B. Elfland Discusses Land, Farms and Conservation

Transcript: Hi B. Elfland and I've been with Fay [Ranches] for about 4 years now. I grew up in North Carolina, Chapel Hill North Carolina. Went to college there and graduated from there in 1988. Lived in Colorado for about 10 years after college before moving to Montana. I met my wife there in Colorado. I guess we've lived in southwest Montana for about 12 or 13 years. You know I got into ranch brokerage because it was the perfect fit for me. It was kind of a combination of all my interests. I studied business in college and enjoyed real estate very much and enjoyed business. I also have enjoyed the outdoors. I've been a hunter and fisherman since I was a kid. The ranch brokerage business lets me combine my outdoor interests and business interests and also just the ranching lifestyle and the people who are involved in farming and ranching community are people that I enjoy a lot. That lifestyle is something that we live and my family lives. And I just enjoy being around it. That combination makes ranch brokerage a great fit for me. It's a lot of fun. It's challenging, it's interesting and I enjoy it very much. What has made Fay Ranches most enjoyable to me since I have been here is the people. It's a great group of people. Great camaraderie and that is the most enjoyable thing obviously with having the right tools involved is helpful as well.

I think you need to be a good people person, obviously, but you also need to be diligent. You need to be willing to work hard. And you need to be really knowledgeable about what you do. Their are a number of complexities in the real estate business particularly in the ranch brokerage business. So experience and knowledge about those aspects of the business. You need a very varied background. You need to know how to catch a fish and why the elk live there. But you also need to know why the land is productive and what will grow. I think you need a wide variety of skills to be the best you can be at it.

The ranches can be a great long term investment and also can be a tremendously rewarding to own. Obviously the recreational amenities can be tremendous. Their are also great rewards to be found working with the land and stewardship and conservation. I think I see the greatest joy from people when they have improved things. You know you see people who have owned a ranch and they are very proud of what they have done there and how they have enhanced it and how they have made it better I think those are all great reasons for owning a ranch. It's beautiful, it's fun, good investment and something you can pass on to your children and grandchildren. It's a legacy purchase for many people. Those are all great reasons for owning a ranch.