This article is featured in the Spring 2022 issue of LAND magazine.
What person with what kind of drive and commitment do you want to help you accomplish a life’s goal? How do you select that person or team who can assist you in establishing the best land purchase, the most substantial conservation valuation, the future energy demands, and the acquisition of the next transitional lands? This person or team will help you invest in a strong tomorrow.
As a buyer, Your purchase, Your search for the right property, and accomplishing Your goals is the highest and strongest motivation for finding a Qualified Land Professional. No matter how many closings a company or a broker has, this one, yours, is by far the most important in your life. You are completing the culmination of your life’s hard work and finally attaining that dream; acquiring the type of property that not only has been a life goal but a property some use to build a family legacy: a ranch, a luxury estate, a shared ranch, or maybe a dream beach house.
Searching for the tried-and-true Ranch and Land Professional is not an easy task. Many companies produce a great website and even spout big sales numbers and large transaction totals. While these are positive factors, many don’t realize the dedication and responsibility it takes to get to a level where both a broker and a company earn the opportunity to represent those unique and impressive properties. With experience, time, and a ton of hard work, comes a commitment to be better educated to perform at the next level in the Ranch and Land Brokerage.
Many successful Land Professionals have a variety of backgrounds, coming from many different paths in life to find their calling as Ranch and Land Professionals. One common thread that has been seen in this industry is professionalism in brokers who pursue their Accredited Land Consultant (ALC) Designation through REALTORS® Land Institute. ALCs are committed to being a step up, being better educated, and committed to diversity in understanding a ranch or land’s highest and best use. A broker earning the ALC designation has to be accomplished in sales to pursue this designation, in addition to the educational needs and life experiences to get to this point. An ALC has over 104 hours of specific land training, focusing on courses such as: The Fundamentals of Land Brokerage, Land Investment, Tax-Deferred 1031 Exchanges, Mapping and Technology, Subdivision Land Development, Site Selection, Agricultural Land Brokerage and Marketing, Timberland Real Estate, and most recently, Valuations and Transactions of Energy and Environmental Assets, to name a few.
There are great Ranch and Land Professionals who come from various backgrounds, but one great place to start your search for a proven Land Professional is to find a name with the ALC designation next to it.
Dan Murphy, ALC
M4 Ranch Group
