Where there is a will there is a way.

Doubling your money is not about like breaking even don't know where u came up with that

I think the feedlot style pick an animal to shoot type operations will see some price pressures. Seems like last couple years prices have crept down. Getting some market saturation there it seems and there will definitely be less cash thrown around in Texas this year.

It's a matter of choice.

I see nothing wrong with renting someone elses land but that can end in a hurry and you're out looking for another place. If things change you have options to seek something better for you.

I decided to buy with a Texas Veterans loan and sign a personal note for the rest. It has taken over 30+ years to get to the current point. It's mine and I can do as I please which you can't on someone elses land. It is certainly more expensive than leasing but in the end it is mine. The biggest downside is that I can't afford to hunt out of State or find another place. No matter what happens, for better or worse, I own it and am stuck with it. I'm also stuck with taxes, insurance, maintenance and all of the other expenses of property ownership. And, I don't live there. But, at the end of the 30 years, I have an asset. It's about like buying vs renting a home.

Gotta admit, I have no idea how much the difference would be be if I had just leased and banked/invested the difference.

Have to be rich? None of the landowners around me are rich. They just drive older pickups than other people and don't go on vacations. I'll repeat that just about anybody can do it. It's a matter of priorities. Some of those priorities aren't pleasant.

Sweat doesn't work? Not if you figure that weekends are for watching football instead of helping someone clear land or build fence. Nor, if you make sure that the guy knows that he is getting your help only to get something from him.

How big a place you have?

Lots of these posts are talking about " he'll anyone can do it" but there is a big difference in buying 50-100 acres and buying 500 +

133 acres

Location plays a big part in it too buying 133 acres in one area maybe totally different in another area concerning prove

Saying anyone can do it is painting it with a pretty broad brush

You should probably pay for some reading comprehension courses. Hopefully would help you keep from imagining name calling...

I have 4 close friends that are large land owners with MLD. All of them let friends who work kill culls, does and hogs/turkey's. I really don't know any landowners who don't. My experience is obviously different than yours.

And RC I said CAN do it. Yes, virtually everyone CAN buy their own place. Not many have the required drive or commitment. But that's a choice, they could if they wanted to.

You don't have to sell to retire if you do it right. And just doubling or depending on time etc tripling/quadrupling your money isn't the only thing that makes it better than stock. The legal tax breaks are incredible.

I am in the camp that it is way cheaper to lease than buy.

....not if I get a free yeti out of the deal.

And we lived in smaller houses, had a lot less outside of the home expenses. Eating out was treat, not a weekly or daily stop at a fast food place. One vehicle per family, or maybe a used older pickup as a second vehicle. Entertainment was play outside until dinner time, just don't bother the neighbors. Simple times.

In 1966, a F100 would cost you $1995 brand new. Starting wages was around $1 to $2 for a beginner out of high school.

Yeah, I guess it is a broad brush and I'm wrong on that.
Some of my High School buddies got rich and I didn't. Lots of things can go right or wrong on the journey. A divorce dang near wiped me out 30 years ago and about all I had left was the land, an old pickup and child support payments.

But, IMO, it's generally about choices and priorities as we go through life.

They can be simple now if a person would let them be.

Actually they were more reasonable than most outfitters in the area at that time. We were right across the road in Ingram from Texotic Wildlife, A K A Thompson Temple in his hay day. We were cheaper than him but did not have the name or advertising money or animals he did.

I remember that place. I'm also assuming animals weren't as readily available back then and thus more costly in relative terms. Just guessing.

Things had changed by the time I came through school. For the most part, certain families still had the family farms and leases. Other families that had moved in didn't place as much value on hunting.

Very true. The only place we hunted that had a lot of different animals was the Flying A in Bandera. The rest were usually different ranches that had either BB, Axis. Sheep or whatever. And there were really not that many hogs at least around this area back then. And that price was for a big Russian type Boar. Those were usually trapped then turned out and hunted with dogs. We were getting the majority of our hunters out of La. A lot of oil money there at that time. Also got in with the Director of marketing for Colt Firearms and he brought quite a few people for a few years. then the oil money went away and it all dried up. You never know maybe like now.

Lots of generalizations regarding land ownership in here. As I've always said, big difference in purchasing 200 acres or less vs. 500 acres or more. For 200 acres or less, with a decent down payment, 20-50%, you are talking about servicing a loan of $150-200K up to 20 yrs./maybe 30 yrs. if you can find one.
For 500 acres, after downpayment, you're still talking about servicing a loan of $600-$800K. Lot easier in my book to debt service $200K vs. $800K. I'm not a mathematician, just a guy with an accounting degree that works in Finance/Accounting for a living.

way too many generalizations here.


its a common theme that if you "don't buy too big a house, drive an old car and don't eat out" you'll be able to have a ranch.


Not once has anyone brought up positive cash flow....they all want to save their way to a property.

I guess everyone is buying land that will not help pay for itself also via some income from any or all of these.... livestock, farming, hay production, etc.

nope....who would have ever thought of such a thing. Its starbucks, Chevrolet and olive gardens fault no one can afford to buy land.

its been my experience that property owners keep a place for about 2-3 years before they realize the cost of maintaining a place and then begin to lease grazing, farm hay, sell hunts, etc

Have to do something for exemptions. Our place sits pretty idle. Trees are a 30yr crop, hay field yields roughly 250 bales a year.