Hi all,

New to TX and the leasing options. I have been looking around and I wanted to see if anyone can help me understand the process better. So far the only experience I have Hunting in TX was a guided meat hunt out in del Rio where all I had to do was pull the trigger, Looking to get more involved than that.

Below I have some questions that I hope will inform me on how Hunting and Leases work in TX:

1. What should I be looking for if I am interested in having general access to a property for hunting (various game types) year round and can come and go with approval from the owner, does this type of lease exist?
2. Most of the stuff I see advertised seems more like a "Weekend trip" and less of a "lease" how can I filter these out?
3. If the situation in question[1] exists, what should I be expecting to pay? Ideally I'd like to be somewhere in Central TX.
4. My goal is to see if after leasing some property if buying land would be worth it to me. On the surface it seems nice, but I also worry that the upkeep on a piece of land keeping it interesting to game might be harder than I am assuming.
5. Is there any general opinion on sites like huntinglocator[dot]com where do people find leases ?

Appreciate the insight in advance, any tips/feedback welcome as well.

You can expect to pay $3000 --- $4000 for a year round lease in central tx. It is unlikely you can find a lease that is open, hence your best bet is to look for a "spot" on an existing lease. Guy that owned 63 acres next to me put it for lease, he had around 35 calls the first day,,, leased to the second person that called. $3K. He has considered selling the property, the Re agent that wants to list it has told him he can easily get between $700K ---$800k,,, that would be pretty expensive for 62 acres of hunting property. It has water, elect, and road frontage.
In conclusion ( not to discourage you ) , ---- each year the leases get more expensive, more difficult to find, and because they are crowding more hunters onto smaller acreage, less and less game.

Yep, finding a property that is available for lease is going to be very difficult. Best option is to start asking around - church, work, clubs, etc, - to find a group that is looking for a replacement/new member. It may take awhile. I've seen them advertised on Craigslist and other places, but I would be suspect of joining a group that has to advertise to get a new member - most will be filled quickly by friends and/or family.

Fees are contingent on number of hunters allowed, size or property, available game, year round or seasonal usage, etc. And yes, year round would be optimal for me. That gives you the opportunity perhaps to hunt hogs, fish, develop food plots, camp, clear shooting lanes, and much more.

The price of land is crazy right now if considering purchase. In our area of west/central TX land that was $2000 an acre a few years ago may be 3, 4, or even 5 times that today.

Good luck - it can be a challenge to find the right group, but stick to it and something will turn up eventually. Just make sure you are comfortable with your partners - nothing worse than getting on a place and finding it doesn't meet your expectations - I've been there.

Thanks for the insights, are there any well known clubs that accept new comers? Any specific advice on finding a lease would be appreciated.

Sounds obvious, but starting in the spring, start checking Craigslist a few times a day. I actually found a decent lease that way. They will go super fast though, so be prepared to act.

You could also try joining various Facebook hunting groups and putting feelers out there.

Also, public land is still an option, even in Texas. Great way to get started.