I have decided to get a deer lease for the first time this year and I have a couple of questions. If anyone could help out I would appreciate it. Any tips would be welcome.
- What is a going rate for a deer lease? I’m looking at Starr County, TX
- Do you have to sign a contract?

thanks,
A-K

$15-$20/acre should be about right but I have seen some listed in the area for close to $30/acre so the price varies quite a bit and as you can imagine, the price usually corresponds with location, available game, amenities, etc. I have seen some leases listed on the McAllen/Edinburg craigslist so that may be a good start for you. We used to drive around an area we were interested in and stop at the country stores to browse the classifieds for listings or chat with the locals for any leads on leases so you may try that as well. Texas Parks and Wildlife has a link on their site for lease listings across the State and leasehunter.com has several listings as well. Is there a specific reason you are looking at Starr County? If you can find a reasonable deer lease in Willacy County, jump on it. That county is loaded with game.
Edit: Unless you know the owner, I would try to get some kind of contract or documentation of a lease agreement for your own protection. It's not right, but without lease documentation, a landowner can kick you off a lease without warning, reason or consequence.

[This message has been edited by agrc (edited 2/2/2010 9:52p).]

Thanks agrc! I'm looking in Starr Co bc its closer to home.

What do you think of the San Isidro area?

A-K

The San Isidro area, and most of that portion of FM 1017 is rather hit or miss. This was before my time, but I've heard the hunting was as good as it gets there in the 70s and 80s. My Dad and I hunted a pretty nice low-fence ranch in that area in the mid-90s and we didn't see very many deer. Many of the ranches there are now high-fenced so I would suggest either finding a high-fenced property for lease (unlikely) or a good sized (>500 acres) low-fence property if deer is what you're after. Of course, this all depends on what your specific needs/wants are as well. When I hunted that area I was in middle school so hunting trophy whitetails wasn't exactly at the top of my priorities. As far as convenience and proximity to civilization are concerned, that area is hard to beat.
Edit: The area North of La Gloria on FM 755 around the Jim Hogg/Brooks County lines would be worth looking into as would the area West of La Gloria on FM 1017/FM 2686

[This message has been edited by agrc (edited 2/3/2010 7:42p).]

ttt