In terms of deer hunting in TX for the 'average" TX, whitetail deer hunter. Knowing folks and their recreational, lifestyle budgets are unique and individualized, what would you say the avg. TX whitetail hunter is comfortable paying annually to secure hunting rights to private property, exclusive of all the other incidentals, corn, protein, fuel, hunting clothes, blinds, ammo, optics, etc.? For me, I'd think the $$$ is somewhere between $3-4K, with lease spots exceeding that getting concerning for the avg. TX deer hunter. What say the THF?

I pay a whole lot but your question is about the average Tx hunter..
I could be way off but I would guess 3000ish.
I’m pretty sure you won’t get enough info from this forum to truly gauge the average Tx hunter but doesn’t hurt to try.
To clarify, you aren’t asking what “we” are comfy with but what we think the average guy is comfy with….

Correct Free, what do we think the average TX hunter is comfortable with whether we are average or not.

I would say that $3-$4k range is about right.

Over $5k people start to fall off

I think state wide avg is lower and more like 2,000 range (all depends on lease size, quality and lease member numbers to acres and IMO that ain't much at that avg,
Remember avg TX hunter definition can be widely interpreted

I don't pay for a lease anymore.

But I'll do 2 "pay" hunts this year and it will be about $6,000. This year is different, I'm spending twice as much as usual.

I'm lucky I have a friend on a lease and can hunt with him as a guest about anytime he goes.

This will be plenty of hunting form me.

I believe the OP is in the ballpark in his assessment. It will go up to 5K in the next few years.

Big price difference between "meat lease" and "trophy lease". I think most trophy leases start at 5k now.

Stompy, don’t doubt that at all. 5000 likely a good number for a good place. But I don’t think that was the question.
Quality/Trophy pricing has gotten high enough that I dont think I would call that your “average” guy.
Large NUMBERS of guys settle for crummy places or meat places or public, so all those have to be figured into the “average”.
A lot likely don’t hunt regular cause they feel priced out so those still have a “comfy number” in mind even if rarely hunt and those are in the equation also.
At least that’s how I look at the OPs question.

Correct, was not basing the question off $10-25K per gun trophy spots. More, your average run of the mill TX deer lease, 150-300 acres a member type setup.

I don't know that the average Texas hunter even has his/her own place to hunt, owned or leased. I think there is a goodly percentage of hunters who rely on the land management of others.

Now, the average Texas hunter that leases may pay anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand per year, but as noted above, that is going to vary widely.

If you argue that the average Texas hunter has say 3-4k to spend on a lease, that would assume the average hunter has about the same amount of disposable income as the rest and that would be unreasonable to assume.



Probably not a lot of 'average' hunters on trophy leases.

Agree, the average person buying a hunting license for the possibility they might fill a deer tag likely goes hunting 0-2 times a year, likely does not use any of their tags, and likely does not lease/own or put any time outside of those trips into deer hunting. I think that’s the reality for most hunting. Example, I buy a duck stamp every year in case I ever want to go duck hunting or simply shoot ducks off a stock tank, but unless I get invited on a trip I’m very unlikely to actually go duck hunting

I know what the question was, I was just throwing that out there. I know average guys on average places paying $1000 up to $4000.

I'm not sure the biggest issue is cost. The biggest issue seems to be finding a ranch to hunt. Most folks I know will find the money to pay for a lease, as long as it's a decent, fun lease.

I get a lot of calls every year from folks looking for a ranch to hunt. I also have a couple of buddies looking for a lease.

When I was younger, I did side jobs to pay for my hunting. Whatever it took, I was willing to do. I wasn't giving up my hunting because I couldn't afford it.

After hunting in south Texas for a while, and prices going up every year, I saw the writing on the wall. I started buying land in the late 90's when it was affordable. Ended up with five ranches that all bordered. Bought the last 23 acres last year.

The cost of land has WAY outpaced inflation.

Our family place was bought in 1994 for $380,000. Pretty raw, had a windmill well and fences and one tank.

Adjusted for dollar inflation, that would be about $800,000 in today’s dollars for 1150 acres.

To buy that place now you would be looking at around $4mm to purchase it.

Overall Inflation from 2020 to 2024 was 18.25%. That’s a lot, and a lot of land has out appreciated that rate

I think we also forget there is tiered structure. If you are paying 5k and your lease goes up 8k due to inflation and you cant make it work, you will probably just go down in lease tiers to what ever 5k buys you so you can keep hunting, I feel like the top tier leases kind of set the price for everyone else, because of the step down

I filled my 16k acre place at $5500.00 per hunter, 8 total hunters easily. Had the luxury of being selective and getting great guys, good hunters, hard working, all eager to get after it setting up feeders, pens, stands, etc.........
I was right about keeping it at 2,000 acres per hunter at this price. You get what you pay for. They paid a lot for a great place and I have good hunters.

2k acres for $5500 is a heck of a deal. Bet they’ll be there as long as you let them.

250 acres of raw land around here sells for about 2.5 million. 4 people hunting it at 3K each for an annual total of 12K. Not many landowners want to deal with the hassle for that amount of money. Lease money used to pay for the property taxes on a lot of places. Not anymore. I think driving distance from the large cites plays into the price too except for the trophy class places.

Exactly. A person that has 2.5 million to drop on 250 acres isn't about to want 4 people hunting their place for chump change.

It's a special place. I'll protect it with my life and am grateful to have it.

I know guys who pay ( and have paid for many, many years ) upwards of $20k per spot, plus feed, improvements, etc. for premier leases.

About 10 years ago we were looking at some briscoe country that was in the mid $5k/gun for a spot with 10 other guys.

How many acres was that and total hunters?

That pasture was 5000 acres. You were allowed 1 blind and could not hunt another blind without permission.

That was all good and well but what made me pass was before you could kill a buck, you had to video it and take it back to camp and everyone agree on it prior to shooting it.

It may or may not have been a great place but put 1 hunter per 4-500 acres on that country..........bad idea and way over priced. Be glad it didn't work out.

That whole thing of sending a video for approval.................Ridiculous and not realistic. You can bet the guy that put that rule in place doesn't follow it. Again, be glad it didn't work out.