$1M+ ranch sales, pricing and inventory in Bastrop, Lee and Milam counties, by Tallon Martin, Republic Ranches
Key takeaways
- Sales slowed. Bastrop, Lee and Milam counties closed 7 $1M+ ranch sales in Q3 2026, down from 9 a year ago.
- Year to date is down 18%. There were 27 closings through September, compared with 33 at this point in 2025.
- Overall inventory dipped. Active listings fell 5% from a year ago, to 127.
- The $1–2M range is the exception. Listings there grew 15%, to 77.
- Size drives price per acre. Ranches under 100 acres sold for a median of about $36,500 per acre in 2026, compared with $8,900 for 250+ acres.
East of Austin ranch market snapshot, Q3 2026
| Metric ($1M+ ranches) | Q3 2026 | Q2 2026 | Q3 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Closings | 7 | 11 | 9 |
| Closings year to date | 27 | – | 33 |
| Active listings (quarter end) | 127 | 117 | 134 |
| New pending sales | 5 | 13 | 14 |
| Sale price vs. original list | 87.7% (2026 to date) | – | – |
| Average days on market | 281 (2026 to date) | – | – |
Q3 covers July 1 to September 30, 2026. Sale-to-list and days on market cover the 18 verified sales from January 1 to September 30, 2026.
The East of Austin ranch market
The east side cooled in Q3. Only 7 $1M+ ranches closed in Bastrop, Lee and Milam counties, even as listings rose from 117 at the end of Q2 to 127.
The typical verified sale this year was about $2.0 million. Half of those sales included a home.
The upper end has been the hardest part of this market. Only 1 of the 18 verified sales this year was over $5M.
County by county
County detail comes from 18 verified sales in ABOR and Land.com records. Our quarterly tracking counts 27 closings, so county figures cover most, but not all, of the activity.
Bastrop County ranch market, Q3 2026
Bastrop had the most ranch sales east of Austin in 2026, 8 of 18, at an average of about $25,200 per acre. Most of that came early: 6 sales closed in Q2, and only 1 in Q3.
The county is attracting major commercial investment along the Highway 71 and Highway 21 corridors, including Amazon, SpaceX, and a planned data center campus and natural gas power facility from Pacifico Energy and BlackChamber on 2,842 acres. I expected those announcements to spark more large recreational ranch purchases in the county. So far, we have not seen the ripple effect in the recreational market, which is a bit surprising to us.
Lee County ranch market, Q3 2026
Lee had 5 of the 18 ranch sales east of Austin in 2026, 2 of them in Q3. At about $12,400 per acre on average, it was the most affordable county in this report.
Lee also had the clearest example of what overpricing costs. A 271-acre ranch near Ledbetter first listed in 2023 for about $5.0 million. It sold in 2026 for about $2.0 million, 40% of its original price, after 1,020 days on the market.
Milam County ranch market, Q3 2026
Milam had 5 of the 18 ranch sales east of Austin in 2026, 2 of them in Q3, averaging about $19,800 per acre. Milam ranches sold closest to asking on this side of Austin, at about 90.8% of the original list.
That average is lifted by a 34-acre property with an updated farmhouse near new development west of Rockdale, which sold for about $42,000 per acre. 3 of the 4 Milam ranches over 100 acres sold for about $7,800 to $10,100 per acre.
Sales by price range
$1–2M: 8 verified sales in 2026. Listings in this range grew 15% from a year ago, to 77.
$2–5M: 9 verified sales, the most of any range. Every county had at least 3. Listings fell 22% from a year ago, to 40.
$5M+: 1 verified sale, a 608-acre pecan farm in Bastrop County in Q1. There were 10 listings at the end of September, down from 16 a year ago.
Together, the tiers say buyers here are active up to about $5M. Above that, they have been hard to find. The $1–2M range is the only one where inventory grew.
What sold: features buyers paid for
Smaller tracts sell for far more per acre. Under 100 acres, the median was about $36,500 per acre.
Between 100 and 250 acres, it was about $13,900. Above 250 acres, it was about $8,900.
Half of the verified sales east of Austin included a home. I'd be careful reading too much into the house. Historically, a ranch home is not the portion of the investment you should put a lot of weight on; it is a depreciating part of the asset. Typically, buyers put less weight on the house than what it cost to build because it is not what they would build, and so they adjust for the value they see in it today and account for renovations they plan to do.
Currently, it seems like buyers are looking for properties that feel turnkey and for features that help them justify today's values, whether that is a home, big surface water, or a ranch that has been well cared for. Properties without those qualities are sitting longer, largely because buyers have not accepted the pricing that came out of the COVID era.
We are noticing cash continues to be common. 4 of the 9 East of Austin sales recorded in the MLS this year were cash purchases. Historically, as a company, we have seen a majority of buyers pay cash across all tiers
Pending sales and outlook
New pending sales slowed to 5 in Q3 2026, down from 14 a year ago. October brought 5 more, the most east of Austin since June.
I am optimistic that activity will pick up in the fourth quarter once the midterm elections are behind us. I don't expect a surge, but ranches that are well kept, unique and fairly priced should see stronger interest than they have over the month of October.
On the ground: what I'm seeing
I have been surprised by how subdued the data has been over the last three quarters. Earlier in the year, it felt like the market was starting to find its stride, regaining momentum after the post-COVID slowdown. Each time a major national headline broke, buyer inquiries seemed to pause for about two weeks. At the same time, we saw unusual bursts of activity, with June and July among our busiest months, which is not typical for a Texas summer.
East of Austin, the upper-end buyer has been harder to find. My sense is that many of those buyers are looking in other parts of the state, either because they have accepted today's higher values as the new normal and they are willing to pay to be in that area or because land prices there did not climb as much as they did in the more popular counties. Bee and Lavaca Counties are good examples; these counties seem to have the hot hand right now, and I believe that is because buyers are able to find sizable ranches, with good recreational value, semi-close to the metroplexes, trading from the upper $4,000s to mid $6,000s per acre.
When I reflect back on the year so far. The deal that taught me the most this year was outside these three eastern counties: the sale of Circle J Ranch in Lavaca County, a 432-acre high-fenced property with improved whitetail genetics and a sandy creek running through it. We had four showings in the first week while many other listings were quiet. It told me the market may be slow not for lack of buyers, but because much of the inventory is either overpriced or simply not what buyers are looking for. But when you list something that buyers are looking for, they seem to come out of the woodwork.
What this means for sellers and buyers
If you're selling east of Austin
Price for today's market rather than the COVID-era peak. Buyers have not accepted those numbers. The properties that are appropriately priced and have quality exposure are moving.
77 ranches are listed between $1M and $2M, up 15% from a year ago. In that environment, an overpriced ranch will sit.
If you're buying east of Austin
Buyers have more choices and more room to negotiate, especially between $1M and $2M. Get boots on the ground, make offers based on comparable data and you may be surprised where a seller will meet you.
Larger tracts are where the value is. Ranches over 250 acres sold for a median of about $8,900 per acre this year.
Landowner questions
Is it a good time to sell a ranch in Bastrop County?
For the right ranch, yes but…there is a but. Bastrop ranches have averaged about $25,200 per acre in 2026, but only 1 closed in Q3, and there are 127 ranches for sale east of Austin, so buyers have options. Well-kept ranches that offer a home or strong water and are priced for today's market are still selling. Those priced above it are sitting.
What is ranch land worth per acre in Lee County?
In 2026, $1M+ ranches in Lee County sold for about $12,400 per acre on average, the lowest of the three East of Austin counties. Lee ranches sold at about 87.1% of their original asking price.
What are ranches selling for per acre in Milam County?
In 2026, $1M+ ranches in Milam County averaged about $19,800 per acre, but size and location matter. A 34-acre property with an updated farmhouse sold for about $42,000 per acre. This is a bit of an outlier because it was able to capture commercial values because of its proximity to a development. 3 of the 4 Milam ranches over 100 acres sold for about $7,800 to $10,100 per acre.
Data sources and method
Sources: Land.com, ABOR (Austin Board of Realtors MLS) and Republic Map.
Criteria: $1M+ farm and ranch sales on 30 or more acres in Bastrop, Lee and Milam counties.
Dates: Q3 covers July 1 to September 30, 2026. Year to date covers January 1 to September 30, 2026. Pending sales run through October 2026. Listings come from our monthly tracking, counted at the last month of each quarter (September for Q3).
Sales counts and year-over-year trends come from our quarterly tracking. County, price range, price per acre, home and sale-to-list figures come from 18 verified sales, with duplicates removed and ABOR records kept over Land.com.
Texas is a non-disclosure state, so figures reflect reported sales only. Land.com sales that listed a sale price equal to the asking price count as sales but are left out of price per acre and sale-to-list figures. Averages based on 2 or 3 sales are directional.