Farmland CNBC 2.94M subscribers Subscribe 47K 4.5M views 1 year ago #CNBC Bill Gates made. The billionaire couple, in less than a decade, have accumulated more than 269,000 acres of farmland across 18 states, more than the entire acreage of New York City. The land that Bill Gates owns is used to grow soybeans, corn, cotton, and rice over 70,000 acres in northern Louisiana. All that farming has led to large water withdrawals from Florida's aquifer system and requires fertilizer, which leaches through the ground into waterways, emptying nitrogen that has led to destructive algae blooms and severe loss of fish and marsh habitats. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. Arable land is not just profitable. Since then, weve sold to dozens of people from ATV weekend warriors to camping enthusiasts to retired truck drivers. But Zehren of Cascade noted that the firm has been working in Florida and elsewhere to promote ecologically conscious agriculture and that it plans to continue to evaluate its farmland portfolio to improve its overall sustainability. The Microsoft co-founder faced several claims that he owned a majority of America's farmland earlier this year. The family's 1.7 million acres of land are primarily spread across Washington, Oregon, and California. That crown belongs to Liberty Media chairman John Malone, who has 2.2 million acres, according to The Land Report. The agency further found that over 50 percent of cropland is rented to farmers who dont own their land. He added: 'In addition, the states oldest winery, Chateau Ste. The billionaire tech mogul and philanthropist has quietly amassed nearly 270,000 acres of farmland across the country, but thats still a relatively small slice of the nations nearly 900 million total farm acres. But that could soon change. The Microsoft co-founder has reportedly purchased an $8.9 million Wyoming ranch that was once the stomping grounds of Buffalo Bill . As more and more land gets developed, if you own land that is in the path of the plan, you could have buyers offering you big money to take hold of the property. Although the sale price has never been made public, the 492-acre home was listed for $8.9 millionand we cant imagine Bill and Melinda doing much haggling. Today, Bill Gates owns 242,000 acres of farmland in 19 states. In May, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and his wife Melinda Gates revealed in a Twitter statement their decision to end their marriage after 27 years. This site also participates in other affiliate programs including but not limited to ShareASale, CJ, and ClickBank, and is compensated for referring traffic and business to these companies. Bill and Melinda bought this massive mansion in the Coachella Valley for $12.5 million in 1999. Gates and his investment team own more than 240,000 acres, as reported by O'Keefe, including 2,167 acres in Michigan. That land is now largely rented out to various farmers. The company also took to Twitter to reject the false narrative. Bill Gates has invested in various high-profile commercial properties through his personal investment company, Cascade. Bill Gates owns a lot of American farmland, but not the majority By PHILIP MARCELO May 2, 2022 CLAIM: Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates owns the majority of America's farmland and the investment firm BlackRock holds the majority of single family houses in the country. Wonderful Company cofounders Stewart and Lynda Resnick (net worth: $7.1 billion) ranked number three . There are also growing trends revolving around the purchase of low acreage farmland and noncommercial farming. Some raw land may even be as affordable as a few thousand dollars, which can be an affordable and cost-effective investment strategy (or just a place to use for personal reasons). But, As of February 2021, Gates has made headlines across the wor. While land is a limited resource, there is still less competition for raw land than there is with residential and commercial real estate. An NBC News analysis also identified Gates as the largest farmland owner in the US. It may even be easier to sell smaller lots than it would be to market the entire portion of land that you invest in. The biggest shift in recent years from small to big farms was in the US. As more and more land becomes developed, less and less raw land is available, which potentially increases the value as demand remains the same or even increases. Land is power, land is wealth, and, more importantly, land is about race and class. The Gates family currently [] Much of Turner's land is used as grazing land for over 50,000 head of buffalo the largest private herd of bison in the world. Weve never been one of the big institutional buyers of single family homes, BlackRock, single-family rentals nationwide. The land that Gates owns is located in several states and consists primarily of commercial farmland. America's leading landowners added hundreds of thousands of acres to their holdings last year. He said that this is where large tracts of rich farmland is used to raise livestock and grow many of the vegetables that end up in grocery aisles up and down the East Coast. Bill and Melinda bought this massive mansion in the Coachella Valley for $12.5 million in 1999. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates finally revealed the reasons behind his massive purchase of farmland: seed science and biofuel development. And not all the renters are local. Investors bought a record 18.4% of the homes purchased in the fourth quarter of 2021 three-quarters of which were single-family homes, according to real estate firm RedFin. That is a big chunk of land. While the Gateses are best known for their philanthropic work tackling large-scale societal problems, like funding the coronavirus vaccine and controlling malaria via the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, they have also invested in some companies rethinking food production and have endorsed the use of genetically modified seeds as one way to increase farming productivity and feed more people globally. According to the Land Report in 2021, the Gateses had 242,000 acres of farmland, 1,234 acres or recreational land, and 25,750 acres of land that was in transition from farmland to residential and . You can email us at contact@askbamland.com. 07:04 GMT 16 Jan 2021. The trend worries young farmers who cannot compete with the likes of Bill Gates when buying land, according to Holly Rippon-Butler, a farmer in upstate New York and the land campaigns director at the National Young Farmers Coalition. There farmers primarily grow soybeans, rice, corn and cotton. Gates' achievement, according to the report, is that he's largest private owner of farmland in the US. Cascade declined to comment on its specific land holdings. Theres a more cynical calculation. Cascade Investments declined to comment on its interest in acquiring so much American farmland, but a spokesperson for the firm, Charles V. Zehren said it is very supportive of sustainable farming. He pointed out that in 2020, the acreage that Bill Gates firm owns was all enrolled in a sustainability program. When Quarterman first heard about Gates firm buying land in the area, he began digging through local property records, linking addresses and business records from registered owners to Kirkland-based companies, until he was able to piece together that the companies buying multiple tracts of land in the Suwannee River Basin were all a shell of a shell of a shell company investing for Bill Gates. NBC News independently confirmed that there were, in fact, shell companies tracing back to Gates firm that purchased 6,021 acres across four counties in Georgia. Like other investment opportunities, you can find land for sale online. (Matt Odom / for NBC News), Image: John Quarterman (Matt Odom / for NBC News), Image: Philanthropist and co-founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates and his wife Melinda listen to the speech by French President Francois Hollande, prior to being awarded Commanders of the Legion of Honor at the Elysee Palace in Paris (Kamil Zihnioglu / Pool via Reuters), American businessman and philanthropist (born 1955). This could allow you to sell or lease the individual lots of land on the property. In fact, he owns some of the land that produces potatoes used to make McDondalds french fries. In Nebraska where he owns 20,000 acres, it is used for soybeans. But why do a handful of people own so much land? Its uncertain why Gates has invested in so much farmland or how his tracts are currently being used. APS ASSESSMENT: False. CLAIM: Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates owns the majority of Americas farmland and the investment firm BlackRock holds the majority of single family houses in the country. But those working on projects with both investors and farmers to create ecologically sustainable farming methods and support diverse and disadvantaged farming communities say rethinking agriculture and working to avert a climate crisis go hand in hand. BlackRock, meanwhile, is also not the owner of the majority of single family houses in the country. retail, office buildings, hotels and apartment complexes, rather than single-family homes, but he declined to provide a breakdown. The biggest chunks of Gates holdings are in Louisiana and Arkansas, where he owns 69,071 acres and 47,927 acres, respectively, the outlets research found. Farmland can be an investment in several ways. Hes the landlord, or rather, the companies owned by his investment firm are the landlords. The title for largest landholdings overall goes to US businessman John Malone, chairman of Liberty Media, who owns 2.2million acres. For five generations, the Reed Family has owned and operated the logging company Green Diamond Resource Co. What expertise in climate science or agriculture Gates possesses beyond being filthy rich is anyones guess. If youre looking at what this means for farmers on the ground looking to access land, theres significant competition from nonfarmers, and that really affects young farmers because it means that the price that theyre trying to compete with on the marketplace is driven and determined by people who are not dependent on a farming income, Rippon-Butler said. You can also look at local resources in your area to see where land is being bought or sold. Bill Gates is buying up the majority of American farmland and BlackRock is buying the majority of single family houses but Im supposed to believe the biggest threat to us is Elon Musk buying Twitter? read one representative tweet thats been liked or shared on the platform more than 250,000 times. (AP Photo/Michael Probst, File ), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. has grabbed headlines in recent days, some prominent voices have taken to social media to claim that some other significant acquisitions by deep-pocketed individuals and corporations have largely flown under the radar. But they're just renting it. In this country, enslaved Black labor first built US wealth atop stolen Native land. It is possible to make high double digit returns on land that you bought for an affordable price only a few years prior. Reed family: Land area: 1.7 million acres. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'askbamland_com-large-leaderboard-2','ezslot_5',106,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-askbamland_com-large-leaderboard-2-0'); While farmland, and land in general, will undergo economic factors and changes to demand, it is very likely to increase in value as the years roll by. But even with his big new agricultural holdings, Gates still doesn't rank in the Top 100 of private landowners overall in the U.S. - when considering owners of land of all types, not just agricultural. Nick Estes is a citizen of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe. Gates owns almost 9,000 acres in Ohio, just over 9,000 acres in Indiana, nearly 18,000 in Illinois, but only 552 acres in Iowa. We've received your submission. Learn more about fact-checking at AP. Beach House in Del Mar, California: $43 Million. Investment firms are making the argument farmlands will meet carbon-neutral targets for sustainable investment portfolios while anticipating an increase of agricultural productivity and revenue. These billionaires have nothing to offer us in terms of saving the planet unless its our land back. BlackRock also does not own the majority of the countrys 80 million single-family homes. This means that there is not much to maintain on it unless you want to add your own buildings or other property. . But a Gates spokesperson said in a statement on Friday that the claim that hes bought the majority of the nations farmland is false, pointing to a U.S. Department of Agriculture report from February that showed there were more than 895 million total acres of farmland in the country last year. While Gates owns nearly 270,000 acres of farmland across the US, he isnt the largest landowner in the country. If you own a good amount of land, then you have the possibility of subdividing it into multiple lots that can generate separate income streams. Farmland can be an investment in several ways. BILL Gates' $80billion property empire now hangs in the balance after he and his wife of 27 years announced they are divorcing. And while Bill Gates frets about eating cheeseburgers in his book for the amount of greenhouse gases the meat industry produces largely for the consumption of rich countries his massive carbon footprint has little to do with his personal diet and is not forgivable by simply buying more land to sequester more carbon. Social media users are falsely claiming that Gates owns the majority of U.S. farmland. The opportunities are virtually endless. Bill Gates owns more private farmland in the US than anyone else, an analysis by The Land Report found.His 242,000 acres of farmland stretch across 18 states Bill Gates owns farmland in 18 states . The farmland real estate investment trust (REIT) Farmland Partners, which owns 156,500 acres in 16 US states, has seen its traded value more than double since November and is trading near an. In total, Gates owns approximately 242,000 acres of farmland with assets totaling more than $690m. His 242,000 acres of farmland stretch across 18 states from Washington to Florida,. Dailymail.com Reporter, Meet John Malone of Liberty Global the Darth Vader of Wall Street and the man who wants a slice of Formula One, Bill Gates is accused of hypocrisy after joining bidding war to buy the world's largest private jet operator - one month before he releases his book preaching about climate change, Isabel Oakeshott receives 'menacing' message from Matt Hancock, Insane moment river of rocks falls onto Malibu Canyon in CA, Mom who lost both sons to fentanyl blasts laughing Biden, Pavement where disabled woman gestured at cyclist before fatal crash, Pro-Ukrainian drone lands on Russian spy planes exposing location, 'Buster is next!' Do whatever you want to with the land as the value increases. As of 2020, industry reports show he owned about 0.027% of U.S. farmland. Nor does he put in the back-breaking labor humble people do to grow our food and who get far less praise for it. The value depends on a lot of factors including location, type of land, acreage, supply, demand, and more. In other words, when the economy is struggling, the value of farmland generally doesnt depreciate. Tuesday, the office of the Attorney General sent out a letter asking the Red River Trust to confirm how the company plans to use the land . The 1862 Homestead Act opened up 270m acres of Indigenous territory which amounts to 10% of US land for white settlement. Another 5,500 acres was sold to Generation Land Georgia, a company that shares an address with Miami-based Optimum Agriculture, which bought Generations Farms in 2019. That's one of the many takeaways from the 2021 Land Report 100, which is compiled each year by Land Report magazine. The project is in its early . Malone also has 25% shares in Liberty Global, the largest international cable company with just under 30million subscribers, and owns 8% of the Atlanta Braves baseball team. Dailymail.com Reporter The piece noted that the firm owns at least 100,000 acres of farmland in California, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana and other states or an area seven times bigger than Manhattan.. They own the soil where the potatoes in McDonalds french fries grow, the carrots from the worlds largest producer and the onions that Americans saut every night for dinner. According to The Land Report, the Microsoft co-founder owns farmland across 18 states, with the largest holdings being in Louisiana (69,071 acres), Arkansas (47,927 acres) and Nebraska (20,588. Gates is not the only billionaire on The Land Report 's list of top private farmland owners. AP'S ASSESSMENT: False. The foundation aims to support country-led inclusive agricultural transformation across sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, according to its website. But farmer advocates say the Gateses large-scale farm purchases dont make room for smaller farmers to break into the market. That kind of hard work isnt what made him rich. THE FACTS: As Elon Musks bid to purchase Twitter has grabbed headlines in recent days, some prominent voices have taken to social media to claim that some other significant acquisitions by deep-pocketed individuals and corporations have largely flown under the radar. askBAMLand.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon. The Emmerson family owns and operates Sierra Pacific Industries, a company that logs usable lumber after forest fires and sells it to lumber retailers. Our era is dominated by the ultra-rich, the climate crisis and a burgeoning green capitalism. Land holds ample opportunities for growth and development, yet you may find that there is more land than there is competition. The 14,000 acres in Washington is used for potatoes and in Florida the land is used for carrots. Bill and Melinda Gates, who recently announced they're getting divorced and are dividing their assets, are deeply invested in American agriculture. Properties up for grabs include a $123million mansion with a trampoline room and a $43million oceanfront mansion with a ten-person jacuzzi. That doesnt mean that every piece of land is a good investment, but a significant amount of land will offer a high return on investment. But Gates, known for his philanthropic work solving some of the worlds most pressing public health and climate problems, has suggested that he does not treat his American farmland investments as part of his broader plans to save the planet. However, his largest land holdings are in Louisiana (69,071 acres), Arkansas (47,927 acres), Nebraska (20,588 acres . A MAP has revealed which billionaire owns the largest amount of land in the US - youll be shocked to know that it isnt Bill Gates. You may have heard that Bill Gates owns a lot of land, but you may not know how much. The Microsoft co-founder acquired 14,500 acres of the fertile land in 2018, helping to make him the largest private farmland owner in the US, with total holdings of almost 250,000 acres,. In 2009, the Gates' reportedly purchased a ranch in Wyoming that once belonged to Buffalo Bill Cody. ', In 2008, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced $306 million in grants designed to boost the yields and incomes of millions of small farmers in Africa as well as 'other parts of the developing world so they can lift themselves and their families out of hunger and poverty.'. Bill Gates: America's Top Farmland Owner | The Land Report. LITTLE ROCK, Ark. In total, Malone owns roughly 2.2million acres of land and has a net worth of around $9.22billion, earning him the nickname the Cable Cowboy.. Bill Gates owns more land than all of the entire city of New Why Bill Gates Is Buying Up U.S. Bill Gates, one of the most powerful billionaires in the world and co-founder of tech giant Microsoft, and wife Melinda are ending their 27-year marriage, the two tweeted in unison on Monday. In Nebraska where he owns 20,000 acres, it is used for soybeans. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, BillGatesbuys nearly $1B Heineken stake despite not being a big beer drinker, Bill Gates daughter living in $51M NYC home as she welcomes first baby, Elites want to use AI to censor political opponents, Bill Gates claims his private jet habit not part of the climate problem. BlackRock also suggested it was being confused for the similarly-named investment management firm Blackstone, which until recently owned Invitation Homes. Renewable energy company Savion has an option to buy the property for what is being called Oak Run Solar Project, according to Madison County property records. They said farmland has been a popular investment for a long time because of its stability. On Friday, a showdown between two of the largest agricultural landowners in the United Statesthe Church of Latter-Day Saints and Bill Gates ' wealth management firmcame . The Microsoft co-founder is considered the largest private owner of farmland in the country with some 269,000 acres across dozens of states, according to last years edition of. Our inventory spans mostly in the western United States. Gates shares ownership with Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talalthe two purchased the chain in 2007 for $3.8 billion. In fact, he reportedly owns more farmland than any other individual in America. So what is this guy planning? The private residential area is home to numerous A-list celebrity couples including Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel. The largest. One of those farms, Stanley Farms, specialized in Vidalia onions, and another, Coggins Farms, focused on growing carrots. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'askbamland_com-box-4','ezslot_4',104,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-askbamland_com-box-4-0'); Well, why would you think that a billionaire would want to own land? The 13,573-square-foot home has six bedrooms, 11 bedrooms and more luxury features than you can count. The price makes this one of the most expensive home sales in this part of California ever. The land that Bill Gates owns is used to grow soybeans, corn, cotton, and rice over 70,000 acres in northern Louisiana. Now Bill Gates appears to have acquired a slice of their tiny city, and locals near. Listen to article. U.S. Census Bureau data shows fewer than 20% of such properties are rentals, and the vast majority of those are owned by individual investors, not institutional investors like BlackRock. These shell companies have made it difficult to find out where and how much farmland the Gateses own even for local farmers, like John S. Quarterman, a farmer and landowner who grows okra, corn, squash and other vegetables in Lowndes County on the southern edge of Georgia. That could spell an opportunity for young farmers hoping to get their start, but for savvy investors scrambling for more places to put their money, it also represents an opportunity. As more and more land becomes developed, less and less raw land is available, which potentially increases the value as demand remains the same or even increases. Media billionaire Ted Turner has also invested in 2 million acres of land (much of it rangeland and prairie, rather than cropland) and earned the distinction of being the largest private owner of buffalo herds that roam the 200,000 acres of his private ranch, The Guardian reported. This is part of APs effort to address widely shared misinformation, including work with outside companies and organizations to add factual context to misleading content that is circulating online. Malone's 2.2 million acres are largely located in Maine, New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming and include profitable cattle ranches. The comments below have not been moderated, By The land is owned both directly and indirectly by Cascade Investment, the Seattle-area firm that Gates the worlds third-richest man with a net worth of $132 billion, according to Bloomberg set up to manage his massive fortune, according to The Land Report. Some of that land, including nearly 300 acres, was sold in 2019 to the California-based Grimmway Farms, the worlds largest carrot producer. We know that one of the best ways to sequester carbon is through the soil. (Ruth Fremson/The New York Times) (Ruth Fremson / The New York Times via Redux Pictures), John Quarterman on his farm in Lowndes County, Ga. (Matt Odom / for NBC News), John Quarterman stands by the Withlacoochee River. The worlds richest 1% emit double the carbon of the poorest 50%, an 2020 Oxfam study found. Gates diversified his investment portfolio through land ownership, but why? Real estate mogul and owner of the Los Angeles Rams, Stan Kroenke, owns 1.4 million acres of land in the United States, including a 124,000 acre ranch in Montana and additional land in Wyoming. A survey of the Gateses farmland holdings shows that a broad range of the vegetables that Americans eat can be traced back to his land and that some of this land has also been owned by other billionaires. If the land is owned by the Cascade Investment Group or Cottonwood Ag Management it is likely that Bill Gates may be one of your neighbors. The relationship to land who owns it, who works it, and who cares for it reflects obscene levels of inequality and legacies of colonialism and white supremacy., ill Gates has never been a farmer. , an annual survey of the nations largest landowners. Wealth accumulation always goes hand-in-hand with exploitation and dispossession. Quarterman also serves as the Suwannee Riverkeeper and advocates for conservation of the intricate network of springs and rivers in the region, where water from the swamps of Georgia flow into Florida before they release into the Gulf of Mexico. Bill and Melindas main residenceand by far their most impressive homeis a massive compound in Medina, Washington nicknamed 'Xanadu 2.0' in a reference to Citizen Kane. According to the Land Report 100 Research Team, that figure is currently more than twice that amount, which means Bill Gates, cofounder of Microsoft, has an alter ego: Farmer Bill, the guy who owns more farmland than anyone else in America. One of the largest plots of land owned by a subsidiary of the Gateses investment arm in Louisiana, Angelina Plantation, was previously owned by former WorldCom CEO Bernard Ebbers, who died last year, a month after being released from prison. Gates . NBC News also found that another 6,500 acres in north Florida are owned by yet another company, Suwannee River Terra, which was also started with an address in Kirkland and an email address from the Bill and Melinda Gates Investment Firm, which is now registered to the current chief counsel of Oak River Farms with a mailing address in Kansas, according to property records. Through our professional experience in land acquisition, we have found that people buy and sell land for many different reasons and have learned that it can be an investment for profit, vacation, or any opportunity that suits your needs and desires.
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