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CAPITAL IDEAS -- LIVE!
JULY 2008
News Conference for Forest Owners
Sponsored by the Alabama Forest Owners' Association, Inc.
This Conference was recorded on JULY 16, 2008.
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Hayes D. Brown
starting time: (00:00) |
Moderator
Hayes D. Brown, attorney and forest owner, will moderate this news
conference. Hayes' email address is
hbrown@hayesbrown.com.
Click Here to View & Hear Prior News Conferences.
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Dr. John R. Christy
(00:30)
Hear Conference |
Climate & The Prudent Forestland Investor
John Christy
is Professor and Director, Earth System Science Center,
National Space Science and
Technology Center, University of Alabama in Huntsville. "...Christy
is a member of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) established by the
United Nations 12 years ago. As such, he is one of the world's preeminent
experts on atmospheric conditions, one whose research informs our basic
understanding of climate change. Yet Christy is also something of a
maverick. Years ago he cast doubt on the idea that global warming is caused
by humans— or that the phenomenon exists at all— and he has only grown more
skeptical..."
Today we have asked Dr. Christy to advise owners of forestland on management
& ownership decisions. If human-caused global warm is happening, how will it
affect forests? If human-caused global warming is not happening, how will
regulations and "solutions" designed to slow global warming affect us?
Phone: (256) 961-7763
Email:
john.christy@nsstc.uah.edu
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Donald W. Heath
(04:29)
Hear Conference |
Your IRA & Forestland Investment
Don Heath is Manager,
Natural Resources & Real Estate,
Regions Bank.
Don's personal IRA (individual retirement account) owns forestland in
Alabama. Don cautiously stated that in special situations, owning timberland
in one's IRA may be the right thing to do. For example, if someone is about
to roll-over a 401(k) account into an IRA and he thinks he can do as well
with a timberland investment as one in stocks or bonds, timberland may be
the right way to go. Remember that the IRA owns the land and the owner of
the IRA may not use the land as personal property. However, land can be
leased for hunting, timber can be sold, and trees planted.
Information at
Pensco Trust Company
Website:
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Overview -- Real Estate Investments -- Self-Directed IRA
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Procedures -- Real Estate Investments -- Self-Directed IRA
Phone: (205) 320-7212
Email: don.heath@regions.com
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Thomas J. Ebner
(08:00)
Hear Conference |
Marked Thinning Best
Tom Ebner received BS in Forest
Engineering from Oregon State and an MBA from the University of Oregon and
then backed up his education by working at a lumber company, a federal land
agency, a forest products company, and finally, as a consultant. Tom
co-authored the book
Timberland Investments in 1992. In 2006, he wrote a research
paper with Dr. Bob Daniels entitled
The Benefits
of Marking the First Pine Thinning. From AFOA's January 2007
issue of Capital Ideas: Daniels & Ebner's paper "makes a
pretty strong case for improving the size and quality of 'leave' trees. The
authors studied 70 unfertilized stands, comparing the results of 'operator
select' versus 'marked thinning.' From the paper: “If the marking cost was $50/acre, the
return on investment for
the additional cost of marking is 28% for an average quality marking.”
“Marked thinning results in higher quality residual stands, increased
diameter growth and higher stand present value prior to the second thinning
than in operator select thinning. Costs for marking are easily justified by
increased stand value.”
Phone: (662) 328-5304
Email: tjebner@earthlink.net
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Shelley Tschida
(11:53)
Hear Conference |
Recreation Access Fees and Quality Service
Shelley Tschida is the CEO
of
Quality
Services, Inc.
based in Spirit Lake, Idaho. QSI has been providing access and recreation
management services to private industrial forestland owners for the past
eight years. Currently, QSI has over 1 million acres of forest land involved
in custom designed active access management programs. Many AFOA members
lease land for hunting and a few sell access
rights for other forms of recreation, such as 4-wheeler trail-riding,
camping and fishing. But most of us are rather passive in our provision of
recreation amenities. Tschida takes pride in her ability to improve the
quality of experience that the customers of her clients receive. In a global
climate of change, improving the quality of the recreational experience on
our land may be a key to our future income - and personal happiness.
Phone: (208) 623-2539
Email: qsist@verizon.net
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Dr. Harry L Haney, Jr.
(15:05)
Hear Conference |
Estate Planning -- It's not too late.
Harry Haney is an emeritus
professor, an Alabama forest owner, and the author or co-author of several
publications, not least of which is
Estate
Planning for Forest Landowners: What Will Become of Your Timberland?
When talking to him last week, he reminded us that as property values
increase, many landowners remain unaware of the increase in the value (and
tax exposure) of their estates. He suggested there is no better time than
now to bring your will up-to-date, to shelter your land and timber from
estate taxes, and to make sure your land is transferred to your heirs in a
way that would please you. Dr. Haney will teach a 2-day course at the
University of Georgia's Continuing Education Center September 29-30:
Estate Planning for Forest Landowners in Uncertain Economic and Legal
Environments.
Phrases or Jargon to watch for in the
interview:
o Unexpected Heirs
o Unexpected Consequences
o Exemption Equivalent
o Marital Deduction
o Credit By-pass Trust
o Special Use Valuation
o Deferral & Extension
Phone: (512) 965-6786
Email: hhaney@vt.edu
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Michelle Isenberg
(19:51)
Hear Conference |
Preparation is 90% of the Work
Michelle Isenberg is a
Partner in the firm
Custom Air. She
has been a frequent speaker or tour leader at forestry meetings across
Alabama. When you plant trees or prepare seed beds for natural seed-fall,
Custom Air has developed
services to help you get the work done, economically and effectively.
A few of the services offered:
o Herbicide Application - Aerial &
Ground
o Prescribed Burning
o Aerial Photography
o Customized Prescriptions for site
prep., weed control and release
o Fertilization
o Accurate acre determination &
spray maps
Phone: (256) 825-0512
Email:
michelle.isenberg@customair.us
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Ralph G. Hellmich
(22:54)
Hear Conference |
Oil & Gas Exploration Update
Ralph Hellmich is
Operations Supervisor South Alabama Area
for the
Alabama Oil & Gas Board.
Everyday we read about rising oil prices and pay higher and higher prices at
the pump for gasoline and diesel, so we asked Dr. Hellmich to give us a
brief update on oil & gas exploration activities in the state. Before the
program he told us that Alabama's largest oil field,
Little
Cedar Creek Field, is producing 6,000 barrels per day and continues to grow. The
Oil & Gas Board's website
contains information on all statewide oil & gas production and his
Mobile
office has up-to-date activity for all of south Alabama. He reminded us,
too, that leases are negotiable, and urged us to obtain a copy of A
Landowners Guide to Oil and Gas in Alabama at the Board's
publications webpage (about $7) (Telephone orders: 205-247-3636).
A few recent headlines:
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Oil Prices Plunge More Than $10 A Barrel
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Beyond Drilling: Tax Credits to Lower Energy Costs
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President speaks of drilling, conserving
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Sessions remarks on offshore drilling
Phone: (251) 438-4848
Email:
rhellmich@ogb.state.al.us
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Mike Ward
(26:52)
Hear Conference |
Recreation Premium
Mike Ward specializes in rural
real estate at
Southern
Timberlands and co-hosts a weekly sports radio show on WNSP in
Mobile. AFOA was referred to Mike as someone who understands the
Recreation Premium of rural land. Understanding that current rural real
estate prices no longer are simply based on the productivity of the soil is
important when buying or selling. We asked Mike to tell us what people look
for when they are shopping for rural land and what a current landowner can
do to enhance his land's value for future sale. AFOA maintains a "land for
sale" web page at www.forestland.bz.
Also, several
companies who specialize in rural real estate are listed on our website.
Phone: (251) 341-1110
Email: mwizzbang@aol.com
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