# Alabama Hunting Lease Questions



## ron burgundy (Mar 9, 2009)

A few friends of mine are kicking around the idea of getting into an Alabama hunting lease for 2010 and was looking for some good advice from anyone with experience. I have already searched www.afoa.org/hunt.htm and found some potential leases that might fit the bill but we want as much knowledge going into a lease as possible. Right now all of us hunt on public land here in NWF and we all know the hassles that can come with that. If anyone has some good suggestions on particular locations or if anyone knows of some good leases available that would be much appreciated!


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## off route II (Sep 28, 2007)

i can tell you that prices have come down a good bit in the area that i hunt due to the economy. a good number of leases around here were not renewed by out of state hunters this year. a good friend of mine who owns the local sporting goods store told me his out of state license sales are off this year by 70% this year. i just had 700 acs. with green fields already planted offered to me for $3.50 an acre and turned it down. i've already got more land than i can hunt. be careful and don't pay to much.


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## Bullshark (Mar 19, 2009)

It's been my experiance the rates have gone up. I know of some land near ours in Brewton that is open and have heard that some more is coming open next season. I don't remember the paper company now but I will find it out this weekend and PM you. Average price for my area is $7 to $9 per acre for 1 company and the other is $5.5 per. I don't think the $5.5 has any open land. They both have good deer.


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## Bub (Oct 7, 2007)

I'm also looking for some land to lease. If any one hears of anything or knows of any websites or places for me to look I would greatly appreciate it. Im looking for land within a 3 hours drive. thanks in advance


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## Splittine (Nov 24, 2007)

> *off route II (12/1/2009)*i can tell you that prices have come down a good bit in the area that i hunt due to the economy. a good number of leases around here were not renewed by out of state hunters this year. a good friend of mine who owns the local sporting goods store told me his out of state license sales are off this year by 70% this year. i just had 700 acs. with green fields already planted offered to me for $3.50 an acre and turned it down. i've already got more land than i can hunt. be careful and don't pay to much.


I agree prices have come down and will do so if the economy doesnt turn around. Rayonier has land this year they cant lease for anything. We pay $5.50 an acre or so and we have great deer and everyone around us is 8pt or better and we are about to wrap up another 700 acres next year since we have a long term lease. That would give us 3200 acres for 12 members.


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## Bullshark (Mar 19, 2009)

This is a great site. All their lands are managed by wildlife biologists. I almost got in one in Florida but they had a ton of bears.

http://www.westerveltwildlife.com/


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## ron burgundy (Mar 9, 2009)

Awesome info, I figure the rates would be going down as some members may be backing out of leases due to the economy and such. Keep it coming, the more we learn now the better the end result will be! That 700 acres for $3.50 per acreis a sweet deal, I am very interested in that one if there is some contact info on it that would be great!


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## Grassflatsfisher (Oct 3, 2007)

> *Bullshark (12/1/2009)*It's been my experiance the rates have gone up. I know of some land near ours in Brewton that is open and have heard that some more is coming open next season. I don't remember the paper company now but I will find it out this weekend and PM you. Average price for my area is $7 to $9 per acre for 1 company and the other is $5.5 per. I don't think the $5.5 has any open land. They both have good deer.


I'm betting the company you are referring to with the $7-$9/acre leases is Rayoneir. They are the most money hungry group I've ever seen. I think they are trying to ruin leasing land in AL. They lost a ton of renewls this year from what I understand. They were selling hunting passes for the land they didn't get leased at one time this year. I'm thankful that we don't lease from them because I'd let mine go just for the principal of it. For that kind of money you can go to Texas and kill a guaranteed stud and come out ahead by the time you count gas and food for the season.Don't get me wrong Ilike hunting as much as anyone but I'm not going to spend every dime I make on it. If the economy keeps going in the direction it is now I think we will continue to see some of these prices come down. $3.50/acre may be far fetched but I think $4.00-$4.50 is a definite. I think we paid $5.75ish this year. If it ever does get to $7+ I'm out....maybe even before that. I'm not going to hunt 500acres with 10 other people so I can afford it.


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## hoboedan (Oct 24, 2009)

Rayonier is absolutely the worst when it comes to leasing. We leased from them for approximately 6 years here in Florida. They jacked the per acre price each year, some years just totally unreasonable for the scrub land we were leasing. The last year I intended to tell them where to stick it, but they sold all their land in Okaloosa county before I had the opportunity. I always regretted it too. I've heard they have lots of unleased land in Covington county Alabama this year. Good enough for em.


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## Bullshark (Mar 19, 2009)

> *Grassflatsfisher (12/1/2009)*
> 
> 
> > *Bullshark (12/1/2009)*It's been my experiance the rates have gone up. I know of some land near ours in Brewton that is open and have heard that some more is coming open next season. I don't remember the paper company now but I will find it out this weekend and PM you. Average price for my area is $7 to $9 per acre for 1 company and the other is $5.5 per. I don't think the $5.5 has any open land. They both have good deer.
> ...


Yep. I gave it up tonight. They wanted $3500 on feb 1st for a deposite. I kept 850 acres down the road with another company for half that price. There is going to be a crap ton of open land next year.


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## Grassflatsfisher (Oct 3, 2007)

There is quite a bit of Ray land around us in Conecuh.A lotof it went unleaseddueto cost. Gates are open on a lot of it. I'm not sure what they are thinking by jacking the price up. I guess they thought if they were the 1st to do it everyone would follow suit. I've talked with the timber co that we lease from and even they said it was ridiculous what they were doing. In my book there is not but maybe 2 or 3 areas in Alabama thatis worth that kind of money.All of it is in Bullock,Barbour, and Macon County. Even saying that I'm a firm believer there arebig deer everywhere (125-150"). That's a fact I've proven on our place in Conecuh on many occassions...meaning if you saw the land we hunt you would not expect us to take the deer we have taken from it...it's a pine tree farm with a few smz.I think there are areas with higher concentrations of deer/big bucks. Where we are has gone way down hill in numbers the last several years...Post Ivan. We use to see deer every time we sat. Post Ivan we are lucky to see one every 3rd sit. Not sure what has changed...I know the timber is a lot different from clear cuts, Ivan blow down, growth, etc. Use to we could go in and hunt a buck in January and probably kill him on the 3rd or 4th sit. Now we are having to put 8-15 hunts in on him. To me that says he's not having to fight off the number of other bucks so their not checking scrapes, rubs, etc as much. I guess I'm rambling now...what I'm driving at is the land we hunt is not worth what we are paying currently and it dang sure isn't worth what Rayonier wants. Is it convient, does it have deer, close to the land we own....Yes, 1.5 hr drive, we do see and kill decent deer, it's 1/4mile down the road from my camp house and land we own. That's really the only reason we have kept it. I've gone through the whole bidding war on Rayoniers site for a piece down the road from us...after the first year I wrote them a letter on how ridiculous it was. The next year I think everyone that was leasing Ray land around us wrote a letter...and this year they said the heck with it apparently. Maybe another year and more unleased land they will figure it out... Who knows?


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## Bullshark (Mar 19, 2009)

The land I gave up has a few 150's deer and I have seen deer everytime I sat this year. 75% of the bucks I posted over the last few months are on that land.It sucks to give it up but i'm already getting poor mouthed by club members and Jen would shoot me is I paid it so it had to go. Now I will have 810 acres down the road with 7 or 8 guys I want to hunt with and it has good deer. I like that better. The more members the bigger pain in the ass it will be.


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## Jason (Oct 2, 2007)

Shop around fer insurance....I checked 3 different companies fer my lease and got 3 different $$$...I'll look up the company I went with and you can call em when it's time.:letsdrink


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## off route II (Sep 28, 2007)

> *ron burgundy (12/1/2009)*Awesome info, I figure the rates would be going down as some members may be backing out of leases due to the economy and such. Keep it coming, the more we learn now the better the end result will be! That 700 acres for $3.50 per acreis a sweet deal, I am very interested in that one if there is some contact info on it that would be great!


sorry i am slow to reply, i went hunting yesterday afternoon. that land i was talking about was taken by my friend who owns the local sporting goods store that i reffered to in my other post.


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## reelthrill (Oct 3, 2007)

Buckeye hunting club in Bellamy Alabama usually has a few openings every year. They are a family oriented club run by a great bunch of people and have some really good deer and hogs. There camphouse is nice and very roomy. If interested, send me a pm. Bellamy is located appr. 22 miles west of Demopolis and about 20 miles SE of Livingston.


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## 7mmbrowningman (Oct 19, 2008)

I and my buddy got a small least from RMS (local office is on Quintette at Hwy 95A) and we paid 4.50 ann acre plus insuance(very low fee)...we are north of Brewton in Wallace, Al. 

Here is the contact info for the gentleman that leased the propertyt to us - heseems likea really good guy...

Brian Douty, Bay Minette Dist Mgr,251-937-2691 ext 1 (RMS - Resource Management Services, LLC)

GOOD LUCK!:usaflag


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