How to Rent a Property Horse Ranch
Horse properties can be expensive. Renting may appear to be a better option in terms of capital investment but has its own pitfalls. These are similar to other high value rentals but the budget considerations have to include other business costs such as purchasing or leasing horses.
- Work out what you need for the property. How many horses do you intend to keep? Do you want a stall for each horse? Do you intend to breed? Do you need or want an arena for riding and training? Is the primary purpose of your ranch going to be breeding, training, showing or renting horses out for trail rides? Also, set a maximum budget bearing in mind that the expenses of a horse business are high and you will also be paying thousands of dollars purchasing or leasing horses.
- Find a good listing of rental properties in your chosen area. There are specialist sites that handle sales and rental of horse property, or you can find a realtor or broker that specializes in horse property.
- Make a short list of properties. Keep within your budget and rank them by the facilities they provide. Bear in mind that any improvements will require the permission of the landlord.
- Inspect the properties on your short list. Make sure that they are as described and have no safety problems such as falling down barns, barb wire fencing or missing fire extinguishers. Select the property closest to your needs.
- Open discussion with the landlord. For example, if you want a bad fence gone, will they do it before you move in? Are they willing to budge on the rent? Make sure you come armed with a list of all of the problems with the property, for negotiation and so that you have a record of damage done before you moved in.
- Read the lease carefully. Given the high value and rent involved, it's advisable to get a tenant lawyer to look over the lease.