Everyone fixates on topsoil depth when buying dryland ground, and I get it — that's what shows up in the productivity ratings. But I'd argue the bigger silent killer on Kansas and Oklahoma dryland parcels is salinization, and most buyers walk right past it.
I bought a quarter section years ago with decent soil ratings. Looked fine on paper. Within two seasons I had saline seep spreading from a low-lying draw that previous owners had managed by keeping it in continuous wheat. Once I rotated to summer fallow, water moved differently through the profile and I had a spreading salt problem that took years and real money to address.
Now I look at historical cropping records and topographic position before anything else. If a seller can't tell me what's been grown in every field for the last decade, I start asking why.
Saline seep doesn't show on a productivity map. It doesn't show up in a casual walk. You have to know what question to ask.
Anyone else buying dryland acres in high-evaporation country — are you actually checking for this, or just trusting the NRCS ratings?