Real talk from real landowners. Ask questions, share stories, learn from people who've been there.
When I finally had a chance to buy a half-acre plot near my current rental, I was so focused on price per acre and proximity to my markets that I barely looked at what had been grown there for the pas...
I used to assume that if a farm sold with 'water rights included,' the paperwork was clean. Dead wrong. When I helped my nephew evaluate a 120-acre irrigated parcel near Delta, the listing showed seni...
I made this exact mistake on a 320-acre purchase back in the early 1990s. Paid fair market value, shook hands, felt good about it. Found out six months later that mineral rights had been severed three...
I used to think a water right was a water right. Decreed, on paper, attached to the ground — good enough. Then I watched a neighbor lose three consecutive hay cuts because his 1987 priority date kept ...
Most buyers eyeball the trees, maybe ask what species are present, and call it due diligence. I used to think a general walk-through was enough too — until I bought a 160-acre parcel in the early 2000...
I bought 40 acres in Letcher County thinking the hardwood mix I walked during due diligence meant the understory was healthy and stable. What I didn't check was the logging history going back 30 years...
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 par...
I walked away from what looked like a solid 480-acre purchase in Prowers County because I finally learned to read irrigation infrastructure the hard way. The listing showed decreed surface rights, rea...
I used to focus almost entirely on well depth and yield when buying land with groundwater. Biggest blind spot I ever had. What actually determines your long-term water security isn't what's under your...
I used to think a handshake with the neighboring landowner was good enough to cross their property to reach a landlocked parcel. Watched my uncle buy 40 acres in Cocke County that way back in the nine...
I used to think windbreaks were cosmetic — a nice feature, not a deciding factor. Bought a quarter section in 2003 with a handsome row of Osage orange and eastern red cedar along the north edge, thoug...
Everyone warns you about water rights seniority, aquifer depth, and ditch memberships. Nobody warned me loudly enough about shared well agreements on rural parcels. I almost closed on a 160-acre dryl...