Timber Theft Information

[TractorGuy]

I had 5 acres of large pines harvested on a handshake a few years back.

The guy gave me a specific promise of $6500 for the timber and said he would leave the slash in small manageable piles. He said a lot of it should sell as poles. I think he ended up just hauling it all to the lumber and pulp mills instead of fetching top dollar.

He tried to pay me $4500 when it was over and gave me $5000 when I complained. He left two large mountains of logs and slash with the rest of the property so trashed you couldn't walk it.

Never Again!

 

[DrRod]

I'm a little bit surprised to hear all these horror stories. We have sold timber in separate parcels for 40 years. We have always relied on a trusted consulting forester to manage the sale. He checks boundaries, marks trees, confirms performance bonds, evaluates stump and slash height and other factors at the site, and ensures we get paid up front. Yes it costs about 15% but we've never had an issue.

 

[Industrial Toys]

The "Forestry Management" outfits and the "loggers/mills" seem thick as thieves here.

 

[drssg]

We see stuff like that all of the time, but it's a different economy of scale. I've even had people say that "We like to steal white birch off your land because the tourists like it for firewood."

This is sort of off topic, but I saw this at the grocery store a good while back. They were selling bundles of three white birch sticks for $17.

 

[Frankenkubota]

Johnny Football?

MoKelly

nope....i met him...seemed like a nice kid.

Sometimes growing up wealthy can do more harm than good?

 

[MoKelly]

nope....i met him...seemed like a nice kid.

Sometimes growing up wealthy can do more harm than good?

Wealth —- then sudden fame and adoration by the public —- can create temptations and trouble for anyone let alone a youngster.

MoKelly

 

[dmccarty]

People get ripped off selling timber as well as just having trees stolen.

I used to work with a very smart woman who had some rural property with trees. She sold the timber to some guy that contacted her out of the blue. She did not have the timber cruised, had no idea what she was selling and thus had no idea of it's worth. The guy that cut the timber sure knew the value. I think this happens too frequently.

He also promised he would plant replacement pines. He did not plant any new trees, and she complained, but nothing was done. Not sure they even had a contract.

My grandfather knew of a person who had Walnut trees growing along both sides of a long driveway running to the house. The family went to church one day and returned to find all of the Walnut trees had been cut down. Big, old trees they were...

Prior to owning our land, people would come on the land and cut down Red Ceder trees. There is a nearby house with a lovely split rail fence made from Red Ceder trees...

Later,
Dan

 

[Industrial Toys]

We burn all manner of downed wood. Sometimes you get wood that is dry and weightless like balsa wood. Not even worth handling. I always kid, that we should sell that as "PREMIUM, EXTRA DRY, or TRIPPLE DRIED CAMP FIRE WOOD". Ask a buck or two more than the usual $5.00/little bundle at the roadside.

 

[dmccarty]

I'm a little bit surprised to hear all these horror stories. We have sold timber in separate parcels for 40 years. We have always relied on a trusted consulting forester to manage the sale. He checks boundaries, marks trees, confirms performance bonds, evaluates stump and slash height and other factors at the site, and ensures we get paid up front. Yes it costs about 15% but we've never had an issue.

You did not have an issue because you hired a forester. Many people do not know how to sell timber and their lack of knowledge costs them dearly.

We used a forester who cruised our timber so we knew WHAT and HOW MUCH we had to sell. He set up the timber sale, which was closed bid, held just after dawn and was done on the tailgate of my truck.

We signed off on a timber deed, just like we were selling a house, and we had a contract on HOW the loggers were to log the property. Things went well, not perfect, but well, and we got our money. And we got what the timber was worth.

Later,
Dan

 

[dmccarty]

When I was a teenager I worked on a farm mostly splitting firewood for the summer.

The farmer was cutting down trees for firewood that did not have saw timber value. He had hired a guy to cut down the trees that had saw value. My understanding was that the farmer was paying the guy by the hour to do the work and the guy was using the farmer's saws and bull dozer.

The hired guy was keeping the money from the mill. The farmer, with a handgun in his back pocket, went to the hired guy's house to have a conversation to get his money back.

Later,
Dan

 

[Industrial Toys]

And??? In those circles, I don't think the CASH was just put in a mattress, waiting for the rightful owner to claim it.

To me, it's always a RED FLAG when a guy that is in a certain business has no resources of his own. Either a neverdowell looser or scheister.

 

[MoKelly]

People get ripped off selling timber as well as just having trees stolen.

I used to work with a very smart woman who had some rural property with trees. She sold the timber to some guy that contacted her out of the blue. She did not have the timber cruised, had no idea what she was selling and thus had no idea of it's worth. The guy that cut the timber sure knew the value. I think this happens too frequently.

He also promised he would plant replacement pines. He did not plant any new trees, and she complained, but nothing was done. Not sure they even had a contract.

My grandfather knew of a person who had Walnut trees growing along both sides of a long driveway running to the house. The family went to church one day and returned to find all of the Walnut trees had been cut down. Big, old trees they were...

Prior to owning our land, people would come on the land and cut down Red Ceder trees. There is a nearby house with a lovely split rail fence made from Red Ceder trees...

Later,
Dan

How horrible but true.

We had bought our property for about a month when we went to spend some time. We were driving into our parking space (no house yet - just the barn) and I see a truck and trailer down across the field into the woods.

Huh?

I go down with the 4 wheeler. 2 guys with a chainsaw cutting down trees.

I ask what in the world are you doing?

They claim owner said they can come in and cut anytime.

I say I’m the owner.

They say they didn’t know the other guy sold.

They packed up and left and never came back.

I contacted the seller and asked if that was true and if he had any other buddies who may show. Seller claims he never gave anyone permission to cut trees.

MoKelly

 

[Jstpssng]

^^^
Some people are just plain brazen, and not just when it comes to wood. Several years ago a friend was telling about somebody driving through their neighbor's field and backing up to an old '57 Chevy pickup that had been parked on the treeline for years. They went down and were told that the owner had given them permission to take it.
They attempted to call the owner but couldn't reach him; and by the time that he got home they were gone, along with the old pickup.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Sounds more like the hunters around here. Grampa hunted there, and Pa hunted there, so we fixin to hunt there too.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Had someone come on my posted property and cut down a 40’ cedar tree and took the top ~5’. Maybe for a Christmas tree? Couldn’t believe it. Tree was close to the road, can’t see it from the house but they probably could see my house from it when they were cutting. Only have 10-15 good cedar trees on the 30 acres. Was more than a little upset.

Brush pickers around here harvest incense cedar boughs in full blossom for the Christmas season. It's a high dollar operation, worth about 50 cents a pound at the buyer. A pickup load will weigh 300-400 lbs. If you get stopped with a load, you better have a signed contract with the landowner or you will be arrested for theft. Buyers won't touch the stuff without proof it was legally obtained.

 

[Jstpssng]

Brush pickers around here harvest incense cedar boughs in full blossom for the Christmas season. It's a high dollar operation, worth about 50 cents a pound at the buyer. A pickup load will weigh 300-400 lbs. If you get stopped with a load, you better have a signed contract with the landowner or you will be arrested for theft. Buyers won't touch the stuff without proof it was legally obtained.

That's the way that balsam fir tips for wreaths are around here.