Starting a ranch

[greg]

The main inspiration for me is to be able to explore the great outdoors and herd. I am looking at it from a business angle though I have heard that there are low-profit margins here. What approach should I adopt?

 

[Henderson]

The main inspiration for me is to be able to explore the great outdoors and herd.

Maybe it's my old age, but those sound like bad reasons to go into ranching. If you aren't sure that's what you want to do, maybe it would help to keep your regular job and start with a small herd. If you keep your overhead low you can turn a tidy profit.

 

[RichZ]

Henderson is right. Keep your day job and start small. Farming is very risky.

 

[RanchHouse]

Whether you are starting a ranch for business or for lifestyle reasons, the size, location, and type are the factors to consider. You should hire a management firm or ranch manager if need be. A great place to start would be searching online and looking for real estate sites.

 

[greg]

I don't hear a lot of farmers talk about owning a ranch, so this is quite ambitious of you. What price range are you considering? I have seen some on sale for as little as $400,000, with others costing as high as $20,000,000.