This article is featured in the Winter 2022 issue of LAND magazine.
Finding a true land professional is one of the most important decisions you can make in finding success. Investing in buying a ranch, a family legacy property, a premier hunting and recreational property, a large ag production farm, green energy land, or in what is the up-and-coming transitional ground? An investor needs to treat these investments with the same concern they would in any commercial or stock investment.
Accredited Land Consultants (ALCs) are more than land professionals. They’re the most accomplished, the most experienced, and the highest performing land real estate experts across the country— whether they specialize in agricultural land, timberland, ranch and recreational properties, or vacant land for development.
As a large acreage broker representing some of the country’s finest properties, we search, identify, and solicit these buyers from a tiny pool. When we look at the scope of buyers for a particular property, we think in the shape of a pyramid. The top is much smaller than the bottom. Our group of potential buyers in each category is very limited. Finding a capable professional, investor, or purchasing entity is often the secret to our success. Similarly, an investor should think of finding a qualified land professional.
Today, an estimated 3 million qualified and licensed real estate brokers are in the United States. That was not a typo. Over 3 million brokers in 2022. Of those three million licensed and active brokers, only about half, or 1,547,699, are Realtors under the professional guidelines of NAR, the National Association of Realtors. As a part of NAR, real estate brokers are held to a higher ethical and professional standard. Once again, of the over 3 million licensed brokers, only 1.5 million are next level. Of the above three million real estate brokers and 1.5 million Realtors under NAR, only 2,017 licensed brokers are land professionals associated with the RLI, Realtor Land Institute, once again, holding these select few to an even higher professional standard.
Most importantly, out of the over 3 million real estate brokers, and 1.5 million Realtors under NAR, and 2,017 RLI members, only 613 real estate brokers worldwide have the hard-earned and coveted designation of ALC, Accredited Land Consultant. Only .0002 percent of real estate brokers are trained as accredited land professionals holding that specialized ALC designation. When looking at the pyramid of professionals in the land business compared to the limited pool of investors, the land professionals are much smaller than our potential high-end buying pool. So few have the experience, knowledge, and ability to perform competently at the highest levels. Learn more in your search for a land professional at RLI.com.
