Hunting Land Loans for Land Investors

Do you make hunting land loans?

Yes, to land investors buying hunting land to resell, subdivide, or sell on terms. We fund the purchase of hunting and recreational land for investors. $30K to $1M, no appraisal, close in 7 days, interest only for 24 months. The borrower is an entity and the plan is a business plan: flip it, split it, sell it with owner financing, or sell to a hunting club.

Hunting land is some of the easiest land to resell. Hunters buy with their hearts, they often pay cash or small down payments on terms, and a 20 to 40 acre tract with timber, water, and a trail in is a product almost every rural county has buyers for. The hard part is the buy. A seller who will take a low price wants to close fast, and banks rarely lend on raw hunting ground in less than 45 days. That is where we come in.

Can I get a loan for my own hunting property?

No. We only make business purpose loans, and a hunting camp for you and your family is personal use. If you are buying land to hunt on yourself, that is a consumer loan, and we cannot make it. A local bank or a Farm Credit lender is the right call for that. We lend to investors who buy hunting land as a business and plan to sell or lease it out.

We say this up front because it saves both of us time. The application asks how you plan to exit. If the answer is "keep it and hunt it," we are not the lender. If the answer is resell it, subdivide it, lease the hunting rights, or sell it on terms, we want to see the deal.

How much will you lend on hunting land?

Our standard is 50% of the land's conservative value, up to 65%, and never more than 80% of the price. We value the land from recent sales of similar tracts in the county, not from what the listing says. On a good deal bought under market, the loan can reach 65% of value. Need to put less cash in? Pledge another parcel you own as cross collateral and we can finance 100% of the price.

Hunting land values move with timber, water, access, and neighbors. A tract that backs up to state land or has a creek and good bedding cover sells faster than an open field. We look at what similar ground actually sold for, and how fast. The faster it resells, the closer we get to 65%. See cross collateral financing for the 0% down option.

What do real hunting land deals look like?

Four of our loan case studies were hunting or recreational tracts, held 10 to 14 months. In Kentucky we lent $59,200 on 20 acres of hunting land; it sold on owner financing in 10 months. In Minnesota we lent $134,400 on 35 acres that sold to a hunting club in 14 months. Wisconsin and Mississippi recreational tracts followed the same path.

The full numbers are on each page: Kentucky hunting land loan: $59,200, sold with seller financing, Minnesota recreational land loan: $134,400, sold to a hunting club, Wisconsin recreational land loan: $107,200, and Mississippi recreational land loan: $44,000. Every loan in our case studies was a flip.

What hunting land qualifies?

2 acres or more, legal access, and not mostly wetland or flood zone. Legal access is where hunting deals die. A lot of hunting ground is landlocked or reached only by a handshake with the neighbor. We need recorded, legal access. We also pass on tracts that are mostly wetland or flood zone, even though ducks love them, because they are hard to resell.

Timber: if you plan to sell timber off the tract, that is fine, but you work the timber sale with us and the timber money pays down the loan. Timber is part of the value we lent against, so it cannot leave the property without paying us. More on timberland loans.

Where we lend: every state except California, Arizona, Nevada, New York, New Jersey, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Vermont. We fund the land purchase only. No cabins, roads, food plots, or site work.

How do I get out of a hunting land loan?

Sell the tract. Cash buyer, owner financing, hunting club, or split it into smaller tracts. Most borrowers sell to a hunter for cash and pay us off at closing. Many sell on owner financing to reach more buyers and a higher price, then sell us the note at closing for 80 to 90% of the balance. Bigger tracts can be split into smaller pieces and sold one at a time.

The owner financing exit is where we are different from other lenders. We fund the buy, then we buy the note when you sell on terms, so you get your cash out on the same day instead of collecting payments for 10 years. If you want to split a big tract, see recreational land subdivide loans.

What does a hunting land loan cost?

14% at $100K and up, 16% under, interest only, with a 5 month minimum. Interest is paid monthly starting 30 days after closing. $600 doc fee, 2% exit fee at payoff, $25 a month servicing, no points at closing. Sell in 2 months and the unpaid months through month 5 are collected at payoff from the sale, not at closing.

On the Kentucky loan, $59,200 at 16% held for 10 months cost $9,924 all in: $7,890 interest, $600 closing, and a $1,184 exit fee. Price your deal with the full cost, not the monthly payment.