Sporting Life
Snagging the ideal fly-fishing and equestrian properties.
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For some, buying high-end real estate is a no-brainer: Go for the markets with astronomical appreciation to garner a strong return on your investment. Others pull out their checkbooks to purchase dreamy island and beach retreats so they can get away from it all at a moment’s notice. A select few will follow their hearts, letting their favorite pastimes—from fly-fishing to riding and raising horses—dictate where they invest in real estate.A River Runs Through It
To fly-fish the world is a luxury, but to acquire private water is the ultimate catch. While the sport dates to 200 A.D., the high-end category of fly-fishing real estate continues to skyrocket in popularity and price in both traditional and under-the-radar fishing locales.
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This house in Jackson Hole, one of many
fly-fishing properties in the western U.S., allows residents to cast a
line from their back porch. The home is on nearly 38 acres and is available for
$32.5 million through Real Estate of Jackson Hole. (Click image to enlarge)In Jackson Hole—a leading second-home market and top fly-fishing destination—available land continues to evaporate, driving property prices (one 172-acre creek frontage property has hit a high mark of $39 million). But the big surprise in fly-fishing real estate is the unexpected fly-fishing mecca of northern New Mexico, says Santa Fe Realtor Dale Heinemann.
"Some clients fish a different place in the world every month—it’s that important to them," says the fly-fisherman, who casts on every property he lists and casts with clients year-round to hook rare Rio Grande cutthroats as well as brown, rainbow and brook trout. "It’s a dream to own a place where you can fish and take your grandkids. And the size of a client’s pocketbook isn’t relevant if he has the passion."
The high desert region offers tremendous year-round fishing and licensing, and it is not overfished or overdeveloped. Also, the accessibility to Santa Fe’s renowned art and culture scene, high-end restaurants and resorts—in addition to its growing reputation as an investment-worthy second-home market—is priceless.
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Heinemann’s website is New Mexico’s only comprehensive fly-fishing property online source. Listings have ranged from $18,000 for a one-acre lot in Brazos Lodge Estates near the Chama and Brazos rivers to $150,000 for a half-acre near Jemez Springs, and up to $7.95 million for a 2,663-acre property with a historic home, stone barn, 17 stocked ponds and 781 feet of water rights.
"Historically, acreage has affected price in Santa Fe, but I think it’s going the other way," says Heinemann, alluding to the value of the water itself. "Quality rivers on quality property have doubled in price. And people are willing to pay for the proximity to Santa Fe."
When conducting due diligence on a fishing property for a client, Heinemann studies its aerial photography and hires consultants to evaluate its fishability, stockability and potential for conservation easement (which allows for much of the property to be designated as conservation land). "The buyer I’m meeting today wants to preserve what’s left of the West," he says, adding that one client may allot 50 percent of his $4 million, 100-acre property for conservation (after investing about $25,000 to create and administer the conservation easement, the owner could reap a $2 million tax benefit). Other state tax credits and cash payments for conserving waterfront and forestry land are also available.
