For many years, residential property sales were dominated by the agent. The listing agent listed a house, a buyer’s agent brought a buyer, and after some negotiation, the sale went through, over and over millions of times a year across the U.S.. In the Digital Age, that scenario may be on the way out as […]
Mixing Business with Pleasure (and Ruby)
I had an opportunity to visit with an old Aggie friend near Devine the other day. He wanted to know what the family place was worth in today’s market. As a Broker, I cannot give an “opinion of value” as we did in the old days, but can still offer my opinion of what it […]
Book Excerpt: When to Buy Your Ranch
Section III. Timing Your Purchase and Improvements Does it make any difference when you buy your ranch, when you high fence a ranch, when you dig a new stocktank? In this section, I provide some suggestions as to when to implement your plans, either for buying or developing your new ranch. Ch. 3-1: When to […]
Another Day as a Ranch Broker
Great day previewing a solid deer/quail/dove ranch in deep South Texas.
Spot Check of Habitat Conditions
In my travels this week, I have been from Castroville to Encino, down to Pearsall, back to Falfurrias, then out to D’hanis and of course to my small place south of Castroville. Key indicators I look for are native sunflower and croton. Overall conditions are very good and remain green although there are some dry […]
Back to Quail Nirvana
At a clients request, I drove to Aspermont to preview a ranch that has just come on the market. Although a long way from South Texas, I always enjoy the drive and seeing some really good country. This place is ideal for quail, composed entirely of Nobscot sand, key to quail numbers in that part […]
6,000 Acres of the Best Hunting in South Texas
I really love my job! Yesterday I had the pleasure of showing 6,000 acres of ideal quail habitat deep inside the King Ranch to a prospect. We drove for miles through great habitat that, after 30 inches of rain, has never looked better. In fact, this ranch needs only judicious grazing/burning/discing to make it the […]
An Old Farts Sojurn into Social Media
I had the pleasure of addressing a senior marketing class recently at St. Mary’s University. Subject of the class was how a “mature” businessman adjusts to social media and makes it effective in a small business. Lots of good questions from the class and suggestions for me to improve my public image. Best response of […]
Chapter 1-6. Actions before and After Closing
Once you have reached an agreement with the Seller and the contract has been receipted at a title company, there are several actions you need to monitor. First of all, ensure that a surveyor has been retained and has all the documentation possible to do his job. Even if the Seller is paying for the […]
Living With the Sleeping Giant
As a ranch broker with 30+ years’ experience in South Texas, and a Certified Wildlife Biologist specializing in the red sandy country, my business has been directly impacted by developments over the Eagle Ford Shale. I remember the last oil boom, the Austin Chalk. Although on a smaller scale, that boom occurred over much of […]
