I have been on a number of leases over the past 40 plus years. Hill country - west Texas - South Texas. Some good and some bad - I also was fortunate to run an incredible STex lease for 13 plus years. So like many of you I have seen it all.

My experience with a "bad lease?" - no rules. No Guest limits. No management of the resource you are paying for. A land owner who does not give a crap but just wants your money and wants you not to be there.

IMO a good lease is one where - the members are respectful of the rules and of other members - the members enjoy having direct family to share the experience but do not abuse the right by bringing too many people for the camp or ranch to handle - the LO is on the same page and wants to improve their property and wildlife - and all have the same goal ...... to manage and improve the wildlife on the property -

I get that different people and different leases have different goals - if you join a lease just make sure that your goals and objectives match with what that particular lease's goals and objectives are - my 2 cents

I got sick of dealing with sorry lease members and sorry land owners. It's 100% why I bought my place in 1998.

I get it but I have been blessed to be on some awesome leases with members who became some of my best friends - IMO you have to find the right fit for your lease and members

I was unlucky, I had really bad luck with landowners.

I was lucky enough to have been on one great lease with great guys. The others were forgettable. I hunt on my place now.

Me too 603. About 40 years ago I bought my 133 acres of non productive, rocky, hilly, heavily wooded, POS, junk land for a little over $400 per acre. Other than going out of state for elk and mule deer, I’ve never hunted anywhere else.

Leasing is out of sight. The LO is getting hit hard by inflation and increasing taxes on the increasing value of the property. I know of a couple of landowners that are going to sell out due to increasing expenses and taxes.

I have only been on one lease. I was the only member that wasn’t family. The other members were great, helpful and friendly. It was a very positive experience. Found that lease here on THF.

Just so happy the guys are going to let me hunt with them for an eighteenth season.

great, good, bad, ugly ... see them all over the last 60 years of hunting.

great: plenty of game, congenial hunt members, defined and feasible rules in place, everyone is looking out for each other and helping as needed, price in line with expectations.

good: fair amount of game most years, most hunt members are congenial and play by the rules, defined and for the most part feasible rules, most help each other out, price in the fair range.

bad: minimal game, others do as they wish and expect everyone else to follow the rules but not them, rules are loose at best, price over fair range for offerings.

ugly: no game, butt heads that abuse privileges, rules? what rules, ridiculous price

of course, any of these could be drastically expanded.

I usually stay long enough to figure out which category the lease falls in (some pretty quick) and settle in or start looking. I have been blessed with a number that fall into the good and great area.

Our advantages are plain & simple - good deer, lots of space with mature hunters all on the same page, two hours door to door, absentee owner, multi-year lease contracts, limited oilfield intrusion, year round access and no migrant traffic (none).

i just want a place I can hunt mule deer mid to late Dec, Elk in Sept and Aoudad when I see to many

Same Here.

I always align with tlk on this stuff. PMK elaborated and had real good stuff to say.
As tlk said, know what you want and make sure you get on a lease where all parties involved are like minded.
If hunting big mature deer is important then figure out what that takes and find guys that are willing and able to do that. If you like a party lease then make sure you get on one like that. If you dont want others hunting hogs all night then dont get on one where they do that. Etc Etc Etc.

Leases seem like there are 99 ways for things to go wrong and one way for them to go right. I have heard so many horror stories that I have never even wanted to try one and just bought my place instead.

I'd say don't get on a lease with all strangers. I did that and got screwed. To bypass all of the major pain points of leasing, I would like to buy a place, improve it, and then sell equity memberships to like minded friends and colleagues. That's the only way you're in control.

take partners and you won't be in control.

I've been so very lucky, a landowner replied to my criagslist post 16 years ago. He checked all my boxes (100 acres, family only lease with stocked tank, year round access, plants a food plot for me each year). He let me set the lease amount and has never once asked for more money. I take a buck every year, several years 130-140 class bucks. Where one son never chose to be a hunter, the other also takes a deer every year he hunts. I'll only let that place go due to him selling or me getting too old to hunt. He wants to sell it to me when the time comes but I'm not sure if that's in the cards as I may well retire back to the coast. Also, whereas he only paid $850 an acre for it (Young County) 20 years ago, it's worth a good deal more than that now. Depending on his price I may end up being the owner especially if we don't end up moving to the coast...wonder if I can talk the wife into moving to Young County LMAO..

This is the way.

Have had a few bad lease experiences, and one "decent" one. Too much BS for me...

I doubt I will ever get on a lease again...nothing beats hunting and killing on your own place. Nothing.

Yep - if you want to own the land do so and just invite your friends you’d like to hunt with. A bunch of people having ownership of a place seems like a way bigger headache than leasing.

I can't afford leases anymore. If I don't get an invite from family, I don't get to hunt.

Best lease I was ever on was on the Lambshead/Matthews Ranch back in the early 90's. We leased 2 pastures about 10k acres and filled it with close friends. Very good times. We all paid $1800 a piece, took car of our own feeders and stands and paid our part of the electricity bill. 140 or better was the rule. Good Card games at night and good eating too. We planned that out so everyone contributed on the meals.

None of the guys would shoot their does, so some of us would take our kids, wives or brothers to take the does we needed to take each year. Had a consistent 1 buck to 2 does ratio and had a helicopter survey done each year done by the Ranch.

I was offered a section of land on a neighboring ranch at $600 an acre and was too short sighted to buy it back then. Stupid Stupid Stupid.

Good Times.

I have had much better luck in dealing with landowners in fact most are pretty laissez-faire about hunting. My bad experiences have always been from other lease members. I do not understand how some folks can be moral, law abiding citizens in every other facet of life but turn into blood thirsty, outlaws once they get out in the country. It is amazing what people will try to get away with when they think no one is looking.

I bought my own property a few years ago to not have to deal with leasing and particularly other lease members but essentially traded that problem with another problem and that is trespassers. As Texas has gotten bigger and bigger hunting has gotten exponentially more expensive with exponentially more problems. The good old days are gone and will never return is there just too many sorry people that have no respect for the law or for private property.

All my good lease experiences were those managed by the most senior member who took the role of a dictator. In every case, their strength was quickly identifying and dealing with the troublemakers so that everyone else need not worry about the drama.

I am the only hunter on my lease and have a 150 acre pasture leased. When I first got on the lease, there were five other hunters who had other pastures leased from the same landowner and there was constant drama. The primary issue was too much alcohol being consumed by two of the members which caused all types of issues. Over the years, members have dropped out one by one and the landowner has decided to lease all of the pastures except mine to an outfitter. While I do miss some of the camp camaraderie, it is nice only being responsible for yourself and not having to deal with all of the other issues.

I see my landowner once a year when I pay him. I treat the property as if it was mine and he lets me manage it as I see fit. I hope to stay on this lease until I am too old to hunt.

its only worse if its family co-owned