Buying Land? Do Your Homework!

After 35 years in the ranch real estate business, I was recently surprised and elated to have a buyer call me with his perfect ranch already picked out.  Knowing what he wanted the ranch to do for him, he researched counties in Texas, the soils he needed to achieve his objectives, distances from towns, the coast, and home, then started searching online.  By the time he called me, he had narrowed the search to one ranch and wanted to go see it.  I was familiar with the ranch, so I called the listing broker, and after a thorough look-see, we made an offer, made a deal, closed the sale and he is happily well into his management plan that I prepared.

While this was a first for me, buyers have embraced the internet and have steadily become more knowledgeable over the last ten years.  Covid actually encouraged online searching for land, as showings were difficult to conduct.  In a previous article, I discussed a showing I did using Bluetooth, with the client in the back of the truck!  If you’re thinking about buying a ranch, I encourage you to start the search now and eliminate properties that won’t fit if only to save time.

To start, set your parameters; price, location, distance from home, and objectives; what you want the ranch to “do” for you over time.  Browse the internet using sites such as Land.com, FarmandRanch.com and Landwatch.com.  Spending time on these sites will educate you on what is available, how distance from cities influences price, and just how proud some people are of their improvements.  On these sites, you can set location, size, and price filters which helps a lot and saves time.  If you find something interesting, go the the listing broker’s website and see if there is more information; sometimes they just put the minimum on the “search” sites.

It’s important early on for you, the buyer, to understand how ranch real estate brokerage works.  A broker negotiates a listing with the landowner and they agree on price and a sales commission.  That broker represents the landowner, period.  Another broker, such as myself, is qualified as a buyer representative; I just represent buyers and rarely take listings.  I cooperate with the listing broker and in turn, we split the commission.  During the search process, I strongly suggest you do not make any inquiries on anything that interests you as this may restrict your flexibility to seek and retain a broker to represent you.  Calling the listing broker on an ad or website may limit you later on as the listing broker will assume you are not represented.  I’ve been brought in after inquiries were made and the listing broker would not share his commission.  Had the buyer not agreed to pay me a sales commission, I would not have participated.  If you retain a buyer’s rep early on, it does not add to the purchase price as I share what has already been agreed upon between the listing broker and the seller.

With that out of the way, we can get to work.  Once you define an area that matches your driving tolerance with tracts you can afford, you need to see if the soils can do what you want.  For example, if you want to hunt/manage Bobwhite quail, you need sandy soils.  Whitetail deer are not as intolerant and can do well in a variety of soils.  If you want surface water, particularly large lakes, you must look for clay soils, soils that hold water.  For all things soils, I go the the USDA website and click on Web Soil Survey.  Once in Web Soil Survey, outline the property you are interested in, and click on limitations and suitability, for farming, for ponds, for grazing, etc., the options are amazing!

Another great tool is aerial photos.  I have mapping software that uses aerials, but Google is great for the initial search.  Again, outline the property then zoom in to see what percentage is in field, brush, or a mix.  This is very important in the selection process and will determine how much, if any of the current vegetation will have to be changed to suit your needs.  And while on the subject of aerial views, drone videos are becoming very popular.

These videos give you an idea of how the ranch “feels” with regards to brush vs open as well as what surface water is available and where the improvements are located.  Remember, though, as with all videos, what you see is what the cameraman wants you to see.  Like deer pics, you only see the best ones, rarely the spikes and culls.

Other sources of information you can easily access include the Texas Railroad Commission which has a map viewer showing oil and gas wells, pipelines, and anything mineral related, the Texas Water Development Board with similar maps showing water wells with their drilling reports, water conservation districts and aquifers, and the county appraisal district, CAD, where you can find the owner’s name, the size of neighbors, and taxes.  All online, all free.

In closing, let me say that the questionnaire I sent out for years has become obsolete.  Buyers calling me now to represent them in a ranch purchase are far more knowledgeable of what they want, what is available, and, perhaps most importantly, what else they need to know to make a sound decision.  That’s where I come in.

Are Ranch Brokers Obsolete?

Finding, Buying, and Developing a Ranch in South Texas, Chapter 1

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