American Land Magazine

4 The year 2020 will go down in history as one of unrest and struggle for many industries and businesses large and small alike. The narrative much of mainstream media has portrayed is one of doom and gloom for Americans. The rural land market however continues to tell a different story. In the early stages of the pandemic, the market showed signs that buyers in the market for land are buying it, and those looking to sell land have chosen a good time to sell it. As the year rolls on, it's encouraging to see this trend continue. Several factors are driving a recent surge in land sales, many linked to the country's economic rollercoaster. A shrinking economy typically suggests people are sitting on what they've got, hunkered down and delaying investment in large purchases. But on March 15, the Federal Reserve cut interest rates to historic lows. Next, the fallout from an erratic equity market has made non-equity, longterm investments like land an appealing and stable alternative. "Land buyers have been really active this year," said Jeff Evans, Managing Broker for Whitetail Properties. "I think part of what we're seeing is just this heightened motivation to get outside of the fray, to be outdoors, in open space pursuing activities that are physically rewarding with family and loved ones. In turn, these economic factors have aligned to create a favorable market for sellers as well. It's created a unique market to really reward both buyers and sellers." Whitetail Properties' sales numbers further support increased buyer activity. For example, in April 2020 at the height of the pandemic, sales were up $15 million company-wide compared to April 2019 sales. "Some of the buyers we've seen enter the market have long wanted to own a rural property but they haven't pulled the trigger up to this point for a number of reasons," says Dan Perez, Whitetail Properties' CEO and Owner. "In most cases it's related to financing, finding the right opportunity or a combination of the two. In the current market though, we are seeing a high-volume of increased buyer activity largely due to historically low interest rates. These rates have created attractive financing opportunities for buyers. In turn, sellers are realizing land values are holding very steady and, due to increased demand, are able to capitalize on sustained land prices." It's also true that many investors see land as a safe and stable alternative to volatile equity markets. And it is. Annual returns on farmland since 1990 (the first year of the index) averaged 11.5 percent. Using this same data set, that's more than double the average annual return on gold. Returns on farmland even edged out commercial real estate returns by nearly 3 percent. Whitetail Properties' year-over-year website data also affirms an upswing in buyer activity. The land company's overall traffic in May 2020 was up 45 percent compared to traffic recorded in May of the previous year. Online referral traffic was up 67 percent in May 2020 compared to the same month last year and new visitors to the website were up 53 percent. This year over year monthly upward trend in traffic to the website has continued through September and doesn't appear to be slowing anytime soon. All this further reinforces that buyers and investors continue to see land as an increasingly attractive, stable asset. A UNIQUE LAND MARKET CONTINUES TO PRESENT POSITIVE OPPORTUNITIES FOR BOTH SELLERS AND BUYERS

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