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One of the biggest reasons you often can find financing for forest-recreational properties is not only does the land have value, but the timber on the land has value with the land’s potential to grow timber also seen as value. “In our area, timber is a big business, and timberlands are growing in demand,” Hamilton explains. “Most of the properties we’re currently buying and selling are tracts of land between 300 and 1,000 acres. When we’re looking at land for individuals, the average property will usually be 500 acres or less. However, when groups of people or major corporations want to buy land, they’re usually looking at larger tracts that are more than 500 acres. We’ve sold 80- to 8,000-acre tracts in our area.”
The reason people buy forestlands vary widely. However, in recent years, wildlife on those lands has become a major factor. “We’re seeing more investors looking at property for a place to go hunting,” Matt Haun of Winder, Georgia, owner of Quality Timber and Wildlife Management and sales agent for Mossy Oak Properties Hamilton Land Group in Athens, Georgia, says. “They’re either looking at the property for its deer and turkey potential or for its wetland potential for duck hunting. We’re also seeing more people interested in having a stream, river access or a lake on the properties they buy.” Twenty to 30-years ago, when an investor looked at a piece of forest property, it was primarily to harvest or grow timber. However, today, although timber is one of the reasons people buy forestlands, it’s not the only factor investors consider when making a buying decision. In the last 5 to 10 years, in many areas, 50 percent of people bought land for the timber on the property, with the other 50 percent of people buying the land for its recreational use. The combination of timber and recreation make the overall worth of the property escalate even faster.
“In our area, the big land rush seems to be slowing down,” Matt Haun mentions. “This isn’t to say that the demand for forest-recreation land isn’t growing because it most certainly is, but it’s not growing nearly as fast as it was a couple of years ago.” Even in a strong bull stock market, there often will be a down period. And, usually, the best time to purchase stocks is before the market heats-up again. The same is true of forest-recreation lands, especially in the South. Immediately after a hurricane or a major storm, there’s always a rush to buy forestlands. We haven’t had a major storm since the hurricanes of 2005, which may account for some of the decrease in the land rush. “Several years ago, we saw land prices appreciating at a phenomenal 15- to 17-percent per year,” Haun says. Then after Hurricanes Ivan, Katrina and Rita in 2004 and 2005, sales of forestlands away from the coast sky-rocketed. However, now that there seems to be a lull in the severe-weather patterns, land prices are more stable and growing at a more-natural rate. If history repeats itself, and we have more major storms in the near future, we may see another major land rush.
For more information on Mossy Oak Properties Hamilton Land Group in Athens, Georgia, you can call Mac Hamilton at (706) 227-0511, or email him at mhamilton@mossyoakproperties.com, or, you can call Matt Haun at (404) 488-2295, or email him at mhaun@mossyoakproperties.com
To learn more about Mossy Oak Properties, click here.
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