Perhaps the Perfect Hard Asset
Nearly a decade ago, we developed our Social Storm® program to help investors buy and sell properties that exemplify the self-sufficient, independent living that is the basis of freedoms that made this country great. These properties all share the features of an “A” ranked, high-quality recreational property, but with the additional benefits of wealth preservation, a financial hedge, and safe retreat in case any one of the things the Bible or government is warning us will happen… from Global Pandemics, Terrorist Attacks, Economic collapse, famines, riots, martial law, or truly anything that threatens societal norms.
Fast-forward to 2020, and we’ve been eerily reminded that bad things can in fact happen. The outbreak of COVID-19 across the globe was a stark awakening of just how imperative a safe place to retreat and/or social distance, and a peaceful abode to relax in can be. A Social Storm property has never before been more relevant than it is now in the wake of a pandemic.
These properties are an asset that one owns where, in the case of a bad event, the entire family meets with no questions asked; in uncertain times, these properties are the perfect safe haven for your most precious asset, your family. In good times, they are a great investment and recreational property and place one would take their family and friends to make memories enjoying the outdoors. These properties have the benefits of two different asset classes; their high-quality recreational values increase in good times and in bad times their attributes help increase value, in fact it is times like these that these properties are most valuable. This has been evidenced by today’s housing market boom during COVID-19.
We recognized a key difference in most properties is that here, if the country’s stability decreases, the value and demand for these sub-asset class properties increase. These properties have: fertile soils, great water, security, great recreation, sustainable resources, and raise hard assets such as timber, cattle, crops.
The nation’s top investors and business leaders have been adding properties in this asset class to their portfolio for generations. In fact, Bill Gates is now the US’ biggest farmland owner. What most people don’t know is investors, like Gates, were also buying them for hard times as a safe retreat. Having represented many of them for nearly three decades, we have realized that there is a sub-asset class that is made of certain properties that are a natural hedge against both inflation and bad times. These are properties that investors gravitate to for safety in bad times and buy for a recreation reward in good times.
We developed this exclusive and proprietary program to help investors because we share similar views, are concerned about the same things ourselves and prioritize having such property. We also have a very strong Biblical worldview and recognize that there are many threats facing our world today. We began ranking and measuring these properties and found we could categorize them into an entirely separate asset class.
Social Storm® Key Attributes:
- Land Quality – History of good land stewardship, typically maintained with prescribed fire, managed as quail plantation, high-quality recreational property or ranch
- Security – Offers Privacy, Personal Safety, Ability to store resources, protected with high-fencing, “end of the road” property
- Natural Resources – Quality water resources, fertile soils, good wildlife, self-sufficient, wells, and gardens
- Hard Assets – Ability to raise hard assets including Timber, Cattle, or Crops
- Location – Easily accessible by family or friends (within two gas Tanks from the Eastern Seaboard), surrounded by like-minded neighbors
- Family-Friendly – Year-round enjoyment, Exceptional recreational opportunities during good times and desired go to spot during social distancing
- Lodging – Established lodge, house, or location for temporary housing
- Operational – Ease of use, necessary equipment accessible, and Like-minded individuals and team already assembled, trusted, and able to assist where needed
As a combination of high-quality recreational properties, agricultural properties, as well as hard asset storage abilities, these properties are perhaps the perfect land investment. If times are better, they go up in value along with the recreational markets and they stay in demand like the agricultural markets. Or if times are worse, they go much higher in value along with gold and other safe haven investments. It’s for investors who don’t like to own paper, gold, or other paper commodities, but fun to own, perhaps the greatest lifestyle investment.
Who should be considering adding to portfolio:
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- Those seeking wealth preservation,
- Those who believe in hedges/insurance,
- Those who care about conservation, nature and outdoor family recreation notably hunting
We simply ask our clients if any of the many catastrophic things the government is fearing may happen – where would they go? To their house in the Hamptons or beach house on the Gulf? OR, how about their 500-acre farm in rural Southwest Georgia, Alabama, or South Carolina’s ACE Basin, in a region with with lakes, game, timber, farmland, livestock and a safe neighborhood? A place where the entire family has been before, perhaps during holidays for hunting. A place where the manager is like family and can solve any problem. A place that is a simple drive within two gas tanks of the entire eastern seaboard. Because a highly ranked Social Storm property would certainly be my first choice, given the options.
A Few Examples of our Social Storm® Properties
If you are simply looking for a high quality recreational property, why not choose one with the additional features such that it makes it a better and more liquid investment. Either way our Social Storm® trained agents are available to help. We offer very discrete and confidential analysis of any property whether we have it listed or not.
The Kohler & Associates'
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From murky farm ponds to pristine glacier-cut lakes and everything in between, Knox Daniels’ expertise stems from a lifelong fascination of water and the creatures that live in and around it. He recognizes and helps clients appreciate the value water features bring to a property. “My goal is to help buyers realize and sellers maximize the value different water bodies bring to a property, not only in a recreational sense, but also for social storm reasons.” After extensively traveling the country for collegiate BASS fishing tournaments, Knox graduated and worked for the Southeast’s finest fisheries and wildlife biologist, Greg Grimes. With Grimes’ company, AES, Knox managed many of the southeast’s finest private lake estate/impoundment properties, and learned the intricacies of upscale property management. Learning from Greg and other biologists, Knox honed in on the specific conditions and habitat needed for optimal gamefish growth in private lakes. He has also worked as a property manager on several thousand acres and for a commercial developer, facilitating the dirt work and builds of several apartment complexes, but his true passion has always been in the outdoors. “I’ve always had an insatiable fascination with ponds/lakes and am grateful to be able to help to place clients on the properties of their dreams and make their personal fisheries/wildlife goals reality with JKA.” – Knox Daniels
Jason has been assisting landowners for the last 28 years in Georgia and South Carolina obtain achievements the owners did not realize were possible. His degree in Biology from Georgia Southern stemmed from the desire to know how things in nature work. His plantation roots began at just 16 years old outside of Albany, GA and the last 20 years were spent in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. His entire career has been spent developing a global approach to plantation management. That plan included sales. Sales is in Jason’s blood- his mom had a 45-year career as a real estate broker. After college, he chose to pursue his passion of making properties great. In 2011, Jason sold his first plantation. Since then, he has assisted buyers and sellers with over $20 million in sales while most of that time working as a full-time General Manager of a large Lowcountry plantation. Today, he is committed to using his unique skill set and experience to guide landowners through the many challenges of plantation ownership.
Bruce Ratliff is a retired elected official (Property Appraiser Taylor County). Bruce brings years of experience in ad valorem tax knowledge. His property tax background gives JKA Associates & clients a unique insight into the complicated tax process. Bruce held several positions in the Florida Association of Property Appraisers, including member of the Board of Directors, President, Vice-President and Secretary, and served on the Agricultural & Legislative Committees for the Association. The real estate business has been part of Bruce’s life since childhood. His mother, Shirley Ratliff owned Professional Realty of Perry, Florida and his father, Buster owned Ratliff Land Surveying which Bruce was General Manager of before his political career.
Hailing from a long line of outdoorsmen, Tim learned a great deal from his father and grandfather. He saw first-hand what it means to be a good land steward. He believes land is so much more than a place to hunt, fish, and grow timber or crops. “It’s an identity, a resting place, a safe haven and a way of life, said Tim.” Tim’s family ties to Alabama run deep. During his grandfather’s first term, Governor James was responsible for signing into law Alabama’s first state duck stamp which helped to ensure funding for the procurement, development, and preservation of wetlands for migratory waterfowl habitat. He also established Alabama’s lifetime hunting license, so it is no surprise that Tim is an avid outdoorsman with a keen eye as to how best to improve habitat for the greater good of its wildlife.
With Madison County roots, Lori grew up on her family farm at Pettis Springs along the historic Aucilla River. A love of the land was instilled in Lori very early on by her father who was a local farmer. Lori understands the importance of good land stewardship and has witnessed first-hand how her own father, a former 2-term member of the Florida House of Representatives whose district encompassed many rural counties of the Red Hills Plantation Region, with a little bit of sweat equity, so lovingly worked their own family land. These are core values she carries with her today, and nothing gives her more personal satisfaction than to represent some of the south’s best land stewards.
Cole’s dedication to land management lies in his family roots. As a fourth-generation timber expert, Cole’s earliest memories were spent with his father managing timber investments. With a degree in Food Resource Economics from the University of Florida, Cole is the epitome of an up-and-coming leader. He grew up with a hands-on approach to learning land management and conservation and has spent the last 15 years learning every angle of the real estate and forest industry. Cole is a member of the Florida Forestry Association, Red Hills Quail Forever, Southeastern Wood Producers Association and he uses this platform as an advocate for landowners and their land investments. His family has dedicated the past 60 years to providing landowners in North Florida and South Georgia with professional land management services focused on improving and protecting one’s forestland and wildlife investment. In fact, their family business, M.A. Rigoni, Inc., was one of the first to introduce whole tree chipping to the Red Hills Region.
As a landowner of his own family farm, Lick Skillet, along with family land that has been passed down and enjoyed together at Keaton Beach for 40 years, Jon knows what it means to be a steward of the last best places. As a third-generation land broker with more than 30 years of experience in advising landowners in this niche, Jon is known for his innate ability to harvest a land’s unique intrinsic value. Touting several notable sales under his belt, Jon personally closed Rock Creek/Molpus – 124,000 acres of premium timberland at $142,000,000 – which was known as the largest timberland land sale in the Southeast for eight years running. He is a co-founding member of LandLeader and achieved the real estate industry’s highest honor, “2022 National Broker of the Year – Recreational Land Sales,” by the Realtors® Land Institute.