WNC lease wanted

I'm looking to lease some ground in WNC. I live in Fairview and am happy to commute. I will be hunting alone and mostly bowhunting. I'm 33 years old, have a full time job, and respect all rules a landowner may have.

If you have something in the western part of the state and would allow me the privilege I will of course share the bounty and help maintain the land. I'm not a rich man but I have am willing to pay for access. Longterm lease would be even better.

Thank you
Joshua Sexton

Would anybody on here have a recommendation?

Second question. Would any of you write letters to landowners of property who might not live in the area? What I mean by that is there is a lot of investment property here I in the western part of the state that's undeveloped and the deeds give addresses from New Jersey to Florida.

Thanks everybody

I broker, manage, buy and sell land throughout North Carolina and have been doing it for a long time. I have a list of about 7500 names on my list looking for leases. I get about 5-10 new names a day and that is increasing. I need to stop saving names, it has become too big of a job. I usually find 1-2 new leases a year to handle for landowners. I put everything out to bid and leases are averaging $20 per acre regardless of where you are and up to $35 per acre in some areas. Most leases I post are spoken for in 30 minutes, literally. That being said, there is not a big pay day in handling leases and there is alot of liability so I do not chase them full time as a business model. The few I get each year are typically from existing landowner clients looking to create some income. I do not go out beating on doors for lease clients as there is not much money in it. A 200 acre lease will pay me $300 - $400 which is not worth the hassle and liability unless they are an existing client. If you get out and knock on doors, you may have more success than I do.

My point in this is that the demand has become completely overwhelming. It seemed to start when the paper companies starting selling alot of there land and displacing hunters as well as when the remaining institutional companies set the precedent of posting their properties on online bidding sites. After than all started, it went bananas. Brokers get alot of grief for participating in this but my fiduciary responsibility has and always will be to my landowner and as my client, the law requires that. I let the market dictate the price so that my landowner can get top dollar, which they should.

My suggestion is to be patient and prepare to pay market price. You may find an uneducated landowner who does not know that there lease is worth but you may be an old man before that happens. Network in the community you are interested in. You will not likely find a lease at less than market price if it is advertised or on the internet. To answer your question about letters, I, and many other landowners are getting inundated with letters so I am not sure how effective that will be. Go to the local farmers markets and talk to every farmer there. Most hate deer for obvious reasons and may let you hunt. Most have been solicited before so if it were me and I needed a place to hunt, I would go in with a contract in hand with a check and lead with a good offer. Most folks know what there land is worth now.


Good luck!

Well, this is pretty disheartening. I understand markets but the idea of paying for access I find difficult to support. At least if it's non-prime ground that nobody is beating down your door to hunt on. Combine that with the growing cost of equipment and hunting quickly is becoming a rich man's past time. I mean, it doesn't even make economic sense. I'll pay you $1000 or more for 50-60lbs of meat. Ummm, I can buy grass fed meat for that money and I don't even have to butcher it.

Thanks for your response. I don't believe your market theory is a 100% rule as I've had some luck in the past with getting permission for free in this area. Didn't see many deer but it was something at least. Value is a subjective thing and not all landowners are out to make a buck off a hunter.

I'll pay a bit of money for the right opportunity, if not you'll all see me on the gamelands.

Jsexton do your letters thing, if one says yes it was all worth it. I've called these "brokers" before and they all say what southern says they have people constantly calling and emailing and more then willing to pay any price for some land. Whatever, maybe they do but I'll not pay it because some real estate agent thanks that's what it's worth. I know several people that have dealt with the real estate agents ans the agents try to get the land owners to Jack the price up so they can make more money off them. Agents call them uneducated land owners, no, they are doing what's fair to them. Good luck I hope you fine something

As I said, 100% of our leases are put out to sealed bid just as the paper companies do with online bidding. The market is setting the price not us. If you owned 500 acres and did not hunt and were on a fixes income I bet you would rather have $10,000 per year than $3000 per year. Dont hate the landowner who wants to get what the market is now setting as fair market value.

Southern said:

As I said, 100% of our leases are put out to sealed bid just as the paper companies do with online bidding. The market is setting the price not us. If you owned 500 acres and did not hunt and were on a fixes income I bet you would rather have $10,000 per year than $3000 per year. Dont hate the landowner who wants to get what the market is now setting as fair market value.

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Just curious.... On a $10,000 lease what would your take be as broker?

JSexton said:

Well, this is pretty disheartening. I understand markets but the idea of paying for access I find difficult to support..

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then why did you offer up that you were willing to pay?

JSexton said:

,,,,,,,,, I'm not a rich man but I have am willing to pay for access. Longterm lease would be even better.

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paying is paying,,,,,,,if you want free, then so be it,,,,but can't have it both ways,,,,,,

JSexton, don't worry about it. Go make friends. Talk to people. Help people. I didn't grow up in NC. I moved in in 04. I have more land than I can hunt, good land too, and don't pay a dime. Just be a friend and yourself and spots will come.

woodmoose said:

then why did you offer up that you were willing to pay?




paying is paying,,,,,,,if you want free, then so be it,,,,but can't have it both ways,,,,,,

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I should clarify as I didn't articulate my point. You're right, I am willing to pay if it is necessary to get permission. Whether that's "market price" or a small amount to perhaps help pay property taxes or show a person I am a responsible working adult is the question. And the fact that I've gotten permission for free is reason enough not to pay $20 plus per acre.

The point is 40-100 acres for me to hunt alone and to pay for its just too expensive. I'm happy to have public land available. However, there are tracts of land in wnc owned by people who don't live here and I can imagine there are many of them who are not getting tons of offers. Especially the quality of land. Not a lot of hunters are ready to hike steep terrain to kill a deer where we have such a low density to begin.

So, yeah I am willing to pay but this has to be kept in perspective. And getting agents involved is silly for all parties but the agent. I don't like having a third party negotiate my healthcare costs for me and there is no need between honest people to have an agent involved for hunting permission. Oil by the barrel is cheap, speculators drive the price up. I never sign a rental lease through an agent. I sign it in person with the property owner. It's how I was raised I guess.

got cha,,,understood,,,,,,,yeap there is a difference in willing to pay and paying a lot,,,,,,,

a fellow just needs to keep looking,,,,just like some cars sell for over MSRP and some for under,,,,some land is high demand and others,,,not so much,,,,,,,

good luck finding some,,,,,,

Much appreciated. I've got hope. I'm more serious about hunting than I have been in some years and would like to harvest one. It's been since 2007!