What’s a lease worth?

[WestKentucky]

A coworker has a parcel of land leased to another coworker. The one who has the hunting rights leased is reportedly wanting to either split it with another hunter, or get out of it altogether after this year. I have never been involved in a lease before, so realistically what would it be worth? I deer hunt, Turkey hunt, and would likely occasionally squirrel hunt. The property is roughly 60 acres so it’s not huge, but it’s big enough to hunt. It is thick and steep, would be hard hunting but does have animals on it. Likely nothing trophy class, but animals nonetheless (even the small and ugly ones taste good). So what’s it worth? $1 an acre? $10 an acre? $100 an acre? Specifically talking hunting rights for a year.

 

[wombat13]

I'll guess that no one can give you a good answer unless they have specific knowledge of the area where this lease is. Lease prices are highly variable in NY at least. We've heard that they go for $5 - $8 per acre where we have land but more than double that an hour or two from our property where agriculture supports a much higher deer density.

More importantly, what would it be worth to you? You get exclusive hunting rights on 60 acres. How much are you willing to pay for that?

 

[earlthegoat2]

The amount goes up in value the more you use it.

Years ago, I was able to negotiate a cheap lease for small game only during non-deer season. It was $100/yr. If I wanted deer and turkey it would have jumped up to $800 and there would be a wait until one of the other deer hunting only lessors wanted out.

That is the informal nature and way of game animal politics. As a side note, I have never been able to negotiate a hog and small game only during non-deer season lease here in the south. Politics have changed and so have landowners.

Since the landowner is an acquaintance, the process should be easier even if the money isn’t. Around here a deer lease is 6-800 for 100 acres and only access from Aug -Jan. A whole year will usually be 1000. So that’s 6-8 dollars for deer and 10 for all year and all game.

 

[CapnMac]

"Worth" is tricky sledding.

How much further away to under-hunted Public land (if any)?

How much access are you buying? Like, can you go all year and establish feeders and/or hides or treestands or the like? Can you go to just be alone in nature?
Concurrently, with that access, how much work will be expected of you? Are you going to be asked to "volunteer" to mend fences, police trash, keep trespassers out?

Does the lease include water or not? This is really important in dry years.

How are you meant to pay? Monthly, quarterly, yearly? Each has advantages and disadvantages.

How many others are on the lease?

Each of those either increases or decreases the value of the lease. Which is down to you. And your budget. And your freezer []

 

[daniel craig]

In the part of New York I live in it’s not worth much because the state land is actually pretty decent to hunt down and a lot of the privately held land sucks

 

[Arkansas Paul]

Here is a chart with the approximate going rate in different states.


http://deerpros.com/hunting-lease/hunting-lease-price-guide/

 

[WestKentucky]

"Worth" is tricky sledding.

How much further away to under-hunted Public land (if any)?

How much access are you buying? Like, can you go all year and establish feeders and/or hides or treestands or the like? Can you go to just be alone in nature?
Concurrently, with that access, how much work will be expected of you? Are you going to be asked to "volunteer" to mend fences, police trash, keep trespassers out?

Does the lease include water or not? This is really important in dry years.

How are you meant to pay? Monthly, quarterly, yearly? Each has advantages and disadvantages.

How many others are on the lease?

Each of those either increases or decreases the value of the lease. Which is down to you. And your budget. And your freezer []

Public land is very close, but it’s one of those places with little access without a boat (I sold mine) and even with a boat your hunter population roughly matches the population of critters being chased.

Access is hunting rights all year. Tax day to tax day. Hunting related activity is good to go, random shooting trips is not though because there’s one other guy on the lease. He actually has the lease now and wants somebody else to buy into it to ease the pocket pain.

The only work is optional. There’s an old logging road and it has a couple trees down across it. Clearing the trees would make for easier access to the bottom of the valley but it’s optional. With that done I would be able to run a lawn mower or 4 wheeler down to get a deer out. Currently it would be a tough uphill drag, but not impossible.

 

[CapnMac]

Then, since it sounds like something you'd like to do anyway, then, it's more a question of can you afford the half of the lease.
It can be handy to know, if you get a day off early in the season, you can get out to the lease. In your case, you'd likely need to call/text the other guy first.
These things can actually work out really well.

 

[earlthegoat2]

One of my acquaintances down here once posited that it may be foolish to lease property close by your home for hunting when it may make more sense to buy some. Further away it can make more sense to lease. Especially if the opportunities are better. Depending on property prices and interest rates he may be right. Not always the case but it is something to ponder.

From a pure hunting perspective, I tend to agree. A crap piece of land out in the country and away from potential development could be bought cheaply and nurtured by the owner to produce game. Maybe not world class trophies but definitely enough to be enjoyable. Like I said, something to ponder. It is what I ended up doing.

I bought 20 acres of slash cut land for $18,000. A few feeders and there are plenty of deer and hogs to go around. I lease it out to a couple of guys for $300 eachfor access from opening day of deer season in early Sept until the end of Nov. After that it is all mine for all the deer and bacon I can get.

I plan to use it as a vegetation dump for my business too so that is deductible. It has pulp wood saplings planted so it is agricultural/forestry so there are advantages there too. Land can be twisted advantageously for taxes if you do your homework before purchasing. Plus you can partially lease it out to pay your taxes.

 

[Patocazador]

If there is a good population of quality deer on the land, the going rate down here is ~$18-22/acre/year. The bigger the piece of land, the less per acre. Crappy hunting land goes for $10-15/acre.

 

[WestKentucky]

One of my acquaintances down here once posited that it may be foolish to lease property close by your home for hunting when it may make more sense to buy some. Further away it can make more sense to lease. Especially if the opportunities are better. Depending on property prices and interest rates he may be right. Not always the case but it is something to ponder.

From a pure hunting perspective, I tend to agree. A crap piece of land out in the country and away from potential development could be bought cheaply and nurtured by the owner to produce game. Maybe not world class trophies but definitely enough to be enjoyable. Like I said, something to ponder. It is what I ended up doing.

I bought 20 acres of slash cut land for $18,000. A few feeders and there are plenty of deer and hogs to go around. I lease it out to a couple of guys for $300 eachfor access from opening day of deer season in early Sept until the end of Nov. After that it is all mine for all the deer and bacon I can get.

I plan to use it as a vegetation dump for my business too so that is deductible. It has pulp wood saplings planted so it is agricultural/forestry so there are advantages there too. Land can be twisted advantageously for taxes if you do your homework before purchasing. Plus you can partially lease it out to pay your taxes.

I absolutely agree and it’s something I have been wanting to do but it does not make sense here. I’m in the “Nashville area I-40 corridor” which supposedly is one of the fastest growing areas in the US. Any land to be found is upwards of 4 grand an acre in small patches, and for sizable plots with any ground flat enough for a house it’s more in the 6 grand per acre range. I would be looking at a quarter million or more to buy a similar property that’s nearby. I have looked further east and there is potential there, but still 3 grand an acre or more. If I thought I would stay here for decades I might do it, but currently I’m not so sure I will stay in my current area.

 

[Captcurt]

Four of us leased a 800 acre piece that had cattle and goats on it for $4 an acre. We thought that it was a great deal because it was on a point on the lake and was surrounded on 3 sides by over 3000 acres of government land. What we didn't know was that the fences were down in several places and every time that it was prime time the goats and a couple of dogs would come through. I don't know how they always found me but it happened several times. After nearly having to kill a dog when it came after me while i was driving out on my ATV, I told the owners that I wouldn't be back next year. I did manage to take a 6 point off of it so it wasn't a total bust.

 

[Highland Lofts]

I really enjoy deer hunting alot, I fly back to New York State every November for three & a half week to hunt deer there. As much as I like to hunt deer I woild never lease property to hunt on. There is so much unmollested public land to hunt on for free why pay an expensive lease.
Just in New Yorks Region 7 there is over 100 pieces of State Land that totals over 178,000 acres, some of it prime deer habitat.
These parcels range from 300 acre pockets to 6,000 plus acres.
The non-resident small game/big game hunting license is only $100 and over the counter doe tags are only $10.
I have hundreds & hundrefs of acres of prime private land to hunt on and more is available for the asking.

 

[BigBore44]

A coworker has a parcel of land leased to another coworker. The one who has the hunting rights leased is reportedly wanting to either split it with another hunter, or get out of it altogether after this year. I have never been involved in a lease before, so realistically what would it be worth? I deer hunt, Turkey hunt, and would likely occasionally squirrel hunt. The property is roughly 60 acres so it’s not huge, but it’s big enough to hunt. It is thick and steep, would be hard hunting but does have animals on it. Likely nothing trophy class, but animals nonetheless (even the small and ugly ones taste good). So what’s it worth? $1 an acre? $10 an acre? $100 an acre? Specifically talking hunting rights for a year.

I absolutely agree and it’s something I have been wanting to do but it does not make sense here. I’m in the “Nashville area I-40 corridor” which supposedly is one of the fastest growing areas in the US. Any land to be found is upwards of 4 grand an acre in small patches, and for sizable plots with any ground flat enough for a house it’s more in the 6 grand per acre range. I would be looking at a quarter million or more to buy a similar property that’s nearby. I have looked further east and there is potential there, but still 3 grand an acre or more. If I thought I would stay here for decades I might do it, but currently I’m not so sure I will stay in my current area.

You’re not looking in the right places or talking to the right people. Check with your county tax commission. A friend of mine just bout a house and 7 acres for $35k. 2 days later he bought the adjoining 47 acres for $800/acre when the owner came pulling up on an ATV. He’s in the process of negotiating for another 107 adjoining acres. Likely for $1,000/acre or less. Good land deals aren’t going to spring up at you from realtor.com or Zillow. You gotta look and do research.

 

[Highland Lofts]

We live in Arlington WA. they artificailly took our property asssessment from $75,000 up to $325,000. So it is almost time to dump this place and move back to Chenango County New York.
I have been looking online at properties with minimum twenty-five acres and either really close to State Forest Land or bordering it. There are several properties I will be checking out personally when I go back there deer hunting this November.
My price range id from $140,000 to $200,00.
We took out a loan against to house and have a $40,000 payoff. So that leaves us with $285,000 to use to buy our next place, move therr and have som e money left over.
Plus I will be looking at some vacant properties close state land to buy & put a hunting camp together for friends & family.
Once I see what I want I will buy it now and get it going. I have several I am going to look at.
This property will be from one to five acres and will be really close to open public land.

There is one property that has a single wide three bedroom trailer on it next to a really good trout fishing creek for only $20,000. The property, well, septic & electric is worth that alone. I will be checkong this out. I am expecting the trailer will need to go. I just want to see what the property looks like.

 

[WestKentucky]

It’s a verbal deal. $100 per year for 65 acres with deer, turkey, and potentially bear. It will be me and 1 other guy hunting, and each of us may occasionally bring a kid with us. Fairly thick, was logged a few years ago, and has an apple orchard on it. It’s only 15 minutes from my house, and I have seen pictures of some of the animals on it. Good to go... I’m hunting again.

 

[Highland Lofts]

A hundred bucks isn't to bad, when it gets up over a couple hundred bucks I'd stay home and just buy beef from the store.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Here is a chart with the approximate going rate in different states.

This is a pretty accurate reference. The cost in Maryland according to the reference would be $1020.00.

I would've said that if you could get it for $10 an acre ($600 per year) to jump on it. Especially since the DNR has just allowed the use of straight walled cartridges in areas once restricted only to shotguns and Muzzle Loaders, AND DNR added a "primitive" black powder season at the end of the deer hunting seasons. So prices here will jump as guys who used to travel to the Western part of my state will stay closer and use their lever guns in .44 mag.. .444 marlin, and AR's in .350 Legend, as well as other stuff.


Shooting range memberships are cheap in Maryland if they run under $200 for a year, and usually there are restrictions so one cannot necessarily use the ranges for much other than sighting in, and testing handloads with a chronograph.

LD

 

[Lennyjoe]

I’m having a hell of a time finding anywhere but public lands to hunt in SW Ohio. Ive asked several farmers, offered manual labor, dollars and venison but so far no takers.

 

[Armored farmer]

It’s a verbal deal. $100 per year for 65 acres with deer, turkey, and potentially bear. It will be me and 1 other guy hunting, and each of us may occasionally bring a kid with us. Fairly thick, was logged a few years ago, and has an apple orchard on it. It’s only 15 minutes from my house, and I have seen pictures of some of the animals on it. Good to go... I’m hunting again.

$100/acre? Or $100/year??
$100/yr is a gift, that wouldn't pay the taxes.
BTW, when you pay for a lease, i believe that the landowner is no longer liable in case of an accident.

 

[WestKentucky]

It’s $100 per year and I get the whole property to hunt.

 

[CapnMac]

the landowner is no longer liable in case of an accident.

There's probably not enough precedent law to make an assertion. Probably will be down to the insurance and its coverage as carried by the landowner, and the State's requirements (which are going to be a mix of State Insurance regs, Wildlife/Natural resource regs, and the like).

There can be property tax implications, but those are going to vary by State and the "use" of the land.

 

[Armored farmer]

It’s $100 per year and I get the whole property to hunt.

Very nice.
I would treat those folks right!

 

[Sniper66]

That is a steal. You better grab it while it's still being offered and thank him...a lot

 

[Random 8]

It’s $100 per year and I get the whole property to hunt.

I'd be in my wallet so fast you'd think I just found half priced small pistol primers.