WHAT RURAL TEXAS LANDOWNERS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THEIR LAND... Living in the country in Texas can be the most enjoyable experience of your life, but managing rural property is not the same as taking care of a half-acre suburban lot. Living in the country and taking care of the land involves issues many new landowners have not experienced before. This book discusses why it is so important that rural land in Texas be well-managed and the native flora and fauna be protected. We are making more Texans every day, but we aren't making any more land or water, so every bit is precious. This point is emphasized using the philosophy and ethics of the great naturalist and conservationist, Aldo Leopold. The major problems encountered by small-acreage landowners include overgrazing, past or present by livestock and exotic ungulates, overbrowsing by deer, goats and exotics, brush encroachment, invasive exotic plants and animals, erosion, and efficient water catchment and management. Each of these issues is discussed in some detail explaining the source of the problem and how to avoid or minimize it. Numerous other issues encountered in living in the country are discussed as well as where landowners can find more detailed advice and information to help them with land management issues. My goal is to help small landowners enjoy their property and to also help them be good stewards of their land.

In this invaluable new book, Jim Stanley charts a practical course for understanding and handling a variety of problems that both new and established landowners in the Texas Hill Country will confront—from brush control, grazing, and overpopulation of deer to erosion, fire, and management of exotic animals and plants. Filled with advice that landowners can easily absorb and implement, this book conveys basic knowledge Stanley has gained from personal experience and from other experts during his years in the Hill Country.

Whether the prospective buyer is a farmer or rancher looking to expand operations, a sportsman seeking to preserve habitat for wildlife, or a nature enthusiast trying to conserve native flora and fauna, acquiring rural land can be a rollercoaster of exciting and stressful experiences. In Buying Rural Land in Texas: Taking the Right Risk, Charles E. Gilliland demonstrates that buyers can and should arm themselves with knowledge—of the land-buying process, of the potential problems involved, and of the resources available to them—to ensure a successful and satisfying outcome. In this practical guide, Gilliland outlines four phases of buying rural land: identifying what you want, in terms of both land and property rights; locating a suitable property; valuing the property; and completing the transaction. He then covers everything the potential landowner should know while progressing through these steps: how to identify and manage risk, plan an “exit strategy,” interpret present and future land prices, find the “perfect spot,” evaluate the property’s physical attributes, gauge economic trends, understand legal rights and limitations, protect natural resources, and, finally, close the deal. Incorporating real life examples from a career spent in land sales, Gilliland takes readers step-by-step through the process, also providing checklists, maps, professional tips, and information about how to tap additional sources of information and advice. With the knowledge gained from Buying Rural Land in Texas, new landowners will find themselves not at the end of a journey but at the beginning, as they learn to manage their land and to deliver it intact to future generations.

Written for the small, private landowner, LandBook covers a multitude of the specific needs and concerns of land ownership including:* The mechanics of buying and selling land* Tax sales* Road-building and maintenance * Measuring land and estimating acreage* Legal descriptions and the PLSS* Well drilling* Land clearing* Pond building* Deeds, covenants, and easements* Reducing interest costs* Rural fencing* Foreclosure* Prescribed burning* Re-establishing native forest and prairie