How Much Does It Cost To Buy Land In Texas?

‍If you are considering buying property in Texas, you should be well aware of what real estate prices are, but how much does land cost in the Lone Star State?

Whether you are a developer, real estate investor, or an aspiring homeowner, buying land in Texas comes with a lot of financial incentives. With that said, land prices in Texas have seen a recent increase and you should carefully consider the specs of the property you are evaluating before making any commitments.

It costs roughly $7,530 to buy an acre of land in Texas, which is the median real estate cost throughout the entire state. Whereas land in rural areas throughout Texas costs around $3,913 per acre, which is an increase of nearly 5% from 2021-2022.

A lot of people have their eyes on Texas for their next property acquisition. Texas has become an increasingly popular place to invest, develop, and move to, as this state has a lot to offer - including competitive land prices. For years, Texas has been considered a safe haven for people around the country who want to buy a cheap plot of land with minimal taxes. However, the rise in popularity of buying land in Texas has resulted in real estate prices steadily climbing - with a massive jump from 2020 to 2021. With that said, it is important to understand that real estate prices in the state of Texas can greatly vary across the board. To help you understand this further, we are going to take a closer look at how much it costs to buy land in Texas.

After extensively researching Texas real estate prices, I have been able to gather enough information to determine the cost of buying land in the state. My research has indicated that the cost of buying land in Texas can fluctuate depending on where the parcel is located, as well as its specs and qualities.

‍Average Cost of Buying Land in Texas

Texas is a huge state with a lot of potential for real estate investments. This is the largest state in the contiguous U.S and so much of the land is still up for grabs, which is why it is so important to understand the median cost of real estate prices in Texas.

The average cost of buying land in Texas is roughly $7,530 per acre. A lot of people hear about land prices in Texas that are as low as $2,500 to $3,000 per acre, which tends to grab the attention of many aspiring homeowners and developers.

While you certainly can find land prices this low, it will not be the average that you see throughout the state. Depending on where you are looking, land prices in Texas can be cheaper or considerably more expensive. More on this later.

Cost of Buying Rural Land in Texas

If you are looking for an affordable plot of land, few places in the country can compete with rural Texas. There are millions of acres of land for sale in Texas, which span the vast majority of the state.

You will find that a lot of these parcels have very cheap price tags, which is why the average cost of buying land in rural Texas is just $3,913 per acre. While this may seem like a very reasonable price for real estate, the per acre cost in rural Texas has shot up quite a bit in recent years.

We have seen an increase of nearly 5% from 2021 to 2022 - with real estate costs predicted to become higher in the upcoming years. The biggest change came from 2020 to 2021 when real estate prices in Texas increased by a whopping 22% in just a single year. Since 2019, rural land in Texas went from $2,972 per acre to its current price - which will most likely breach $4,000 per acre by the end of the year.

Cost of Buying Urban Land in Texas

Whenever you evaluate real estate parcels in Texas, the prices can vary dramatically depending on whether you are looking at properties in an urban or rural area. Given that rural properties rarely have any kind of development and are often categorized as raw land, you can expect the price to be very low.

On the other hand, urban land will pretty much always have some form of development and will more often than not be in an attractive location. This results in urban land parcels in Texas costing a lot - with the median price of buying a house in some cities being several times higher than the national average.

Urban land within the city limits of some areas in Texas can easily go into the hundreds of thousands. However, urban land outside of city limits is still fairly reasonable by comparison:

• Land prices near Dallas - $6,294 per acre
• Land prices near Austin - $5,290 per acre
• Land prices near Houston - $4,293 per acre

The bottom line is that the closer you get to any city in Texas, the more expensive you can expect the real estate prices to get.

Where is Land the Cheapest in Texas?

Land prices in Texas can fluctuate considerably depending on the region that you are evaluating. While rural land, in general, is going to be considerably more affordable than urban land, some regions in Texas have particularly cheap parcels such as:

• The Panhandle
• West Texas
• South Texas

These regions have the cheapest land in the entire state and you will find that a lot of the prices are around $3,913 per acre - or potentially even less.

Factors that Influence the Cost of Land in Texas

Texas is a state with very diverse and expansive landscapes, which is why there is so much fluctuation in real estate value.

Whether you are a real estate investor, developer, or simply an aspiring homeowner, you should be aware of all of the factors that influence the cost of land in Texas so that you can narrow down your options when searching for your parcel.

Location

The golden mantra of real estate is location, location, location, which is very much the case for land prices in Texas. Depending on the region that you are evaluating, the price of a parcel can either be very affordable or outrageously expensive.

Naturally, a rural parcel located out in the countryside is going to have a much lower dollar figure attached to it. This mainly has to do with the lack of surroundings that attract buyers and developers. With that said, if the property has physical attributes such as nice landscapes, natural resources, or some kind of amenities - the rural land will be priced higher.

On the other hand, urban land will not be cheap. Urban land parcels located within or even near city limits can cost tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. If the property has any kind of development, you can expect it to be reflected in the price.

Plot Size

Texas has a lot of land and some plots are huge. As a general rule of thumb, you can expect the price of land per acre to be cheaper if the plot size is larger - especially if you are buying the entire parcel.

Landowners that have put large pieces of real estate on the market rarely want to deal with the hassle of selling off their property in chunks, which is why a bigger real estate acquisition can result in a cheaper per acre price.

Supply & Demand

Supply and demand considerably influence the cost of land. For decades, real estate acquisitions in Texas were rather dormant - with even large purchases barely making a crack in the vast amount of land that is for sale.

However, buying property in Texas continues to become popular - especially with some people buying up massive plots of land in recent years. While there is still plenty of land for sale across the state, landowners are taking notice of the rise in demand for real estate and are responding to it by raising prices.

Given the sharp increase that we saw in land prices in Texas recently, we can expect real estate value to continue to climb.

Terrain

The type of terrain on a parcel can heavily influence its dollar value. At the end of the day, if the terrain is dry, dull, and does not have any kind of natural aesthetic, it is going to be a lot less attractive to a lot of buyers on the market.

This is particularly the case for land parcels that have adverse terrain that require maintenance before any kind of development or farming can take place. Land parcels that have well-kept terrain or a naturally appealing aesthetic will fetch a higher price.