Land Smart Resources

Brickman: Cyprus Partners has several real-estate agents whose main job is to list and sell property. We also have associations with many other firms to help us meet our client’s needs.  We work with a lot of smart people who understand land and landowners and can help them get their projects accomplished.  People that specialize in timber management, fish & wildlife management, legal, taxes, finance.  Landowners can think of us as a general contractor who takes responsibility for building the house and finding the subcontractors to do specific jobs to get the house built quickly, efficiently and at the best price.

Question: Is now a good time to buy rural property?
Brickman: It is a good time and there are a lot of reasons.  Rural land has always been a safe haven for money in uncertain times and we’re definitely in uncertain times.  Land has many financial benefits.  I’ve only seen land lose value once in my 33 years in business, and that was during the Carter administration in the late 1970s.  Even then the decline was insignificant compared to the decline in value of paper assets in an economy with 18% inflation.  So, land is a great preserver of value.  Many people believe current government policies will create significant inflation.  What you don’t want during times of inflation are paper assets. Institutional investors like land because it’s value tends to be counter-cyclical to stock investments, so it adds stability to their portfolios.  Land is a great way to protect money and ensure a safe future.   But beyond financial benefits, you can also hunt it, farm it, live on it, enjoy it.  Not many investments will do all this.  Land is not for everyone . . . you can’t get your money out quickly, it won’t service debt very well.  But it’s hard to beat as a safe place for money over the long haul.  History plainly shows that patient money in land creates wealth.

Question: In the rural land market today, are you seeing more sellers or more buyers?
Brickman: Currently, we’re seeing more sellers.  Our number of listings is at an all-time high.  But I suspect buyers are about to make a comeback.  For a number of years now, landowners have become accustomed to seeing 10%+ gains in value on the lands they hold.  On the other hand, land buyers today are looking forward at the possibility of inflation & very uncertain credit, business and tax environments.  The sellers are still trying to maintain the past, and the buyers aren’t willing to do it. It’s a bit of a stand-off and sales volume has gone down.

If conditions continue, eventually sellers will be forced to act.  They will have financial or family problems, medical, college education, and other kinds of situations that will require the equity from their lands. Land buyers, on the other hand don’t have the same level of external pressures to act.

To learn more about Land Smart Resources, go to www.LandSmartResources.com, call 205-936-2160, or email tbrick@LandSmartResources.com.