What do yo look for in hunting property?
Whitetail Deer
My Mom and Dad are looking at a piece of property with a cabin on it to hang out in retirement and get away from everything. There is about 87 acres of timber and three acres of tillable. The tillable is in a valley between to fairly steep ridges. The one side has an old apple orchard on the of the ridge, but it hasn't been taken care of for years and is over grown in rose. It currently has no food plots or no current water on the property. (It does have a dry creek bed that has water when it rains)
My parents think its great I'm not real sold on it any thoughts? The only benefit I see is that its in the best county in Iowa for whitetails.
So much of a good property depends on your neighbors....that's where I would focus my efforts in research. With good neighbors, great hunting and enjoyable experiences can be had...even not hunting related stuff......bad neighbors are something to run from!
History, what does it produce and how long has it done that? oz
Cover, water and feed are major factors. As others have stated....neighbors can ruin a property. Are there any value added opportunities like the ability create ponds or food plots? Mineral rights included? Check to make sure there aren't any easements etc.
Sounds exactly like my place except I didn't have any openings at all in the timber and isn't in Iowa...we killed 3 150's first year of ownership in that timber.
Waterholes are easily established...
I forgot to mention the other side (about 18 acres) is so steep I could not get a four wheeler up it. I walked to the top and around that ridge but really did not see deer sign.
Are your parents planning to hunt? Seems you are more concerned with the hunting potential for yourself than whether this property is something they will enjoy.
why do you need to be sold on it, its not your retirement :)
But since you asked, I look for
1. genetics of area and deer pop 2. water, food, cover 3. layout of property and is the 87 acres all huntable or am I paying for land that I can't use 4. neighbors who are they, are stands on prop lines 5. how hard to get tags 6. history of property 7. deer sign in general 8. how easy will it be to sell it if I do improvements 9. does it have multiple access points and can I play the predominant winds 10. taxes and current condition of house, how much work and can I write things off
If they are buying it with their money why do you care? I purchased 80 acres in KS 6 years ago. It had been on the market for several months and nobody thought it was very good for hunting. I offered $20k under the asking price and they took it. First thing I did was convert the pasture to crops and added a food plot. I shoot a nice buck off of it almost every year now. The most deer I have seen on it at one time numbered 23. It probably only has 20 acres of trees and a creek but the crops draw deer and turkey from over a mile away.
I'm not big white tail hunter, but I've considered buying a WT property and what I'd be looking for would be a piece that was nearly covered in timber with all the surrounding farms being completely void of trees so that other people could be feeding the deer that would at one point or another end up on my property which would also have the most ability to enhance. Like Pat said, it's easier to create fields than it is to create timber.
As I mentioned, the neighbor things is big.
The access to the property is very important....can you only get into the areas from the "wrong" side. Being able so access the perimeter for different wind directions is really helpful.
Beyond that, obvious terrain features are a plus in my book as it help to make the property more huntable and actually hunts bigger than flat properties.
It's in Iowa. If there were already food plots etc. the price would reflect that. As has been mentioned, you can't really create timber. The only question I would be asking is "I can hunt it, right?"
For those who asked, my parents dare concerned about the quality of the hunting there. My dad has never really hunted but wants to start hunting with his grandsons and me.
Also the other reason to be concerned about the hunting is this lands only real value comes from what its worth as hunting ground.
My parents have been asking for my input and I just don't want to give them bad advise.
Does mom and dad hunt? Sounds like a nice property for getting away or hunting? What's the priority for your folks? If they don't hunt and don't care about hunting, then I guess your going to have to find a different place to hunt since it doesn't meet your standards. Three acres of tillable land in the middle of timber sounds like a great killing field to me.
Many good points sounds like a great property with plenty of potential. One thing that I would look at very carefully is the neighboring farms and if they have cattle. Iowa has joint fence ownership meaning half of the fence will belong to and be maintained by you or you parents. It is a very old law and strange in that most of Iowa is "right hand rule "'meaning if you stand at the mid point of your border with a neighbor facing each other you are each responsible for the half to your right. I do farm management work and it is a constant battle on some propertys this is southern Iowa so your county may be different.
Lots of great ideas thrown out!
A couple to think about:
-identify potential stand sites (pinch points and areas between bedding and future food plots).
-Identify potential sanctuaries. Should be 60-80% of the property IMHO.
-Identify entering and exiting routes relative to the proposed stand sites. Your wind can not blow into them on your routes into and out of stands.
Good luck!
Mark
Access and neighbors are the 2 biggest factors in my opinion.
What do yo look for in hunting property? Game
If you are serious about the advise post an aerial minus the coordinates.
bucks bucks and more bucks diversity is key for good wildlife habit! water, natural food sources bedding, trees for stand location best farms have the ability to hold deer year round .
1. Pick a Great State with tag availability
2.A bulldozer and seed can cure and create ills procede methodically
3.Consider prevailing winds in November (your best chance)as some properties are difficult to develop into a multiple wind area even with a bulldozer.
4.Don't love it to death..Habitat improvement is great but just remember that for whitetails the number one best thing you can do for a property is to be absent and the worse thing is to be present.Plan your improvements so you maximize your goals in the least amount of visits to your farm.
Genesis - X2 as per "love it to death."
...and the neighbor consideration can change at any moment, trust me. You can go from neighbors who don't allow hunting to an outfitter with stands in about every tree.
There really isn't a bad spot up in allamakee County. Only thing to look at is like everyone has stated. NEIGHBORS NEIGHBORS NEIGHBORS
Small parcels surrounding it is tougher than large ones, I have pretty good neighbors for the most part but I wouldn't mind having less of them.
Less neighbors or at least good neighbors. When I built my new house on my farm I could only go back 700 ft from the road. A 50 ft cliff stopped me from going further.
Do what I want when I want is my live style.
Neighbors i got a guy put up 2 stands on property line facing my food plot fifty yards from my stand.
Based on our experience its dogs! We have 6 different dogs on trail cameras almost daily. Pretty frustrating.
Got them too called the law. They hate fines. If you shoot them they just get more dogs. Been there too.
