Make More Money from Your Land
As the nation's largest farm and ranch management company,
Farmers National Company is often the first to find out about new economic
opportunities for landowners. We routinely receive requests from sportsmen
looking to lease land, environmental investors looking to buy conservation
easements and carbon credits, conservation organizations with money for new
pilot programs, buyers looking for specific properties, etc. We have
relationships with organizations across the nation looking for the right fit
for their dollars. As you read this, we may have an opportunity
waiting for you. Here are some of the newest financial opportunities
available to landowners.
ECO-ASSETS AND CARBON CREDITS
""Eco-assets"" are among a new emerging market of economic
opportunities linked to sustainable development - managing not just
economic and social benefits but also the environmental ones. Carbon boards of
trade have already been established in the US, and the Chicago Board of Trade
is considering setting up a carbon credits trading market in the near future.
There's talk that carbon emissions trading will become a major global market
worth billions of dollars in just a few years.
Carbon credits are already being sold in small markets in
the US, particularly in the Mid-south. The carbon credits concept is based on
the fact that trees absorb carbon dioxide. It means industry can pay landowners
to plant trees on land currently under cultivation (crops), offsetting their
own greenhouse emissions. Protected by long-term conservation easements, new
""carbon credit forests"" provide economic gains, quality wildlife habitat, and
environmental benefits on private lands.
CONSERVATION EASEMENTS
A conservation easement is a voluntary contract between a
landowner and a non-profit organization that permanently limits use of land to
protect its conservation values. It allows you to continue to own and use your
land and to sell it or pass it on to heirs. When you sell a conservation
easement, you are paid to give up some rights associated with the land. For
example, you might give up the right to grow crops while retaining the right to
use the land for recreation. Future owners are bound by the easement's terms.
An added bonus: placing an easement on your property usually results in
property tax savings.
Conservation easements offer great flexibility. Easements
on property containing rare wildlife habitat might prohibit any development,
for example, while one on a farm might allow continued farming and building additional
agricultural structures. An easement may apply to just a portion of the
property. Easements do not need to require public access. A landowner can also
donate a conservation easement. If the donation benefits the public by
permanently protecting important resources and meets federal tax code
requirements--it can qualify as a tax-deductible charitable donation. The
amount of the donation is the difference between the land's value with the
easement and its value without the easement.
RECREATIONAL LEASES
Hunting, fishing, and wildlife-related recreation is
becoming big business on private lands. In 2001, over $624 million was spent by
hunters for land leased primarily for hunting. On average, each American hunter
spent an average of $1,896 per year on hunting. Over 2 million non-resident
hunters hunted in another state in 2001, spending over 20 million days in the
field. Landowners can make $1-$10 per acre annually from a good hunting lease.
Simply put, the recreational market should not be overlooked as a revenue
source for private landowners. Sportsmen and sportswomen from across the nation
are willing to pay for safe, exclusive, memorable hunting and fishing
experiences. There is a good market for hunting leases.
HABITAT COST-SHARE AND RENTAL PROGRAMS
A wide variety of financial incentives are available to
producers and landowners interested in voluntary conservation on their land.
Federal, state, regional, and local entities offer a variety of economic
opportunities with new programs being added continuously. Some programs offer
annual payments for a conservation use, others offer one-time up-front payments
for various habitat programs, and most include funds to share in the costs of
installing conservation measures.
SEIZING THESE OPPORTUNITIES
Regardless of the state in which you own land, the easiest
way to find out if your property qualifies for new financial opportunities is
to fill out the brief online
questionnaire about your property.
Or call our office at (800) 346-2650 and request a Make More Money Form that you can fax or mail back.
This short form provides enough information for us to determine if your land is
a possible candidate for new opportunities. We will add your land information
to our database, contacting you when new or unique opportunities arise. The
process is free to landowners in all states and your personal information is
held in strict confidence.
