Maine land timber value?

[forgeblast]

In PA our Department of Ag has a forester on staff that will come out and have a look at our property and help develop plans....I would also see if its worth the money to hire a forester when they do the cut to make sure its cut the way you want.

 

[dmccarty]

In PA our Department of Ag has a forester on staff that will come out and have a look at our property and help develop plans....I would also see if its worth the money to hire a forester when they do the cut to make sure its cut the way you want.

This is or was true in NC. It just will take a while to get a visit since so many people partake of the service. I did my own timber management plan for tax valuations and the tax office said it better than what they usually receive. :shocked:

If one sells timber, I would highly recommend a timber agent to run the sale. For saw logs, they should cruise the property to id each tree, it's size, species, and board feet. They should also advertize the sale, prepare the sales document based on the inventory generated from the cruise, and protect the landowner. The agents work on a percentage basis just like real estate agents.

We did very well from our timber sale, partly luck because of market timing but also because I did my homework. I know some really smart people who have been ripped off big time from selling timber. It is just not something most people are familiar with and one can get burned.

Later,
Dan

 

[Carl_NH]

In PA our Department of Ag has a forester on staff that will come out and have a look at our property and help develop plans....I would also see if its worth the money to hire a forester when they do the cut to make sure its cut the way you want.

That's exactly what I did on our acreage in PA then hired a forester to evaluate the trees - the same forester my father used to harvest 30 years ago on the property. We have primarily black cherry and that gets a premium most of the time depending on markets.

Basically loggers want the best trees and leave the undesirables and the same as Dan stated above, a forester manages the woodlot and puts it out to bid as I intend to do in another 5-8 years based on market demand and prices.

To the original poster - if they are doing a thinning or select cut, then it may be viable to cut again in 15 years, but usually its every 25-30 years between harvesting. Again depending on the trees and size/shape it could range from 250-700 or more, so $500 an acre would be middle ground I would think.

 

[Piper2022]

Thanks for the input guys, so the exact story with the land is a follows:

There's is close to 1000 acres but not all of it is for sale. The land is currently being cut and once the loggers finished a portion of it will be for sale. It's a mixed growth forest with about 30% soft wood and the remainder hard wood(a lot of oak). The loggers appear to be treading as lightly as the can but since they are cutting pretty much everything 8" and larger the land looks pretty bare.

 

[dave1949]

Based on timberland value alone after that type of harvest it probably isn't really worth more than $450-$550 per acre. I notice a lot of sellers try for $1000 per acre on large lots that have some current timber value. If it has internal improved roads, stream/water frontage or some other improvement that adds to the price but of course by how much varies greatly. You didn't say what your goal in owning the land would be.

It will be good grouse, deer, turkey land for the next 10-15 years if you like to hunt. After a hard cut and forest floor disturbance is when invasive pest plants can get started easy. If it is reasonably well drained with good soils, sort of level and/or some good south-facing slopes, then with some forestry tending it can become a good timber stand again.

If you have forestry in mind, I would get a reading from a licensed forester. Assuming you are new to this type of land, SWOAM (Small Woodland Owners Association of Maine) is an excellent learning resource and they really do care about Maine's forestry future. Small Woodland Owners Association of Maine - resources and support for woodlot owners

Your area Maine Forest Service representative is also a good place for many things as a starting point. They don't do management plans and surveys themselves. Our area forester put me in touch with a local private forester suitable to my needs. The State Forester may not make specific recommendations but they will steer you in the right direction. :laughing:

District Foresters: Forest Policy and Management: Maine Forest Service: Maine ACF

This may be the Poland area forester:
Shane Duigan
356 Shaker Road
Gray ME 04039
Phone: 207-592-1251
Email: shane.p.duigan@maine.gov



This article about the nature of timberland ownership; aging owners, shrinking parcels, how to support long-term forestry, is relevant to your question about land value. Not a criticism of you, just a description of the trending state of things.
Experts fear for long-term health of U.S. forests - The Washington Post

 

[Oldpath05]

This might not be the right thread, but suppose I wanted to buy some northern white Cedar logs 8' 6", 6" on small end, or tree length, for sawing into lumber/boards, who what when where could I find someone that will, cut haul sell deliver me Cedar, at shall we say, a fair $$ ???.

 

[Piper2022]

Thanks for the info, I am going to talk to a Forster as see what sort of future the land holds after all the cutting is done.

I think we're on the same page with price. I see more and more plots of land for close to $1000/acre for land that is not the greatest. The number I had in my head was around $500-600 an acre. Unless the property has a lot of good road frontage or something then I feel like the owner can demand more. This piece of land has some frontage but not a ton. Most of the lot is really nice and hopefully this all works out as I am tired of seeing nice plots of land being torn up for subdivisions. But on the other hand I am not going to pay developers pricing for the land if that's what's the owner wants.

 

[dave1949]

Thanks for the info, I am going to talk to a Forster as see what sort of future the land holds after all the cutting is done.

I think we're on the same page with price. I see more and more plots of land for close to $1000/acre for land that is not the greatest. The number I had in my head was around $500-600 an acre. Unless the property has a lot of good road frontage or something then I feel like the owner can demand more. This piece of land has some frontage but not a ton. Most of the lot is really nice and hopefully this all works out as I am tired of seeing nice plots of land being torn up for subdivisions. But on the other hand I am not going to pay developers pricing for the land if that's what's the owner wants.

We don't have new development pressure here to speak of. I sit on the Industry town planning board; in 2-3 years we've only had one new house permit and that was replacing an old camp on the lake. Small primitive camps and cabins, additions now and then, but it is pretty quiet overall.

I'm not familiar with the Poland area, but in general the farther south and closer to Portland, large lots tend to be more rare I think. You probably see some influence from L-A in real estate. What is also fairly rare are the people who can afford (and want) to buy and own lots that are larger than 20-50 acres but smaller than what attracts serious timber investment. That works in your favor if you are looking at that size of lot.

Maybe Jstpssng will chime in with his knowledge regarding the forestry usefulness of 100-500 acre woodlots. I would guess ~500 acres is a threshold that makes on-going managed forestry most practical and attractive to good loggers, but that is only a raw guess. It depends on what is being harvested too.