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hunting lease

Eight Tips for Taking Advantage of a Hunting Lease

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As the overpopulation of public hunting land continues, an ever-increasing number of people are looking to hunt on private ground. This can be a lucrative way of earning income for landowners and gives renters access to premium hunting real estate.

For lessors and lessees alike, there are several things to consider before signing one of these leases. Eight tips have been listed below, along with explanations of how they apply to both sides of the equation (property owners and renters) in each case.

  1. Liaise with Trusted Local Agencies

Landowners might not know exactly how to go about finding the right tenants, and would-be tenants might not be able to find the right land to rent. While you should check local websites for available properties in your desired area, local authorities are also valuable resources of information.

For hunters, these offices will have up-to-date lists of the kind of game and terrain that all active lessees are offering. For lessees themselves, the district conservationists and county Extension agents with the NRCS (National Resources Conservation Service) are a convenient contact.

These conservationists and agents will be frequently liaising with property owners anyway and can be trusted to prioritize the best interests of the land – so all parties should feel comfortable with the contacts they provide.

  1. Do a Thorough Background Check

Both renters and owners should check out the other party as thoroughly as possible. As a lessor, you can ask your prospective clients for a list of references. Potential lessees can do the same thing – ask for the names of previous renters and get in contact with them.

In either case, find out what the prior tenants and landlords have to say before you commit to any agreements of your own. If you’re looking at renting the land, make sure you take a walkthrough first and see it for yourself.

You should also try to speak to any hunters or owners of properties that surround the perimeter of the grounds you’re interested in. That way, you’ll get a first-hand account of what the hunting season is like, and what kind of species diversity and size you can expect.

  1. Decide What Kind of Lease You Want

There are long and short-term hunting leases, each with pros and cons for both landowners and renters. Long-term agreements can be seasonal, annual, or multi-year, while short-term can be daily, weekly, multi-day, or related to special seasonal conditions.

Special seasonal conditions usually refer to hunting for the season, but with a very specific type of weapon (like a muzzle-loader, rifle or bow) only. Whatever the particulars are, long-term leases usually cost more at the time, but work out as less expensive per diem.

Long-term contracts are also less work for property owners, who might have to offer or find food and lodging for short-term customers. Everyone benefits from short-term agreements if they run into issues with the other party since the contract is concluded fairly timeously.

Landowners need to decide if the extra profits of short-term leases are worth the additional effort that will be expended, and renters have to be sure that they’ll get enough use out of the long-term lease for the savings to be worthwhile.

hunting tower on hunting land

  1. Negotiate Fees Based on Hunting Requirements

If you’re the owner, you need to consider what activities and specific types of vehicles will be allowed and for what prices very carefully. You want your rates to be competitive, but you also want to get the most lucrative deal for yourself.

For instance, if camping, fishing and swimming are also possible on your land, can you charge extra for each of them, or will that put potential hunters off? In which case, you could charge a single extra amount to permit all of these additional activities.

As a prospective renter, take a close look at your requirements. If you strictly want to hunt and are not interested in fishing or swimming, you might want to pay a lower fee for camping permission only. You could also pay less if you’re only interested in hunting certain species.

  1. Make Sure Availability is Transparent

Often, lessors retain the use of the hunting grounds themselves or to rent the land out to several different groups. Lessees need to decide if they’re happy with the dates they will have access to the area, and with the number of other parties that will have access to it at the same time.

To avoid ugly and potentially costly disputes later, the availability of the acreage should be very clearly set down. How large can each group be, for example, and which members of the owner’s family will be able to come onto the property?

  1. Outline Shared Duties on the Land

Once again, the shared duties should be clearly described and agreed upon to avoid any later disagreements. Shared duties here pertain to anti-poaching, conservation, habitat management, and herd management.

Having responsible renters to carry out some of these duties can be a huge boon for landowners, and for clients, these activities can be a way of negotiating a better price. As long as both sides are fair and respectful of each other, it can be extremely mutually beneficial.

  1. Put Liability Insurance in Place

In hunting, liability insurance refers to the coverage for both lessors and lessees and protects them from paying for damages when accidents occur. Policies can be purchased at very reasonable prices, and you should never enter into an agreement with anyone who doesn’t have it.

If you’re actively looking for hunting grounds to rent, take the time to get your insurance up to date – you’ll demonstrate your reliability, and many landowners won’t take you seriously or even consider signing a lease with you if you don’t.

  1. Discuss and Finalize Written Rules

The lease terms, conditions of renewal, rates, property description, shared duties, availability, and liability insurance should all be included in the contract that you sign. As should other written rules, including whether permanent structures can be erected, and accident protocols.

Written rules should also stipulate that local, state, and/or federal wildlife laws must be observed, and, importantly, the arbitration measures that should be carried out in the event of any disputes.

Essentially, you need to make sure that you get everything in writing, no matter which side of the table you’re sitting on. Just as anyone with large assets at stake who is getting married should get a prenuptial agreement, everyone signing a hunting lease should make sure their contract is iron-clad.

Author Bio: Ashley Wells is Editor at Hunting Locator. She is a passionate outdoors enthusiast and writer. With her trusty camper van, she’s on a mission to travel the remote corners and discover the hidden gems our world has to offer – one destination at a time.

Six Ways To Attract More Animals to Your Hunting Property

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The most important part of any hunting property is something you can’t buy at a store: the wild animals. Attracting animals to your land (and keeping them there) can take hard work, but if you are able to provide the key things animals need (food, water, and shelter) they will make their home on your land. Taking these six steps can help attract animals to your hunting property.

1. Prescribed Burns

Setting fire to where you want animals to roam may sound counterintuitive, but prescribed burns are actually a great way to make your property a more attractive home for a wide variety of animals. Prescribed burns clear away dead plants and debris littering up your land so that new plants can grow. The burned plants also provide valuable nutrients for new crops to grow in. All this fresh, rich food will attract animals to your property.

2. Build a Food Plot

Giving animals a reliable source of food is a great way to encourage them to make a home on your property, as Tommy Stroud Jr, ALC, mentioned in his article Adding Recreational Value To Your Property.

“While it does take some time and money to prepare a food plot, the end result will benefit wildlife and keep them on your property,” said Stroud. “This requires cutting timber, removing the stumps, liming and fertilizing the soil, and figuring out what and when to plant. The majority of these food plots are on the edges of hardwoods.”

Plant accordingly to what the animals you want to hunt like to eat. Here are a few popular animal-favorites when it comes to snacks:

Deer: Red clover, orchard grass, chestnuts, acorns, and fruits

Duck: Grass, grain, berries,

Boar: Acorns, roots, bulbs, grass

When choosing what to plant, be sure to plant a diversity of foods in case some crops grow better than others. A variety of food is also important so that food will be blooming year-round, ensuring the animals will want to be on your property 365 days a year.

3. Build a Pond

Creating a water source is an excellent way to bring animals to your hunting property. Ponds and lakes create steady sources of drinking water for animals, and if you add fish to the pond, it can attract carnivores. To learn how to build a pond on your property, Kent Morris, ALC, has a great step-by-step article on his blog.

4. Create Cover

Many animals (especially deer) need to feel like they are protected in order to stay on a property.

Planting tall grasses and low-growing shrubs give deer cover from predators, making them feel safe, as they move around your property or seek places to rest.

5.Timber Stand Improvement

Timber stand improvement (also called TSI) is a method of creating cover on your land by hinge-cutting trees and letting different parts of the fallen tree grow. This creates excellent cover for animals to make a home in. Also, deer love to munch on the sprouts that pop up from the tree stumps.

6. Plant Trees For Winter.

Planting trees that thrive in winter (such as hemlock, spruce, and pine) can give the animals shelter from the worst winter winds and provide protection from other harsh elements like rainstorms and hail.

Since animals can be unpredictable, it’s not always easy to attract animals to your hunting property. However, with these six tips, you can make your land into a paradise for a wide variety of animals.

Interested in learning how to best put these tips into practice and seeing what other ways there are to attract more wildlife to your property? Find A Land Consultant near you for expert advice.

About the Author: Laura Barker is a freelance writer based out of California for the REALTORS® Land Institute. She has been with RLI since October 2017.

How To Maximize Your Listing: Hunting Properties

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The Highest and Best Use. All in this industry know the value of this term, but are we consistently applying it in an effort to truly maximize the features of your latest listing? In researching ranch and land property listings across the United States, it is evident that there may be value being left on the table. Sometimes this value can be significant, but agents may gloss over it as just another feature. I’m talking about hunting properties. I’ve come across numerous listings with some of the best access to hunting and/or might even qualify for landowner tags that in some areas are worth thousands of dollars; and the listing has nothing more than a bullet point that says Hunting. In order to maximize the value of highest and best use, let’s look at how we can better represent and convert hunting into positive dollar value.

The Outdoor Industry’s Effect on Land Value

The wildlife recreation industry is a $110+ billion industry and, of that, over $25 billion comes from hunting alone. In the West, agricultural land is rapidly being converted for recreational uses. According to the CCIM Institute, “demand for both improved and unimproved recreational property has contributed to rising rural land prices. An increased interest in outdoor recreational hobbies as diverse as hunting and bird-watching, a graying baby-boom generation that is more conscious of the investment potential in vacation and retirement properties, and low interest rates have come together in the past five years to create a niche market for recreational land.”

How Access to Hunting Affects Property Values

As the outdoor industry continues to grow and access to public lands continues to shrink, land with hunting access has become highly desirable. Hunting properties provide a buyer with the perfect mix of recreation and investment. Passive cash-flow opportunities include the leasing hunting rights, in addition to grazing and leasing land for farming. According to CCIM, in many cases, a hunting lease can bring in more than five times the revenue from cattle grazing. Simply stating hunting on your listing doesn’t sound like nearly enough to communicate the value that the land truly holds in its highest and best use case.

How To Better Market Your Hunting Property

As a broker, how can you leverage the indiscernible value of a property with hunting amenities? A good place to start is to create a section in your listing dedicated to the hunting amenities. You may be leaving money on the table and doing your client a disservice to just list “hunting” as a bullet point. If you are not a hunter or don’t know much about the area, this can be easier said than done. So how can you find out more information quickly and inexpensively? Start with your local Parks and Wildlife office, as the rangers can help orient and qualify your search metrics. Also, consider jumping online and research the area around your client’s property, to see what kind of access public land access is available.

Consider becoming knowledgeable in your states hunting laws to determine if that property qualifies for landowner tags. For example, in Illinois, 40 acres is the minimum required to obtain a Deer tag for shotgun season, whereas western states may require a contiguous quarter-section worth of acreage, or more, to qualify. There is significant value in this knowledge, and it is well worth the time spent researching the finer details. To recap: here is a list of some key items to research and market on your hunting land listing:

  • Hunting Access: What is the nearest public land access or is the property large enough to hunt on
  • Wildlife Population: What is the wildlife population in that area? Big game, small game, waterfowl, and/or upland bird hunting
  • Revenue Opportunities: Does this property qualify for landowner tags and how many? Are you able to turn the land into a hunting lease?

These are three key elements that can offer more value to a hunting property, and a good starting place for any agent. However, if you find a trusted local contact who is a hunter and that has the right tools and knowledge of the area, you can consider putting together a spectacular Hunting Guide that is sure to impress any prospective buyer. There are also a myriad of companies throughout the US with dedicated teams of hunters and outdoorsman, who can help in putting together a complete hunting and outdoor recreation analysis to be used to bring considerable value to the unseen benefits of a property. Consider reaching out to your local RLI chapter or use the Find A Land Consultant search tool provided by RLI for help in finding a consultant who can provide maps with public land access, hunting units, species migration patterns, hunting tag draw odds, landowner tag information, and more.

As land is being converted to recreation and access to public lands is shrinking, there is more value than ever before in hunting properties. The right buyer for a hunting property will know its inherent value, but don’t miss the target in marketing it appropriately, for achieving that highest and best use should be a guiding, as well as an inherent, principal.

Reference Citations

“Hunting for Recreational Properties”, CCIM Institute,

https://www.ccim.com/cire-magazine/articles/hunting-recreational-properties/?gmSsoPc=1

 

About the Author: Mike Miller, MBA, is the Vice President and Co-founder of White River Ranch Marketing LLC. With a background in Automotive and Sports and Entertainment Marketing, Mike is lending his decade-plus of experience in marketing and branding to the farm and ranch land real estate industry via his startup, WRRM – designed to expand the virtual impact of land brokers and their listings throughout the US.

Recreational Land 101

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Recreational land is different than other land types. Its success isn’t measured in crops, but on the quality of the time spent on the land. Whether you buy recreational land as a hideaway for generations to enjoy or to create a lucrative hunting spot, recreational land does have some unique barriers to achieving success. Since this land type isn’t talked about as much as residential land or farmland, we wanted to dedicate a blog post to commonly asked questions about recreational land.

What is recreational land?

As the name suggests, recreational land is land that is used for recreation. The types of recreation can vary – hunting, fishing, camping, ATV-ing, and more. In the industry, hunting is one of the most popular and well-recognized uses for recreational land.

What should I look for when buying recreational land?

Knowing what zoning regulations and restrictions impact a property is one of the most important things to look for. These regulations can impact everything from build-ability to what you are allowed to hunt. Work with a land expert in your area who can help you find a property zoned right for your intended use.

If you want to use the land for hunting, keep an eye out for animals and things animals like. Food plots, a good source of water, and cover for animals to feel safe in is key for attracting game to your land.

Good neighbors can also make or break a recreational property. If the property is part of a managed neighborhood, that’s a great sign that they are dedicated to helping everyone in that community and their land to thrive. Bad neighbors (for example, poachers, people who make noises that scare animals or disturb the natural peace, or people that dump waste into the river) can ruin an otherwise perfect property.

What are the benefits of buying recreational land?

How you benefit from the land is up to you. You could let other people enjoy the property and its amenities for a fee. You could improve the land and sell it for a profit down the road.

You can also use it for your friends and family as a retreat from the rest of the world. If kept in good shape, recreational land can be something passed down for generations that will only increase in value.

How can I add value to my recreational land?

There are dozens of ways to add value to your recreational land. In his guest post for RLI, Bob Stalberger, ALC, suggests adding trail cameras as a cheap and effective way to add value.

“Buyers are always asking me to see trail camera photos from the property for sale,” said Stalberger. “When we check the analytics of our listings, it is proven that a listing with good trail camera photos vastly outperforms a listing without them. In addition, I personally advise my new buyers to go buy a thumb drive and save trail camera photos from day one, even if they have no plans of ever selling. It is great to be able to show a buyer 2-10 years of trail camera photos and allow them to see the quality and quantities of deer using the property.”

Tommy Stroud, Jr, ALC, recommends creating habitats for animals to thrive in. He says, in his guest post for the RLI Blog, about a recent property he helped to add value to “This [property] required thinning the trees back to 35-50 trees per acre. A skid steer with a grinder ate up a lot of the long-abandoned under story before Garlon (Triclopyr) was sprayed to prevent hardwood growth. These fields were burned using prescriptive fire in late February.  Continuing to burn every one or two years will keep this stand clean and provide a great habitat for all wildlife.”

Recreational land is so much more than just another land type. It can be a family heirloom passed down from generation to generation, a profitable business, or just a place to get away from the rest of the world. Interested in owning a piece of your recreational land? Make sure to Find A Land Consultant that has the expertise required to conduct these types of transactions. Interested in learning more about recreational land as an agent? Check out the Recreational Land Real Estate LANDU course.

About the Author: Laura Barker is a freelance writer based out of California for the REALTORS® Land Institute. She has been with RLI since October 2017.

hunter hunting land

Five Questions To Help You Find The Perfect Hunting Land

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Hunting for game is fun, hunting for the perfect hunting property can be less fun. Buying a hunting property requires an extensive knowledge of land, wildlife, and what is necessary for a great hunt. Here are five questions you should always ask before buying hunting land.

1.Does The Land Provide Food Sources That Will Attract Game?

Food sources are key for attracting prey to your land. Providing animals with a reliable food source is a promise that animals will come to your land again and again. Depending on the type of animal you are trying to attract, you’ll need to adjust the food sources. Here are a few suggestions, by animal, that can help:

Deer: Deer love chestnuts, acorns, apples, clover, cow peas, and wheat. They have also been known to munch on marijuana plants.

Ducks: These birds aren’t picky, but you can lure them to your property with greens, oats, peas, and seeds.

Rabbits: Wild rabbits prefer fresh foliage over anything dry. Their diet is mostly clover, grass, and wildflowers.

Wild boar: These omnivorous beats will eat pretty much anything, but have been known to love acorns.

If the land you are looking to purchase doesn’t have these plants growing there currently, don’t abandon this property just yet. You can grow almost all of these crops on the property as long as the soil type is right for it (If the soil type isn’t conducive for growing what your game needs to eat, it’s a great time to consult with a land professional about whether or not this property would be right for you.

hunting blind

2. Do Hunters Have Easy Access To The Land?

Some hunting spots can be a real pain to get to. Long drives or unmarked land can force hunters to spend all their time hunting for the land instead of hunting game. Hunting is supposed to be a recreational, fun activity, and if getting to the hunting land is too much of a hassle, people will go elsewhere. So, if possible, avoid land that would be difficult to get access to for hunters.

If you do purchase a property that can be difficult to access, there are steps you can take to make access easier for hunters. Clearly marked signs, directions on your website, and keeping boats by the water instead of in a shed are all great ways to make hunting on your land smoother.

3. Does The Land Generate Income Outside Of Hunting?

With a national decline hunting and uncertain land values, very few landowners are able to make all their money off of hunting fees alone. If you are looking to seek returns on your land, you’ll need to find multi-purpose land. Timber is a great export, if you can spare the trees from your hunting land.

4. Will The Neighbors Help or Hurt My Hunting?

As a land owner, your neighbors can be the biggest asset or biggest threat to your hunting land. Neighbors that are conscious about which bucks they harvest and the impact each kill has on the genetic pool are the best neighbors. Watch out for neighbors that shoot at anything that moves. Not only is that selfish, it also weakens the future generations of game. Try to meet some nearby landowners to get a sense of how they handle wildlife management.

5. Will Animals Want To Live Here?

The key to buying hunting land is to have an environment where animals want to live. Having food sources, as we mentioned in the first point, is a great start, but you need more than that . To attract the best game, you need to think like them. What do they need to feel safe? What do they need to settle down and start a family on your property? There needs to be coverage where deer or other game can feel safe, sleep, and start a family. They also need spots they can hide. Look for properties with shrub thickets or grass fields that will help the critters feel at home.

Open space in hunting land can look beautiful, but it is a deterrent to game. Animals are smarter than we give them credit for. They know how venerable they are in open spaces.

If your land has too much open space, this can be fixed. Plant shrubs and trees on your property to give your game more coverage. Here’s a great tip from Bow Hunting on how to create cover for deer:

“To start, locate a few areas that are situated on top of a rise with a view, or level areas with relatively open views that point away from the prevailing winds. Hinge-cut a tree by cutting halfway through it and letting it topple. The tree will continue to grow for a few years from the downed tops, creating thick growth. Deer, and bucks in particular, will often bed right at the base of these trees looking out into the open areas. That way they can smell predators from behind them and see anything in front.”

The perfect hunting land can be a huge boon to you and your kids. Great hunting land can be passed down through generations, providing a source of income and fun for years. Using an ALC can answer the above questions and make buying hunting land a much smoother task. Happy hunting!

 

About the author: Laura Barker is Marketing Assistant for the REALTORS® Land Institute. She graduated from Clark University in May 2017 and had been with RLI since October 2017.

How To Have a Great Hunt in February

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By the end of January, most people have put away their guns and declared the hunting season over. February is one of the slower months for hunting. However, if you still have an itch to hunt, there are plenty of hunting opportunities for you in February. Here are some tips to help you have a great hunting season even after January is over.

1: Don’t Count Out Small Game

Deer season might be over, but there are still plenty of clever critters that will make for an exciting hunt. In many states, hunting small animals like rabbits and squirrels is legal throughout February. If you haven’t hunted squirrels before, it might not sound as exciting as hunting an elk or a wild boar. However, since the winter and the earlier hunting season have already claimed some of the weaker ones, the remaining squirrels will be cunning and make for a rewarding hunt. Rabbits are also a challenging hunt. They are one of the more popular small games to hunt, and it’s easy to see why. They have an excellent sense of smell and long-distance vision that only the most skilled hunters can know how to trick. If you are looking for a hunt that will challenge your brain as well as your hunting skills, small game could be your new favorite prey.

2: Some Animals Can Be Hunted Year-Round

While this does vary state by state, most states allow year-round hunting of animals that are considered pests or could harm the ecosystem of the land. Wild pigs and coyotes are some of the more popular animals to hunt year-round. Coyotes are highly intelligent and adaptable animals that have gotten a passionate following over the years in the hunting community.

Also, wild pigs can be hunted year-round in twelve states (California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin). These husky creatures have an unpredictable temper, so only go after them if you are an experienced and thrill-seeking hunter.

3: Check Your Calendar

Depending on where you live, you might have more time to hunt big game than you think. Alabama allows deer hunting until February 10th, thanks to the varying rutting seasons around the state. Hunting seasons can shrink or grow based off population, rutting season, and the needs of the land.

4: Hunt Smarter, Not Harder

Every hunting season has its ups and downs. Hunting in February is no different. Fewer hunters means less competition for you. The barren land and fallen leaves mean you will have an excellent view of your prey. The catch? They can see you just as clearly. This is the time of year to break out your best camo.

Another drawback for hunting in February is that most of the prime hunt has already been harvested. January hunters have taken out the biggest game, and Mother Nature has taken the animals not fit enough to survive the harsh winter season. You might have missed the biggest animals of the season, but there are still lots of animals out there ready to give you a memorable day in the great outdoors.

Hunting in February is for hunters who like a challenge. Even though you might not catch the buck of your dreams, there is still plenty of great hunting to be had.

About the author: Laura Barker is Marketing Assistant for the REALTORS® Land Institute. She graduated from Clark University in May 2017 and had been with RLI since October 2017.

What Does the Decline in Hunting Mean for Recreational Land Real Estate?

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There’s nothing quite like hunting; the rush of adrenaline when you hit your target, teaching little ones how to spot a deer, and spending time in the great outdoors. Hunting also has surprising benefits for the environment. Hunting licenses and fees are the main source of income for wildlife agencies, and hunting can prevent overpopulation.

However, there has been a significant decrease in hunting over the years. Over the last five years, the number of hunters has decreased by 15 percent. What does this mean for recreational real estate and the future of hunting?

One of the biggest reasons for the decline in hunting is our country’s changing landscape. With the human population growing every day, prime land real estate started going towards building homes and stores instead of hunting grounds. Many old hunting spots that families have loved for generations have closed and been replaced by a mall.

 

http://longilbert.com/blog-and-updates/2017/4/14/what-is-the-cost-of-a-hunting-license

Another reason that less people are hunting is the cost. The rising price of ammunition, licenses, and permits are driving away hunters who can’t afford the price hike. As you can see from this chart from longilbert.com, the cost of hunting licenses is massive for non-residents. $250 license fees are pricing some people out of the sport. Even local license costs are skyrocketing. The Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Commission has proposed a fee increase that will raise resident license prices from $7 to a whopping $27. That’s a 26 percent increase!

Millennials haven’t been picking up the sport as much as other generations have. The biggest deterrent is that they don’t have anyone to teach them. “You don’t just get up and go hunting one day- your father or father-type figure has to have hunted,” says Mark Damian Duda, an executive director of the research firm Responsive Management. Hunting is a sport which requires a lot of teaching and expertise. With a growing number of Baby Boomers and Gen Xers hanging up their hunting vests, Millennials are left without anyone to introduce them to the sport.

There are a lot of downsides to the decrease in hunting. The group that suffers most from the lack of hunting is, surprisingly, the environment. Hunting can prevent over-population, which can wreck an ecosystem and leave animals starving as they compete for food. Hunting fees and licenses are the main source of income for many wildlife preserves and recreational land real estate. This income pays the employees, maintains the grounds, and funds projects to help the wildlife. Without this income, many parks are struggling to pay their bills.

Does the decreasing number of hunters mean the end for the sport? Not at all. There is still a very active hunting community and positive trends that show hunting increases in certain states. The same study that showed overall hunters decreasing also showed a 9 percent increase in hunting participation from 2006 to 2011. The number of paid hunting license holders has actually increased in certain states. In Texas, the number has jumped from 1,060,455 license holders in 2015 to 1,148,765 in 2017.

The local food movement has also helped the hunting community. With a focus on shopping local and knowing where your food comes from, this movement has introduced people to hunting as a fun and sustainable way to get your dinner.

Recreational land real estate is still going. In last year’s RLI survey, sales of recreational land actually increased. Recreational and residential land real estate sales accounted for 50 percent. While interest in the sport may waver, prices per acre of land real estate remain high. The average price for hunting land real estate in the Midwest is $2,975 per acre.

While hunting is experiencing a dip in popularity, there are still many loyal fans of hunting who want to bring it back into popularity. There have been efforts by local governments to make hunting affordable and accessible again. Ryan Zinke, the United States Secretary of Interior issued orders to overturn a ban of lead ammunition and issued an order to increase hunters’ access to public land. In the community, many youth groups are teaching young people about hunting and nature. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission launched the Youth Hunting Program of Florida to teach young people how to hunt safety.

Hunting is going through some changes. Most of them are positive. A new movement and generation are learning about the benefits of hunting and how it can help the environment. Local government are now realizing the effects of price hikes on hunting and are taking steps to change it. With a new focus on sustainability and teaching the next generation, hunting is sure to remain a classic American pastime.