Land Report July 2011 Newsletter

There’s a lot of ground to cover in the July edition of The Land Report newsletter: auctions, equities, timberland, and several political developments affecting landowners, ranging from the passage of key legislation by the Texas Legislature to the appointment of Dan Ashe to head the federal agency that many landowners know on a firsthand basis, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

From a research standpoint, a new frontrunner has emerged atop The Land Report Top Ten, which features the country’s leading investment quality land listings. Count on The Magazine of the American Landowner to follow the $100 million listing of Wyoming’s Walton Ranch by Ranch Marketing Associates in the months ahead.

For more up to the minute reports on listings, sales, and countless other stories pertaining to land and landowners, be sure to follow The Magazine of the American Landowner on Facebook and Twitter.

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

 

Forest Service Paving the Way for Plum Creek?

The nation’s largest landowner may be getting a last-minute, going-away gift from the Bush Administration. The Forest Service may amend existing easements, a step that would allow Plum Creek Timber (NYSE:PCL) to pave roads through USFS land.  Such a move would facilitate an important first step for the giant timber REIT as it converts forested acreage to residential developments.  Read the complete story here.

America’s Largest Landowner Bucks Down Market

On Monday, Plum Creek Timber Company (NYSE:PCL) reported a 17 percent increase in third quarter earnings to $69 million on revenues of $414 million compared to year-ago earnings of $59 million on revenues of $407 million. At 40 cents a share, the results matched the average analyst estimate, but given the downturn in the U.S. economy as a whole and the housing market in particular, it was an impressive performance for the Seattle-based timber REIT, which owns more than 8 million acres of timberlands in 18 states. Read more

Max Baucus Out to Ax Timber Tax

Timber sales are typically taxed at the standard 15 percent capital gain rate. Yet timber companies typically pay the standard 35 percent corporate tax rate. This quirk in the tax law has led many timber companies including Plum Creek and Potlatch to restructure as real estate investment trusts (REITs), which enables them to take advantage of the lower 15 percent rate. Montana Senator Max Baucus wants to change that.
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