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Price of ground

baggin_bucks

Active Member
What do you guys think is a good price per acre of prime deer hunting ground (crp,timber,and 2 small ponds) in souther Iowa? It would be a 175 acre continous tract. Thanks Jeremy
 
if you can get it for 1200-1500 per acre...you would be doing really good. I know of some that has gone for 1800-2000 for unusable ground (no tillable) and on up from there.
 
Everything around my area is 2500 and up. Its not as rough as ground as some, but its still getting out of control. 1250 an acre is pretty good if you ask me.
 
All I know is that the price of ground really sucks right now! It is very expensive compared to the early 1990's. Inflation only has only played a minor role in this. People are now realizing just how much they can get out of land. A farmer next to my house is selling 4 acre chunks and making a housing development. Each 4 acre piece is sold for $32,000. I can't believe people even consider paying an outrageous price for something like that, even if it is in a good location. Just last week I was talking to the landowner of the ground that I hunt. He owns right about 750 acres. He asked me how much I thought he bought it for? I guessed around 800 an acre. "No." He said. "I payed an average price of $250 per acre." I couldn't believe this. He purchased the ground in 1991, and it is unfarmable timber ground. What a great investment he made. If you think about it land is the best investment you can make, the prices will continue to raise throughout the years.
 
Baggin-
It makes some difference when you say southern Iowa. SE,SC,or SW? Also makes a difference in ratio of CRP to timber, CRP payment, timber potential, interest rates, etc. "Rough" ground or scrubby timber for hunting and recreation is worth more than some marginal pasture or hay ground. Seems like even in a drought year there is lots of extra hay in southern Iowa so it never seems to sell at a premium. Seeing quite a bit more ground that the asking price is over $2000 in extreme SE, closer you get to DesMoines, IC, Waterloo, Quad Cities the hunting ground is going for more than good tillable some places. Absolutely kicking myself over places I could have bought for $400/acre 10 years ago.
 
sureshot, we have a 5 acre piece next to us that the owner is asking $295,000. The scary part is he has had five people interested...or there is a bargain of a hayfield that is 2.5 acres for $95,000. But, the real bargain is just down the road where a guy can get 40 acres for the rock bottom price of $600,000. It is completely insane around here.

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Pharmer says :Absolutely kicking myself over places I could have bought for $400/acre 10 years ago.

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Tell me about it Pharmer.....
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Wouldn't it be nice to go back 15 years and know what you know now.

I will say for those of you that are unmarried and attending college...my first major purchase after landing that first real job wouldn't be a wedding ring...it would be some hunting land.

That is one investment that you will never regret and have a life time to enjoy.
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Ok,...I finished.
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Ghost, I'm going to try to take your advice on that one. We'll see how everything turns out. Haha.
 
Pharmer,
It is the south central part of the state. The thing that worries me is the tillable ground is in CRP for the last year and the government is not renewing it...mostly the reason for this person selling it. I could buy it and rent out the tillable but there are oak trees, cedars and other great species of plants and trees that are popping up everywhere in the crp that would be a shame to destroy to rent it. Does anyone know of anyother programs a person could put something like this into? I just hate to see it go back to being tilled up after the ground has started turning back to it's native state over the last 20 years. It's approximately 120 acres crp the rest is timber.
 
How many acres coming out of CRP? Is there any water running through it? You may be eligable for some continuous CRP. Buffer strip the water on the tillable ground, look for wind break or quail cover on the edges of the fields and look for CP 22 (tree plantings) on water sources in pasture. Sad part is, you may have to rip it up to continue to get paid. Need to keep the cash flowing so you can buy more. I have been crop sharing my tillable areas to allow me to deduct all of my farm expenses. This really helps with the tax return from my day job. Best thing to do might be to walk the property with your Wildlife Biologist to get his take on what that piece qualifies for. If it is in Warren or Marion then get ahold of Josh Gansen with IDNR. Great guy and he will get you up to speed on what you can do with the property. I look at revenue potential from the property and then evaluate how much would be out of pocket each year to see what I can afford to offer. If you have to till it up to make it work then do it. Better in the hands of a sportsman who will do what is right by the property when he can. Good luck. Farm ownership, (land management) can be as much fun as the hunting that you do on the land.
 
It has 2 ponds and 2 cricks running through different parts of the property. I was wondering about buffer strips along the crick and quail habitat also. I don't know, I'll have to see what it may be eligible for to help pay for itself. I just know once it goes on the open market it will get eaten up like candy because my uncle is being very reasonable on the price. It's just the $$$,$$$.$$ (comma in that number that has me apprehesive.)
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I have a neighbor that has 120 acres he would sell for $2000 an acre. He paid $400 an acre plus had it logged about 12 years ago. Talk about a good retirement plan!
 
I have 160 acres in Appannoose county (140+ is timber) and it has gone up 600% in value since I bought it in '92. I found out the current value the hard way - had to have it appraised during a divorce earlier this year.

IMHO, the timber ground in that area has been bringing more than the crop ground in large part because of whitetail deer and the change in the mid-nineties to allow non-resident hunting. A lot of the ground around mine has been bought up by out of state land owners. I'm not opposed to non-resident hunting as I have friends who hunt in years they get drawn but I believe it has contributed to the increase in the price of recreational ground.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Ghost said " Wouldn't it be nice to go back 15 years and know what you know now."

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I'd like to go back 15 days sometimes!
 
baggin- Highjumper hit the high points really well. Talk to someone with boots on the ground for programs, if it hasn't been cropped I don't think you can get into the quail buffer program but check with NRCS and state biologist. Buffer strips can be good but probably won't replace the whole CRP nut. Maybe you could score enough to re-up if you are willing to put in natives, do some tree planting, etc. Costs on front end but they may also have some cost share for you.
 
The rules change every time there is CRP signup so you really have to stay in touch with your gov't office. Last signup you were guaranteed acceptance if you planted trees on all the acres. A great deal cause you got cost share for planting and maintenance. At the end of 15 years you would have great habitat but you wouldn't have the option of farming it again. One thing I didn't know until recently was that the gov't could end payments AT ANY TIME if they ran out of money! Although unlikely,with the current state of the fed budget, if losing those payments meant losing the land, make sure you don't pay more than you could sell it for.The stream buffer programs are open for enrollment all the time and pay better than general signup so be sure to check them out.
 
I got a PDF newletter the other day that contained this information. Maybe you can get the owner to extend the CRP contract as a contigency for buying it, because, usually you need to own the land at least a year before you can enroll it in CRP.

Conservation Reserve Program
(CRP) contracts maturing in
2007-2010 will be eligible for
either an extension or re-enrollment
into the program, according
to USDA.
Some 28 million acres come
due over that period (16 million
in 2007; 6 million in ’08; 4 million
in ’09; and 2 million in ’10).
The Environmental Benefits
Index (EBI) in place when contracts
were started will determine
whether an extension or re-enrollment
will be offered. The following
five tiers will make the call:
• Re-enrollment: Those in the top
20% of the EBI.
• 5-year extension: 61%-80% level.
• 4-year extension: 41%-60% level.
• 3-year extension: 21%-40% level.
• 2-year extension: up to 20% level.
USDA will update rental rates
for re-enrollments, but use existing
rates for extensions.
In early 2006, USDA will make
contact with landowners holding
contracts that mature in 2007 to
go through options.
 
Thanks guys I'll keep all those in mind. I don't know, I can't swing it by myself, I would love to have it I'm currently talking to my dad and brother to see if they would be interested in going in on a new "investment"
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