Best Land Investment Opportunities

The best land investments are timberland, hunting and recreational, and waterfront. Discover why these opportunities have so much potential to be profitable.

Real estate developers can always build vertically to increase the size and potential profitability of a commercial building. Land, however, is finite. You can’t produce more it. Additionally, not every plot of land is buildable. Owning a plot of developable land gives you an asset not many will have, but many will want.

Furthermore, if you purchase a property with no infrastructure or development, there’s also less management involved. You’re not responsible for maintaining a building or managing tenants. You can simply invest in the land, hold onto that nest egg, and watch it grow over time.

Here are three of the best land investment opportunities to consider:

1. Timberland.
   • Why It’s Good Investment: Timberland are areas of land that are used to grow and harvest timber. One of the best land investments, timberland allows you to diversify your portfolio and safeguard against inflation. As the demand for wood and lumber products rises over time, so does the value of a timberland investment. Unlike stocks and bonds, timberland is also not as directly tied to market forces that may negatively impact it.
   • How You’ll See an ROI: There are three primary ways to see a return on investment through timberland: biological growth, land appreciation, and price appreciation. Biological growth means that the trees become more valuable over time as they become heavier and more dense. The trees may also be located on valuable land. Once the trees are harvested, the land can be used to build venues, such as a baseball field or football stadium. If there’s softwood, it can also be sold to builders and developers for home construction. A thriving housing market might lead to increased demand (and, therefore, an increased value), for softwood, resulting in price appreciation.
2. Hunting & Recreation.

   • Why It’s a Great Investment: Another top land investment is hunting and recreation. It gives you the opportunity to make money from your land, while also personally enjoying it. Many people buy hunting land because they are also avid hunters. It becomes a place they can take their own friends and family — and leave behind to their children as part of their legacy when they pass away.

   • How You’ll See an ROI: Some of the ways you can make money from hunting and recreational land is by creating a hunting club and charging people a fee to hunt there. Depending on the location, you might also harvest timber or grow crops. During off-hunting season, you could also host agritourism events to drum up business, such as a fall festival (corn maze, cider mill, and pumpkin patch) or U-Pick operation (strawberries, apples, or sunflowers).

3. Waterfront.

   • Why It’s a Great Investment: What makes waterfront land one of the best land investments? Who hasn’t dreamt of owning property on the water? For that very reason, waterfront properties are highly sought after and people are willing to pay more for them than their inland counterparts. How much more? Research shows that being 500 feet of the coastline could increase a home’s value by an estimated 101.9% (compared to all homes beyond six miles of the coast).

   • How You’ll See an ROI: As with any land investment, you’ll want to do your research to ensure the waterfront land has the greatest potential for profitability. First and foremost, make sure the land is buildable. Otherwise, you’ll own waterfront land without the ability to do much with it. Additionally, make sure to ask about buffer or zoning requirements from local, state, or federal agencies. Realtors Land Institute also recommends finding out if you have access to the water, if you can build out onto the water, if permits are required for fishing or using it for recreational purposes, and if water vehicles are allowed on the water. This will determine whether it’s the best waterfront land investment for pursuing additional money-making opportunities, like opening a hotel with a jet-ski rental or starting a boat rental club.  

At SVN | Saunders Ralston Dantzler, we buy, sell, or lease un-entitled raw land for future development. We boast a wide range of services, allowing us to immediately break ground on fully entitled land, provide assistance in site selection, and land bank for speculative purposes.

To find the best land investments for timberland, hunting and recreation, and waterfront, check out our property listings. We also conduct highest and best use studies, which can help you determine what’s legally permissible, physically possible, financially feasible, and the most profitable way to use your potential land investment.