Preferred Properties of Texas

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Keep Diversity In Mind When Searching For Land

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Many land buyers make the common mistake of not considering diversity when searching for land. A 500-acre hardwood bottom is what many buyers envision. While it is beautiful and could be a great investment, it doesn’t offer the variety necessary to make the property livable all year without major improvements. Land is not an investment that can be used only once. Buyers should look for properties that offer a variety of recreational and entertainment uses throughout the year.

Before a Certified Land Specialist begins walking properties, it is crucial for buyers to identify and prioritize the intended uses of a property. Buyers often get caught up in the property’s aesthetic appeal and forget to consider their needs and wants. Land is a long-term investment. It is best to not act on impulse or rush to make a purchase.

After you have identified your priorities and walked on the property, it’s time to review the property to ensure that the property meets your expectations. If you are interested in a large dove farm, how much land is available to allow for one? You may need to consult an outside consultant such as a forester, wildlife biologist or other expert to make these decisions and get a clear picture of how the property will fit your needs.

Hunting is still the most popular recreational land use. Each year, over 20 million Americans go outdoors to hunt. Most first-time land buyers don’t consider the potential hunting-based uses of a tract. While they know their favorite two or three types of game, they don’t realize the other game animals that can be used to fill in the gaps between seasons. One prime example is dove hunting. Dove hunting is a wonderful way to get out on your property and improve your wing-shooting skills. Dove hunting is a social hunting option that allows you to invite more people than you could with a turkey or deer hunt. Although dove fields may not be successful in every area, they can give landowners another way to enjoy their property. Trapping or predator hunting can be an exciting way to have fun while helping the game species on your property survive. There are many ways to hunt 365; it all depends on the land you have and who is hunting it.

Diversity of the tract is the key to a variety of hunting opportunities. A healthy balance of open and covered land is essential for a tract. The ideal balance of open and covered land is difficult to determine as buyers may have different hunting preferences. It is important to find property that is flexible, meaning it can grow many crops or timber as needed to meet your management goals. A soil map of the property is one way to find out. These are available at the National Resource Conservation Service office . They may be able help you determine the soil productivity of the tract.

Water is an essential natural resource. We depend on it for our survival. A property with a sufficient water supply may have many uses. The water source could be used by waterfowl as a wintering ground. This could make it an attractive hunting area.

A body of water can enhance the beauty and value of rural land. Landowners can also enjoy the opportunity to fish from their property, especially in the off-season. I evaluate the existing ponds and lakes on the land I am interested in buying when I look at it. I will verify that the property has access to a stream or river. High banks can make it difficult to get your boat into the water to fish the creek or river.

Water has many recreational benefits. It is vital to keep in mind that water is essential for wildlife to thrive on any piece of land. Make sure you understand the water situation before you buy a property. Sometimes water rights can be separated from the bundle rights that are included with a parcel, particularly in the west United States.

There are many activities that a property can support or offer. The landowner must be creative and enthusiastic enough to take part in these activities. Many landowners have begun to build sporting clay courses on their properties for the same reasons that dove hunting: to improve their shooting skills and have fun. While the courses vary in cost and style, all offer shooting practice and enjoyment. The same purpose is served by both archery and rifle ranges. They are great fun, especially in the summer when you get the desire to hunt.

Land is one of the most versatile and valuable investments a person can make. Only the land itself and the buyer’s imagination limit the number of possible uses for a parcel of land. Diversified properties will provide buyers with a lot of options. If you decide to sell your property, the tract’s diversity will increase its value. You can make a strong investment in rural America by focusing on your priorities and looking long-term.

 

Original Blog: https://www.landthink.com/maximize-your-investment-buy-a-diverse-property/

 

Boundary Changes and Property Rights When Water Moves

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Water has been a natural boundary for land throughout human history. Mexico and Texas fought for the Rio Grande River area. The Nueces River was eventually proclaimed the winner. The Mississippi River is part of the border of ten states. Exodus even mentions God telling Moses, “I will set your bounds from Red Sea to the sea of Philistines and from the desert to the river.” John O’Donohue, a poet, observed that a river is “carried by its own unfolding.” The same goes for ocean shorelines. These changes can be gradual or imperceptible. Sometimes they are sudden. These changes can affect property rights in real-estate.

Land that is bordered by water falls under one of the following categories. The term “riparian” refers to “belonging or related to the bank or stream”. A “riparian owner”, is someone whose land is bordered by a river. Similar to “riparian owner”, the term “littoral” refers to land that is bound by the shore of an ocean or sea.

Riparian Tracts

If the call in a deed is to an unnavigable stream or riparian tract, the boundary is the centre or “thread” thereof, unless the deed states otherwise. A description of a “meanderline” is not sufficient to show such intent, unless it is stated in the language of deed.

The State of Texas owns navigable streams. The boundary of a navigable stream/river is to the point at the shore, known as the “gradient border.” Grants affected by the 1929 “Small Bill” are not considered “gradient boundaries”. A navigable river has a minimum width of 30 feet, from the mouth to the mouth.

Riparian Tracts’ Boundaries are changing due to erosion, accretion and reliction

When the stream slowly and imperceptibly erodes the land, it is called erosion. Accretion occurs when solid material, such as sand or mud (alluvion), is deposited, adding to land. Riparian owners lose their land when the land is lost to erosion. The same applies to riparian owners who gain land as it grows through accretion.

When the water submerges, called “reliction” or “dereliction”, it permanently exposes previously submerged land. The riparian owner then gains the newly exposed land. The boundary is now in line with the water body.

A boundary is a body or water that is slowly and imperceptibly altered or shifted by erosion, reliction or accretion.

The navigability of a stream will determine the ownership of an island. It is the state’s property if the stream is navigable. Non-navigable streams have a continuation of ownership for the owners of the stream bed. If the middle stream thread crosses an island, the property line crosses the island as well.

These rules are applicable even if erosion, accretion or reliction has been caused by man. This rule does not apply to accretion that is caused by the owner of the riparian. An owner cannot artificially raise submerged land above the surface to claim his land. This exception is sometimes called the “landfill principle”. The riparian owner has the right to any accretion of or reliction if a dam is built upstream.

There are other exceptions to this rule. If the property description states that the boundary is an object required at a river, the landmark is the object. The stream does not move the boundary, but the boundary is fixed to it.

It is important that title does not change due to seasonal or temporary changes, nor the rising or falling of the stream. The change must be permanent.

Boundaries are not affected by Subsidence and Avulsion on Riparian Tracts

However, streams and rivers can sometimes change their course quickly. A river can change its course suddenly and perceptibly, removing or depositing soil in the process. This is known as “avulsion.” This means that the boundaries of the land are not affected by the river’s movement.

It depends on whether there is a gradual or imperceptible change. It can be gradual or imperceptible if a person notices that something is changing/moving from time to another. It is sudden and perceptible if it can be detected.

This rule is not absolute. The state owns the new bed if a navigable stream leaves the existing bed. The state does not own the riverbed created by the avulsion, but the island is the property of its original owner. All accretions to an island belong to its owner.

Subsidence is the term for sinking land. It has no effect on the boundaries of the earth, regardless of how gradual or sudden the change.

Littoral Tracts

A simplified definition of “shoreline” in relation to littoral tracts is the average daily high water level. The bed is not included in a call to the shoreline of a lake. Property that borders the Gulf of Mexico, bays or tidal water is typically owned by the littoral owner. Land seaward of the shoreline are covered by “navigable water” and the State of Texas.

Littoral Tracts’ Erosion and Accretion Change Boundaries

Like riparian owners and the risk of the shoreline moving over time, each owner is responsible.

The rule of thumb is that the owner gradually acquires or loses title, or imperceptibly adds to or takes from the shoreline. This means that if the shoreline moves inwardly, the littoral owners lose that land. If the shoreline moves to the seaward, the littoral owners’ property grows.

The property owner is responsible for proving that the property has accreted. The state assumes that the land is still in its title, unless it makes a showing. The landfill rule is applicable, as with accretion onto riparian tracts. The landowner may not build the land intentionally and claim the dry land as hers.

Subsidence on Littoral Tracts does not change Boundaries

The boundaries of the land are not affected by subsidence on riparian tracts.

Influence on Mineral Ownership

Most cases would not require litigation to determine the exact boundaries of land that borders streams and rivers.

Many of these laws are based on boundary disputes over mineral rights. Both the mineral estates and the surface are subject to the rules concerning erosion, subsidence, reliction, reliction and accretion.

Other matters not addressed

These rules apply to the land and minerals, but not the water. Other rules determine who owns the water. These rules also do not affect the public’s rights to access beaches or navigable waters.

 

Original Blog: https://www.recenter.tamu.edu/articles/tierra-grande/Moving-Water-2361

Clear-Cut Land

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Clearcutting is a forestry/logging technique in which all or most trees are cut down uniformly. Clearcutting is often viewed as a death sentence for serious hunters. Many hunters in the Southeastern U.S. lease land for hunting. Often, clubs and partnerships are formed to pool resources and manage properties. A large portion of the Southeast’s hunting land is owned by timberland companies or private owners who have made investments in the land to grow and sell trees. It will eventually come time to harvest timber from the hunting land. Clear-cut land is nature’s food plot. Clear-cut land is good for hunting, deer and investors. Clear-cuts are often overlooked by recreational land buyers.

Clear-cut land makes a great habitat for deer and is a useful tool in wildlife management. Deer love cutting overs because in the South, after six months, the property is completely restocked with thick, young growth. You don’t even have to spend a dime or lift a finger! If it is during the growing season, the soil will start to germinate. The stumps of hardwood trees and shrubs will begin to re-prout in a matter of days. Although they might not look great, clear cuts are essential for deer to thrive in many parts of the South.

This does three things for deer: 1) It puts food down where deer can access it; 2) it increases the protein level of the food available and 3) it provides sanctuary. Deer can have both nutritious food and bedding in one place. They do not have this luxury in mature hardwood stands. The plant communities that emerge from a clear-cut are more diverse and contain more protein than the mature forest. There won’t be as many mast-producing trees, such as mature oaks and beeches. There will be more food available than ever before, and it will be more nutritious. Mast is high in carbs but low in protein.

Clear cut property is difficult to hunt deer because of its thick vegetation. This is the reason it is a good sanctuary. This can be overcome by creating a network for stalking and shooting trails that are connected to strategically placed ladder stands/shooting homes (similar to the hub and spokes of a bicycle wheel).

Be flexible when hunting in a clear cut. If deer are scavenging a section of the cut, they may switch to the next day. A nearby section of timber could be cut to draw them over the next ridge. To ensure you are in a hot spot, take the time to examine their movement patterns and to monitor new droppings, tracks, and chewed branch tips. Clear cut forests are a blank canvas. A spray rig mounted to a 4-wheeler can transform a cleared property into a deer hunting paradise.

Clear-cut properties are usually more affordable because they are freed from the trees’ value. While it may be ugly for a time, an eager buyer with vision can transform the unsightly sight into something beautiful.

These tracts are usually cheaper since the trees have been removed. Clear-cut tracts are cheaper than those with trees. A land agent can help you understand why.

Clear-cutting land is best for you based on your goals and desires. Clear-cut land is great for hunting and investment in timber. It can be replanted in the pines you choose, wherever you like. Bring in a dozer to clear wide shooting lanes and make food plots. Double win! Clear-cut land is great for deer hunting and makes land investment sense.

 

Original Blog: https://www.landthink.com/clear-cut-land-natures-food-plot-and-good-investment-land/

Things to Look for in Homestead Land

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Buying land to build a homestead can help you achieve your goal of self-sufficiency.

Homesteading, also called hobby farming, is not a new concept. It is seeing a revival due to growing interest in self-reliant rural lifestyles. While you can grow a productive edible gardening garden on most properties, even in the suburbs, a true homestead requires substantial acreage. You should also do extensive research to ensure the land is suitable for your needs.

It can be very rewarding to start your own homestead. It is important to plan carefully, especially for the land you purchase.

There are a few factors that will determine how much land you need to build a homestead. You can read more in the next section. However, the most important factor to consider when searching for land is available acreage. This should be realistic to meet your hobby farming goals.

Access to water is not a requirement for your land. However, if it’s located in rural areas, it may not. It does have to have access to at least one reliable source for potable water, such a well. Although it is not necessary to have an additional source of water for fishing or swimming, it is an added bonus.

If you buy land with already-built structures, you may be able to get access to the road. If you are buying land that is not in use, you will need to consider your access options. This includes road frontage options as well as cost and maintenance.

It is important to know what kind of soil your have. You may need to get soil testing done before you invest. This will ensure that you have the right type of soil for your project.

Pay attention to the CCRs (Covenants Conditions and Restrictions) and zoning regulations for the property that you are interested in. You may be limited in certain areas even in rural areas. It is important to understand these limitations before you make any decisions.

Your family size and the amount of food you plan to grow will determine the ideal size for your homestead. A small family may only need two acres if it is well managed. Larger families and larger homesteads will require more. A good rule of thumb is to have one acre per person. This includes enough space for animals, trees and any other items you want to keep on your property.

If your looking to buy land contact our office and speak to one of knowledgeable agents.

Preferred Properties of Texas is here for all your Real Estate needs!

Original Blog: https://www.landhub.com/land-news/how-to-pick-good-land-for-a-homestead/

Concerned If Rising Interest Rates Will Affect Land Prices?

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The last couple of years have been interesting in the land market. Low-interest rates and high buyer demand have created serious competition and made it more difficult for buyers to get a great deal. It is reasonable to ask how prices will change with record-breaking inflation, rising interest rates and a growing market for land.

We will only know what the future holds for prices. But, it’s possible to believe that rising interest rate may be a win-win situation for frustrated buyers.

In February, the Federal Reserve declared that it would raise interest rates multiple times this year. March saw the Federal Reserve announce a 25-basis point increase. This was the first federal interest rate increase since 2018.

These increases are in direct response to inflation. They are designed to help the economy recover by slowing down economic growth and decreasing consumer spending. The interest rates on everything, from auto loans to credit cards, are expected to continue rising. These rates will affect personal and mortgage loans, which could be used to finance land purchases.

Although we have enjoyed low interest rates for quite some time, if you are trying to purchase land, you will know that there is a downside to higher spending power.

Due to low interest rates and growing interest in land investment, there has been intense competition for properties. The REALTORS Land Market Survey shows that land prices increased by 6% between 2021 and 2021. This is second to single-family rental unit price growth. This is a steep incline, and not great news for land buyers without the capital to invest.

Higher interest rates could be a boon in this situation. Rising interest rates can help level the playing field and hopefully bring down prices by increasing borrowing costs to purchase land. Sellers don’t have the luxury of spending more money, so they can’t overvalue their property in the knowledge that someone will pay it. Higher interest rates will also help to reduce the likelihood of buyers driving price escalations or over-bidding.

While higher interest rates do not necessarily mean that you cannot afford to purchase land, they do indicate that you will need to be realistic about how much you can spend on it. Start your land search by determining how you will finance it. This includes where and how much you can borrow. Remember that interest rates are likely to rise through the end of 2022. So give yourself some leeway and don’t expect rates to stay high for too long.

If you have been on the market for a while and are having a difficult time because of high buyer demand, rising rates will help to bring things under control. If you are interested in seeing how prices react, wait a while and keep your eyes open for the perfect property with a great price.

 

Thinking of Selling your property, finding out its value is the place to start! Contact Preferred Properties of Texas and get a free evaluation.

 

Original blog: https://www.landhub.com/land-news/will-rising-interest-rates-affect-land-prices/?inf_contact_key=675bc58ad527699b5d8abbad233a50c9680f8914173f9191b1c0223e68310bb1

Why Ag Exemptions Are Important

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A property that is eligible for exemption from the agricultural property tax must meet minimum requirements in terms of size, use and location. To be eligible for the exemption, the property must have been in agriculture production for at least 5 years. The receipts and proof of this information must be presented in order to apply. The status must be maintained annually and run as a profitable business in order to keep it.

Why is it so important to have an exemption from property taxes for ag? It will significantly lower your annual property taxes.

If you’re considering buying a property with an ag exemption in place, please ensure that you work with an agent or broker who is familiarized with the requirements for the county where the property is located.

As different types of agriculture and land requirements are required in each county, there will be different exemptions and minimum requirements. Depending on the type of operation, some counties may require more land than others. Others will need as little as 5 acres.

You might not be buying the minimum amount for your county if you purchase land from a larger area that is exempt from ag taxes. This is because you might not be able to keep the exemption in place in the future.

Rollback taxes will apply to properties that do not keep the agricultural exemption. This means that the property is now responsible for all property taxes, including those incurred in the 5 years prior to the exemption. This amount will run into the thousands. You should calculate the amount of rollback taxes you will owe and set aside money to pay it when it becomes due. The taxes won’t become due immediately, but it will be gradual.

If you’re a seller who knows your property may not be in an ag exempt area, ensure that the contract protects you from any liability to pay those rollback taxes.

However, you can choose to rollover into a wildlife valuation rather than an agricultural valuation. This requires annual reports and plans.

If your looking to buy property contact Preferred Properties of Texas today.

 

Original Blog: https://texaslandandhome.com/2019/07/07/what-is-an-ag-exemption/

Preferred Properties of Texas

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