2024 Sales: > $1B

Who: The largest provider of forestry consulting and real estate brokerage services in the US, with 51 offices in 25 states. We focus on investment-grade timberland, recreational, agricultural, and conservation properties. We have more than 300 team members in our consulting firm and 50 real estate team members who specialize in land.

WOW: Represented the sellers in two significant large-acreage transactions in the Western US, both of which were acquired by Native American tribes. These tribal organizations manage the forested properties with a focus on cultural preservation, ecological stewardship, economic development, and long-term sustainability for their communities.

What was your take on 2024? The year ended on a strong note, surpassing early expectations across all regions. While available properties on the market remained limited, those that were listed performed exceptionally well. Pricing and valuations contin-ued to rise, particularly in the timberland sector, with high-quality properties exceeding performance expectations

How is 2025 shaping up? The first quarter was exceptionally active, with more large-acreage transactions on the market or in the pipeline

2024 Sales: > $1B

Who: As a national division of Compass Real Estate, we connect the local knowledge of real estate agents across the country with our technology, analytics, and financing.

WOW:  Listed the Tesnus Ranch, part of the massive 400,000-acre Brewster Ranch, located near Big Bend National Park in Brewster County, Texas. The ranch, which was originally founded in 1882 as a railroad town, spans 19,814 acres and is listed at $15.75 million.

What was your take on 2024? A stable year. Sales volume matched the previous year’s trends, with a peak in the fourth quarter. Most regions experienced year-over-year price decreases; sellers adjusted prices to align with the sales pace. Despite these fluctuations, 2024 was a steady year overall.

How is 2025 shaping up? It began slowly, but a strong backlog of both buyers and sellers is building. The outlook is positive.

2024 Sales: $500M–$1B

Who? We have been providing brokerage and advisory services for the acquisition and sale of significant land assets since 1992. Our focus includes farmland, ranchland, timberlands, and recreational properties.

WOW: Represented the buyer in the acquisition of 11,000-acre JB Ranch in Utah. Recognized as the 2023 CWMU Ranch of the Year and featured as a filming location for Kevin Costner’s Horizon: An American Saga, this transaction signified our entry into the Utah ranch market.

What was your take on 2024? An interesting and unpredictable year. We expected to see a slowdown as the fourth quarter approached. Instead, we saw a steady increase of investors diversifying their portfolios into land.

How is 2025 shaping up? It is off to a great start. We are optimistic it will con-tinue into the selling season. Inventory is still an issue, but investor confidence seems to be on the rise.

2024 Sales: $500M–$1B

Who? We have a 79-year history of representing investment-quality rural real estate. Our services include traditional brokerage, auc-tions, appraisals, financing, and ranch management.

WOW: Brought the Great Western Ranch in New Mexico to market. The Great Western encompasses approximately 790 square miles and consists of 225,582 deeded acres and 504,801 total acres. It has a significant operating component and is known for world-class bull elk hunting.

What was your take on 2024?  Brought the Great Western Ranch in New Mexico to market. The Great Western encompasses approximately 790 square miles and consists of 225,582 deeded acres and 504,801 total acres. It has a significant operating component and is known for world-class bull elk hunting.

How is 2025 shaping up?  We are seeing slowly increasing inventories and expect that trend to continue. Early-year sales volume was strong. Price stability is anticipated with continued price sensitivity surrounding more common properties on the market. If a property has reasonable price expectations and contains beneficial characteristics for the area, chances are good that it will sell relatively quickly.

2024 Sales: >$1B

Who? A marketing-minded real estate brokerage that began in 1976. Our team of more than 200 agents and marketing staff represent buyers and sellers of farms, ranches, hunting and recreational properties, luxury estates, resorts, and lodges.

WOW: Closed 1,100 transactions involving a total of more than 250,000 acres.

What was your take on 2024? Interest rates and election uncertainty resulted in downward pressure on the market, but we still reached more than $1 billion in sales for the third consecutive year.

How is 2025 shaping up? First-quarter sales were up 25 percent over 2024, and the pace is quickening. Optimism is flooding the industry, inventory is growing, and marketing reports reflect growing sales forecasts across all markets.

2024 Sales: >$1B

Who? Sold a 1,500-acre, high-fenced ranch in Stockdale, Texas, that was listed for just under $18 million.

What was your take on 2024? It was a tough year. Land prices remained stable but with a decrease in sales volume. Elevated interest rates and reduced commodity prices contributed to this slowdown. Overall, we still had a banner year with more than $3 billion in total sales volume.

How is 2025 shaping up? The first quarter showed an increase in activity and sales volume. If interest rates stay somewhat consistent, we believe 2025 will be more promising than 2024.

2024 Sales: $500M–$1B

Who? A network of real estate professionals representing rural land, farms, waterfront properties, recreational land, luxury ranches, and hunting properties across the country.

WOW: Represented $651 million in listings and the sale of 111,863 acres. A highlight was California Outdoor Properties’ sale of the 5,176-acre D-K Ranch in Three Rivers, California.

What was your take on 2024? It was steady and performed better than expected despite economic uncertainties. Land prices and sales volume showed steady growth, reflecting resilience in the face of shifting conditions. Buyers and sellers adapted well to the market, maintaining cautious optimism throughout the year.

How is 2025 shaping up? Buyer and seller activity saw a strong surge in January. Getting deals to the closing table has still proven to be somewhat challenging, but this is primarily due to lingering issues such as financing hurdles, tight inventory, and the complex nature of negotiations in a fluctuating economic environment. Despite these obstacles, the outlook for 2025 is dramatically more positive compared with the latter half of 2024.

2024 Sales: >$1B

Who?  The largest broker of institutional timberland in the US, we specialize in forestland and associated environmental assets. We offer management, real estate consulting, appraisal, and luxury residential business units.

WOW:  Assisted a client in the sale of Hilton Timberlands in Maine, featuring more than 40,000 acres, several significant maple sugar operations, and an undeveloped conservation opportunity.

What was your take on 2024? The market for timberland remained steady. Real asset- portfolio allocations, the latest flow of interest-seeking natural capital placements, and exposure to climate-solution markets increased demand relative to available supply. However, retail and midmarket demand diminished. Quality assets and realistic value expectations were important elements of liquidity in the midmarket.

How is 2025 shaping up?We expect that persistent systemic inflation and wide-spread talk of and action on tariffs may lead to new inflationary concerns and supply chain disruptions impacting market volatility. We also expect a slowdown in natural capital and nature-based climate-solutions fundraising but steady-to-improved interest in real-asset exposure. Housing likely will remain flat or improve slightly. We do not expect 2025 to be a block-buster year, but we do expect a moderate, steady market-place in which both buyers and sellers find value.

2024 Sales: $100M–$250M

Who? We specialize in farm-land auctions, listings, and management. We work with buyers and sellers across the country to both acquire and dispose of farmland assets.

WOW: Conducted a multi-parcel auction in Douglas County, Illinois, that resulted in one of the farms selling for $20,000 per acre.

What was your take on 2024? The “I” states (Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa) started with strong sales continuing from 2023 but with less overall volume than the previous year. As volume increased in the fall, prices fell off a bit as some buyers who had been very active moved to the side-lines. Some of those buyers had exhausted 1031 money, whereas others had fulfilled their investment mandates. This, in combination with the uptick in volume from earlier in the year and lower commodity prices, led to a slight drop in prices.

How is 2025 shaping up? So far it has looked a lot like a reflection of the plateau we saw from 2015 to 2020 in land values and a lower volume of sales. There are still some very high sale prices, but those are becoming rare as the market consolidates, usually due to multiple neighbors bidding on a property that they have had their eyes on for years.

2024 Sales: >$1B

Who? A full-service real estate brokerage company that specializes in farms, ranches, recreational properties, timberland, country estates, and commercial development properties with a national network of support from local land professionals.

WOW: Sold a sensational 4,600-acre tract in North Carolina that had numerous recreational features.

What was your take on 2024? The small dips in interest rates throughout the year created steady business. After the presidential election, it seemed that more sellers were interested in 1031 exchanges.

How is 2025 shaping up? We started with one of the best quarters since the pandemic. It’s been an excellent and strong start to the year, and we’re excited for what is ahead.

2024 Sales: >$1B

Who? Providing integrated land solutions with core competencies in land brokerage, agricultural appraisal, land and energy management, crop insurance, and capital markets. We work with landowners, farmers, institutional investors, and family offices.

WOW: Offered through a sealed-bid process a 1,467-acre property in Jackson County, Wisconsin, that included 204 acres of cranberry production along with all the improvements and equipment needed to immediately continue operation.

What was your take on 2024? Despite high interest rates and lower commodity prices, farmland performed exceptionally well. The decline in land values was less pronounced than expected, mainly due to limited.

How is 2025 shaping up? There has been a reshuffling of capital as investments in farmland, which were fueled by a long period of low interest rates, have begun to shift back into more traditional fixed-income assets. Overall, farmland continues to perform remarkably well.

2024 Sales: $50M–$100M

Who?  A leading real estate investment trust (REIT) with ownership of 2.1 million acres of timberland in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, and South Carolina. Through our subsidiary, we also operate six sawmills, an industrial-grade plywood mill, a residential and commercial real estate development business, and a rural-timberland sales program.

WOW: Sold approximately 3,900 acres of working forests to the Mvskoke (Muscogee) people to preserve a critical viewshed for their Ekvn-Yefolecv ecovillage in Coosa County, Alabama, enabling the community to protect their cultural and environmental heritage.

What was your take on 2024? We saw robust activity, selling more acres than expected at significantly higher prices. Idaho remains a destination for buyers seeking nature and less congestion, while the Southern states continue to see demand from all types of buyers.

How is 2025 shaping up? We expect interest for properties will remain very high. Recreation is still the most prominent driver, but demand for conservation, for alternative energy types such as solar, and for development land is increasing.

2024 Sales: $500M–$1B

Who: A full-service brokerage company that specializes in marketing and selling recreational properties, operating farms, and working cattle ranches. Our primary focus is in Texas, enhanced through our licenses and listings in all surrounding states as well.

WOW: Represented the buyer for the 33,911-acre Iron Mountain Ranch outside of Marathon, Texas. The negotiations required more than a year to complete.

What was your take on 2024? The first few months started off slowly, but we finished with a banner year. The number of deals was fewer than in the previous four years, but average sales values were up nearly 35 percent.

How is 2025 shaping up? We are cautiously optimistic that transaction levels will recover from 2024 in part due to capitulation on pricing from sellers to encourage buyers back into the market.

2024 Sales: $100M–$250M

Who? We specialize in large-scale agricultural and commercial transactions across several regions of the country.

WOW: Conducted an auction on an irrigated portfolio in which some of the water shares were offered separately in their own tracts. The isolated water shares brought 37 percent more at public auction than when traded on the private market.

What was your take on 2024? We witnessed a steady increase in land values as the year progressed. While many thought land values could fall last year, we did not see evidence of that.

How is 2025 shaping up? Land prices across most regions held steady through the first quarter, even in a down commodity market. Lack of supply, 1031 exchange money, and alternative developments are all playing substantial roles in keeping price floors stable.

2024 Sales: $500M–$1B

Who? Dedicated to connecting buyers and sellers with exceptional rural real estate, including ranches, hunting tracts, agricultural lands, and woodland retreats.

What was your take on 2024? It was extremely positive with continued growth and strong demand for rural and recreational properties, despite the broader fluctuations in the market.

How is 2025 shaping up? The rural real estate market is poised for growth driven by several factors. These include the ongoing desire for space and privacy, a connection to nature, and the rise of remote work. One of the biggest challenges will be the limited supply of quality rural land. As demand persists, land prices will likely increase for recreational properties, farmland, and homesteads.

2024 Sales: >$1B

Who? Celebrating our 100th year in business, we provide marketing for land, rural, and country properties. We have more than 500 brokerage locations and thousands of agents who specialize in ranches, farms, recreational land, country homes, mountain and waterfront properties, and other real estate found outside of urban America

WOW: Our most established offices grew by an average of more than 11 percent. We had an office in Washington state grow more than 330 percent on unit sales. Numerous other offices were able to grow in the 40-plus percent range.

What was your take on 2024? Inventory remained tight and prices continued to increase, although more slowly and with some normal market price concessions relative to the previous three years. Pricing in agricultural properties saw strong growth, with some areas experiencing price appreciation of up to six percent. Land prices in transitional, alternative-use properties also saw the strongest price appreciation and demand.

How is 2025 shaping up? It started with a boom as the market significantly outpaced the first quarter of 2024. The momentum in the brokerages is strong, and expectations are for continued growth between 5 and 10 percent. We believe the market is stabilizing, leading to more sellers and buyers concluding it is time to re-enter the market. This is facilitating more listings coming to market and a willingness to consider less-aggressive pricing in some cases for properties that did not move in 2024.

2024 Sales: >$1B

Who? We specialize in the sale of hunting land and other recreational properties. We also offer rural property listings, including country homes, farmland, ranches, and plantations.

What was your take on 2024? The recreational-land market continued to see strong growth nationwide, with noticeably increased demand for larger tracts.

How is 2025 shaping up? It kicked off with impressive strength despite the continued low inventory of recreational land listings across the country. Demand remains high, and buyers are actively pursuing quality properties as soon as they come to market

2024 Sales: >$1B

Who? The luxury ranch division of United Country Real Estate specializes in all types of high-end ranches from $1 million and up. This includes ranches for cattle and other live-stock, recreational, hunting, fishing, and guest. The vast majority of our sales are in Texas, Colorado, Montana, and other Western states, although we do sell in all 50 states as well as other countries.

WOW: Sold the 3,500-acre Porter Ranch in New Castle, Colorado, which has a five-generation history dating to 1880. Also sold the 5,000-acre Aloe Vera Farm in Costa Rica, home to a large-scale fruit farm, a dryland rice farm, and a cattle operation

What was your take on 2024? Ranch real estate experienced strong growth. Inventory increased as more generational ranching operators retired without family members continuing to ranch. Additionally, stabilization in interest rates moved more buyers back into the market.

How is 2025 shaping up? We are optimistic about 2025. We achieved solid results in the first quarter with significant increases in new listings and sales. The market showed robust performance post-election and continued throughout March.