timber business and into the development business. They harvest timber near desirable areas, then plan a development and sell the land. Their latest plan near Tallahassee was to sell 10 acre ranchettes for $40,000 per acre!! That got knocked in the head with the collapse of the housing market, but they will just wait and dust off the plans when the market recovers.

Thats one thing I won't have to worry about as Tyler county is a long way from having the appeal of Tallahasse.
Second fly in the onitment here is the Big Thicket National Preserve this opens up a whole nother can of worms. This limits all kinds of activities that could impact the thicket corridors. It is layed out in corridors that consist of 86,000 acres.

 

[Lammie]

I want to be able to buy a farm in the next ten years, does anyone have any advice that might make the saving of money easier or any tips of how much land to buy? or just anything to say?

Marry money.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Marry money.

:shock: :shock: :shock:

 

[stocky]

Lammie,
I don't know, but I have been told that it is just as easy to fall in love with a rich girl as it is a poor one. Sounds like that might be the secret to being able to afford that farm.

 

[dun]

Lammie,
I don't know, but I have been told that it is just as easy to fall in love with a rich girl as it is a poor one. Sounds like that might be the secret to being able to afford that farm.

The hard part is getting the rich girl to fall in love with you.

 

[KenB]

Lammie,
I don't know, but I have been told that it is just as easy to fall in love with a rich girl as it is a poor one. Sounds like that might be the secret to being able to afford that farm.

The hard part is getting the rich girl to fall in love with you.

:clap: :clap: :tiphat:

 

[Caustic Burno]

Lammie,
I don't know, but I have been told that it is just as easy to fall in love with a rich girl as it is a poor one. Sounds like that might be the secret to being able to afford that farm.

The hard part is getting the rich girl to fall in love with you.

:clap: :clap: :tiphat:

Not if she is a fat rich girl just sleep with your hand on the money,
Remember everthing looks good fat cept a hunting dog and a women. With the exception of a fat rich girl.
Money can't buy good looks but it can cover up a whole bunch of ugly. ;-)