As summer winds down and kids head back to school, we look forward to cooler weather in the coming months and the kick-off to multiple fall/winter hunting seasons across the state. Oh yeah, and football season!

All the rain across the state has been an answer to our prayers, and it’s been a welcome sight to see all the green as we drive to and from ranch listings. We hope to continue to receive rain through the hot months of August and September.

As for Capital Ranch Sales, we had a busy July! We saw the closing of another 5 properties and brought another 3 great listings to the market.

Last month, we put a bow on what the expected price drops in the rural land market meant for both buyers and sellers. Let’s shift our focus toward this prediction from industry experts: “Sales volume is at, or close to, near-term lows. We’re expecting increases in Q3 or Q4 of 2024.”

At Capital Ranch Sales, we have been fortunate not to experience these “near-term low” sales volumes in 2024. Having closed upwards of 40 ranches through the first 7 months, our team has been hard at work helping our clients consistently buy or sell their land assets.

That said, based on everything I’ve seen and heard, the land market has indeed experienced a regression in sales volume statewide. So, if the experts are correct in their predictions that we might see an increase in sales volume in the last 2 quarters of the year, what would prompt that change?

If I had to point to a few variables, the first would be the result of the upcoming election; the second is clarity around interest rates; the third is more inventory on the listing side; and the fourth is prices softening. I don’t think it will take all 4 variables to happen concurrently to see sales volume rise, but I do believe a combination of them could very likely increase the activity on rural land sales.

So, will we see an increase in rural land sales in the latter part of the year? Your guess is as good as mine. However, in the coming months, we will explore what this could mean for both buyers and sellers if the experts are correct in their predictions.

As always, thank you for your continued support of our brokerage. We’ll see you next month!