The Land Report Summer 2012

Did you know that the Supreme Court just issued a landmark ruling? I’m not talking about health care. I’m talking about land. That’s right, the high court came down 9-0 for landowners in a suit that was brought against the EPA by Idaho’s Sackett family.

We’ve been following Sackett v. EPA for over a year. It’s one of the many eye-opening stories you’ll enjoy in the Summer 2012 issue of The Land Report, now on newsstands from coast to coast.

You can access the digital edition free of charge HERE.

Our summer issue also features the story of an innovative gift to the University of Wyoming, one that kicks in when Wyoming’s River Bend Ranch sells. It’s a great example of stewardship, one that Greg Fay brought to us and that we are proud to share. Learn five great ways to add value and beauty to your land by improving your waters. And be sure to have a look at our third annual roundup of the nation’s leading auction houses. No surprise here … farmland prices continue to best record highs.

So be our guest and enjoy our latest issue HERE.

For more up to the minute reports on listings, auctions, sales, and breaking news pertaining to land and landowners, be sure to follow The Magazine of the American Landowner on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

P.S. Our award-winning quarterly magazine is available in a print version via subscription.

Land Report May 2012 Newsletter

Many items to consider from our May newsletter, but let’s stick to page one material. The Land Report Top Ten has a brand-new look with Montana’s Broken O Ranch now crowning the list. The 124,000-acre Bates Sanders Swan listing features more than 20 miles of the Sun River, carries 3,500 mother cows, and produces about 25,000 tons of alfalfa hay and 700,000 bushels of small grain crops annually. At $132.5 million, it’s not a ranch. It’s a hedge fund, one built on a rock-solid agricultural asset.

Two properties have joined the Top Ten: Hawaii’s Dillingham Ranch, our new No. 5 at $65 million, which is listed by Zackary Wright with Christie’s; and Swain’s Neck on Nantucket Island, the new No. 7 at $59 million, courtesy of Gary Winn at Maury People Sotheby’s International Realty. There has been a $5 million reduction on No. 4 California’s Rancho Dos Pueblos, which Kerry Mormann & Associates now has listed for $79 million.

For more up to the minute reports on listings, auctions, sales, and breaking news pertaining to land and landowners, be sure to follow The Magazine of the American Landowner on Facebook and Twitter. The Land Report is now on Pinterest.

P.S. Our award-winning quarterly magazine is available in a print version via subscription.

The Land Report Spring 2012

Enjoy the Spring issue of The Land Report!

Learn the stories of America’s Best Brokerages in our second annual survey. More than 70 are profiled from coast to coast. Read how Bernie Uechtritz pulled off 2011′s Deal of the Year by selling Camp Cooley Ranch in just 45 days. Find out why George Clooney has such strong ties to the land in the Academy Award-winning movie The Descendants.

For more up to the minute reports on listings, auctions, sales, and breaking news pertaining to land and landowners, be sure to follow The Magazine of the American Landowner on Facebook and Twitter. Better yet, Land Report is now on Pinterest.

P.S. Our award-winning quarterly magazine is available in a print version via subscription.

Land Report March 2012 Newsletter

The Spring issue of The Land Report has arrived!

Right now it’s en route to bookstores such as Barnes & Noble and subscribers’ offices around the world, but thanks to the miracles of modern technology you can read right now right HERE.

Learn the stories of America’s Best Brokerages in our second annual survey. More than 70 are profiled from coast to coast. Read how Bernie Uechtritz pulled off 2011′s Deal of the Year by selling Camp Cooley Ranch in just 45 days. Find out why George Clooney has such strong ties to the land in the Academy Award-winning movie The Descendants.

For more up to the minute reports on listings, auctions, sales, and breaking news pertaining to land and landowners, be sure to follow The Magazine of the American Landowner on Facebook and Twitter. Better yet, Land Report is now on Pinterest.

P.S. Our award-winning quarterly magazine is available in a print version via subscription.

Market Watch: Rayonier to Acquire 250,000 Acres

Rayonier (RYN) has signed an agreement to acquire some 250,000 acres of timberlands from Joshua Timberlands LLC and Oklahoma Timber LLC for $330 million. Timberlands included in the sale are located in located in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Oklahoma.

“The quality and location of these timberlands make them an excellent strategic fit for Rayonier. This transaction is a major step forward in our strategy to grow and diversify Rayonier’s timberland ownership while allowing for further expansion of our rural land sales program,” said Lee M. Thomas, Rayonier’s chairman and chief executive officer.

Once the deal closes, the Jacksonville-based company will own, lease, or manage 2.7 million acres of timber and land in the U.S. and New Zealand. Rayonier reported net income of $56 million in the second quarter of 2011, an increase of nearly 44 percent from $39 million in the second quarter of 2010.

Read the complete press release and learn more about Rayonier HERE.

$5 Million Hilton Head Easement Acquisition

Several funding entities, including Beaufort County and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, have pooled resources to acquire several key conservation easements on St. Helena Island as well as outright ownership of 19 acres on Hilton Head. According to news releases, these acquisitions will keep these lands from being turned into developments that would include some 300+ homes. In addition, the three easements allow the current property owners to continue farming the historic Beaufort County lands. More details of the transaction are available HERE.

IP to Sell 163,000 Acres for $200 Million

International Paper (IP) will sell 163,000 acres in the Southeast for a minimum of $200 million to an affiliate of Rock Creek Capital, a Jacksonville-based asset management firm that invests in unique, resource-rich land. According to wire reports, IP will receive a minimum $160 million when the deal closes later this quarter. It will receive the balance, plus interest, within three years. The company will also receive 20% of the net profit generated from the land after the Rock Creek affiliate achieves “certain financial returns.”

6th Timberland Investment World Summit October 26-28

Come join The Land Report at the 6th Timberland Investment World Summit at the Millennium Broadway Hotel in New York City on October 26-28. This conference is absolutely essential for anyone who follows or invests in timberland, which is why The Land Report signed on as a sponsor.

Online (“Timberland Outperforms the S&P 500?”) and in print (Land Report Spring 2009), the Magazine of the American Landowner has extolled the virtues of timberland as a long-term investment opportunity.

The Timberland Investment World conference brings many major players together, including pension funds, hedge funds, endowments, family offices, TIMOs, REITs, forestry management companies, paper and forest products companies, law firms, and banks.

Among the many topics to be covered at the conference are:

- International prospects for timberland investments, including Brazil, China, Russia, Australia and New Zealand

- Macroeconomic perspectives on the future of global demand for wood products

- Cashflow generation opportunities represented by ecosystem services, carbon schemes, easements, and the market in woody biomass

-The impact of information technology on timberland investment returns

- Preparing for the implementation of a nationwide cap and trade system

- Principles for selecting between Timber Investment Management Organizations (TIMOs)

- The valuation process: appraisal, discount rates, and future lumber prices

- The impact of biotechnology on future timber yields and growth rates

For more complete details, click HERE.

Plum Creek Completes First Phase of $150 Million Montana Timber Sale

The nation’s large private landowner — Plum Creek Timber (NYSE:PCL) — took the initial step towards completing the sale of an estimated 130,000 acres of Montana forestlands last week. In the first step of a three phase plan, the company received $150 million in cash from The Nature Conservancy and The Trust for Public Land ($1,153 per acre). The complete announcement from Plum Creek’s corporate website follows: Read more

Timberland Outperforms the S&P 500?

That’s one of the conclusions from this report that ran online at Forbes.com a few weeks ago titled Cut Down Portfolio Risk With Timber. I had fully expected the author, Robert Stammers, to be a shill for an organization tied to the timber industry. Turns out I was wrong. He’s a CFA, a quant, who specializes in providing strategic planning and analysis for business owners and private investors. What does he have to say about investing in timber? It’s quite simple. Read more

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