first published in the April 2022 Equiery

Do you have a horse property to sell? We asked Maryland Horse Council sponsor Tracy Diamond of The Tracy Diamond Team/eXp Realty, LLC, to share her tips for selling horse properties in today’s market.

Q. Is there a best time to sell a horse property?
A. Traditionally spring was always the best time to sell because it is the time of year when farms typically look at their best. Today’s market however, is a seller’s market so there really isn’t any time that is better than others right now. Inventory in general is very low right now.

Q. Is it better to stage a horse property or show “as is”?
A. An empty barn does not always show as well as one that is currently being used for horses. If you no longer have horses on your property I do recommend that you stage it as if a horse could move in that day. That means put clean shavings in a few stalls, make sure all fences are repaired, sweep the aisle and clear out all cobwebs.

Also be sure to mow the fields and pull all weeds around the barn and fencelines. If you have an arena that has not been used in a while, be sure to make the ring look functional and ready to be ridden in.
Basically, tidy up!

On the flip side, showing a property with too many horses is worse. It can give the appearance that the property will quickly be outgrown or that it has been overused and will need more investment by the buyers.

Q. How long does it typically take to sell a horse property?
A. There really isn’t any blanket answer for that sort of question. There is a smaller population who want properties they can run a business at versus those who are looking for a private property with horses in their own backyards. There is a wide range of buyer’s needs so finding the right buyer can happen overnight or take a while.

Q. Why should a seller use a realtor with horse knowledge?
A. The main reason to use a realtor that has a horse background is that the communication between the seller’s agent and the buyer’s agent needs to be in the language of horse people. You need someone who understands that language to best represent you.

Q. What is the biggest piece of advice you would give sellers before placing their horse property on the market?
A. Be accurate in how you represent your property. Specifically, a lot of sellers will misrepresent properties when it comes to easements and access to nearby trails. They may say the property has trail access but in reality, the access may be granted by easement to the current property owner and may not convey to the new owner. Or the access to nearby trails crosses over private land and not public land so permission to cross the private land to get to the trails could be denied to a new owner.