Before youtube and podcasts and blogs were here, we hired one of the big names to do an evaluation of our property. His concepts, at the time, were eye opening. Those ideas definitely moved the learning curve for us. But back then it was only $800 for a day of consulting and a hand scribbled plan. With all the information available today online, not sure a consultant would be worth the money. But some people need to be told what to do vs figuring it out on their own. I'll add that our property is in the QFP in Michigan, which requires a written management plan. That process, the person who wrote the plan, and the plan itself, help direct some of the habitat improvements we've done. So I see that has consulting help as well. Final note: even though our group has been 'educated' by consulting expertise, not everyone in our group follows the advice. sins of the few impact the rest when it comes to access and impact. Great video Mark !!

Mark, You do put out some very nice videos. I never feel like I'm being sold something. That being said, about this video, I agree with all your points. I have never hired a consultant...learned the hard way through trial and error over many many years. I learned a long time ago, that the KZfaq stars and TV stars are really not where you want to get your information from. So much BS. I used to spend all my time and money (this is like 30 years ago) trying to do what the pro's said to do only to realize that they were only killing big bucks every year because of where they hunted and not because of all their sponsorships...it was a tough lesson in life and hunting. Now, it's come full circle, and I actually do consulting myself. It is so fun to get out and help other hunters realize their dreams on their properties and to help them sort through all the hype and gadgets out there. On roughly 1/3 of my walks, I'm spending about the first half of the day helping hunters sort through that hype and BS (from the KZfaq stars and TV hunters). By the afternoon, you can just see the expressions change from one of frustration to "this isn't so bad...I got this" with a lot of genuine thank you's and I wish I had done this a long time ago. You sure can spend a ton of money though hiring a "Star". Keep the videos coming.

Mark...I totally agree with everything you stated. The number 1 question is CAN YOU AFFORD IT!!! I have been learning from my mistakes for 35 yrs., and I definitely benefited from having a consultant out to my property. It is great to get information from an expert, and a total new set of eyes. It has been very beneficial for me and we continue to improve. thanks for sharing.....Bob

Majestic Habitats LLC is my consulting business. Hiring a habitat consultant will save you years of mistakes. But yes mark like you said hiring the right one. Make sure they have experience hunting in your area, experience planting in sand. Some of these consultants don’t have a clue what hunting in Northern Michigan is like. It is a different beast compared to other areas. Also I believe I told you how to fix your Organic matter problem with dairy doo way faster than any soil builder blend or no till solution. Thanks again!

Mark, another good video, thanks. I’ve had the local Texas biologists come out a couple of times, but they are less consultant, and more biologist - still helpful but not for the overall map-drawing plan. The rest I’ve figured out from reading and KZfaq. You were the one to convince me that I need to have a plan in order to achieve my goals, just showing up during deer season won’t get great results. I’ve also had the ah-ha moment that food plots are only a component, and maybe not the most important one. I’m working on bedding now, and need to improve the perimeter roads and access to blinds, but it’s definitely a time and money constraint for me. I’m working with a little more land than I can fix up all at once. The journey is a fun one though!

I hired Sturgis 12 yrs ago because i was dead ended in my next steps for habitat improvement...no regrets...many goods things resulted from the consultation...now with so many youtube videos out there and not afraid to put in the work I see my land as always getting " better "

Great video topic Mark! I've soaked in as much as one can from most of the KZfaq deer property improvement guys. They provide a lot of good ideas and common sense improvents you can make to the property and your hunting habits. The one thing I've learned personally about the habitat consultant's maps however, is just because you draw it up on a map, it doesn't mean the deer will follow the script. It's not as black and white as they make it seem and I think they don't often disclose that. Deer don't understand the map, even if the plan is implemented exactly as it's drawn. That said, I also think consultants do point us in the right direction in many ways to generally make our properties and our hunting better. I have not hired one but have contemplated... but the truth is I'll likely keep learning from my own mistakes and continue to work hard to build it into a better property. -Brett from NW WI

Love all your videos. I’m in northern Michigan and look for videos from people dealing with the same conditions as me. I hired a consultant my first year owning my property. I didn’t know anything about the property and wanted a starting point. I did what I could right away but it’s a large property and I only have weekends to work on it and I haven’t won the lottery yet. In being on the property and hunting it for five years now, I’ve learned more about it and modified my habitat plan. So my recommendation would be to hire a professional consultant but understand that they are there for one day, you’re there all the time. Don’t be afraid to stray from the plan.

I hired Josh Raley with Whitetail Partners. I like their approach. They are a team of guys, with a guy for each state/area they work in. Hes knows the local habitat, nuances, etc. He did all those things you mentioned Mark. Approx 1 hr video call before, nreakfast the morning of with more questions, spent the better part of a day walking all 200 acres. He listened, educated us, and adapted around the property. Produced a gorgeous plan, interactive map and a series of videos that broke the entire plan down by region. I could not be happier with the service he provided. He will even come back out and work along side you to implement parts of the plan you arent as confident about. Could I have figured it out eventually, yes, Im sure of it. Did he drastically shorten my learning curve, bring fresh ideas and earn every single penny I paid him, ABSOLUTELY! 10/10 Would reccomended him 100x over

Great video full of truths! When I bought my first farm I was completely overwhelmed and clueless about what to do, I thought I had a clue but in reality, I didn't know what I didn't know. The previous owner of my property had TL out here years before I purchased my farm, it was quite an elaborate plan, full of good ideas and also some far fetched ones. I talked to some friends and spent a lot of time on forums trying to figure what/who to contact. I had a local Biologist out but I wasn't jiving with his ideas of planting thousands of spruce trees. I finally landed on L&L and had them out early on in their business. They helped open my eyes and educate me regarding many subjects, sunlight, access, etc. I've followed much of their plan but tweaked some of it to fit what I knew about the property, deer and my neighbors. Going forward, I'm confident in myself making plans and tweaks to my properties. Get a good forester, create good access and pray for good neighbors! haha

While cost is one of your (and commented) key points; it is not related to need. Deer ground and budgeting are aligned..you can’t go too fast, fix a bad purchase, or just stare at the balance in your checkbook in regards to wealth. Areas vary, scenarios vary and consultants get paid on your willingness to pay. Look at how most double or triple dip now (maintaining, setup service, two, fences, seed mixes, etc). We also have to admit we all have our gifts too..and if you don’t have the skills to hunt it smart, understand deer basics, area nuances buy the rights piece, etc; Your DOA. Being realistic is key with that old paramount philosophy of you can kill what’s not around. Layout premise is easy- give the deer all they need to live there, travel as consistent as a wild animal could and NEVER know you’re hunting them. If its too good to be true; it is.

Awesome video! There is so much information out there, I decided to do my own. I went all the way from logging my entire property (had the loggers clear food plots-in my contract) to hiring out the loggers clean up crew to make/fix my trails and clear food plots with their dozer (it cost me $300!!) in my opinion those two tasks are the backbone. I now had all my borders with roads up them and all access completed and a clean slate of 2 acres of food plots where I wanted them. I told them to keep my borders open and not to log heavy around them, more advice from KZfaq! I get all my habitat improvements from KZfaq people like you and just run with it.. I put bedding where I want it with helpful advice of KZfaq and have a travel corridors connecting my entire property.. I would be lying if I told you it was easy because I probably have 1000’s of hours of labor invested, but the reward of seeing the deer bed where you want, or move down the trail you made is priceless.. your going to make mistakes or the deer won’t travel where you want them to go, that means it’s time to head back to the drawing board to try a new idea!! Keep doing what you’re doing, because some of your ideas and habitat are now on my property!

Jake Ehlinger from Habitat Solutions 360, LLC came out about 15 years ago, glad we did it. I made some improvements the last couple years after watching your KZfaq channel and Whitetail Evolution LLC channel. Keep up the good work, I watch everyone of your videos and learn a bunch.

I have considered hiring a consultant at least once a year for the past decade but haven’t. I keep learning from you and others and implementing small changes annually that psychologically makes me feel better. I think age (68) plays a factor in whether to hire a consultant.

Noticed your hat instantly. Like it!

Great advice Mark! I fall under the same category as you. I like digging researching and figuring things out on my own. But I did have the same person out as you in 2013. I considered it a head start. The advice I would give to anyone is listen to people that are successful like yourself.

Very good advice !

Also maintaining food plots with all the seed, chemicals, equipment can add up quickly. Only time will tell if my property will produce better results tham ixve had in the past. I've been pretty successful on land i could not manipulate but looking fwd to seeing what comes of this small parcel this fall.

Mark, I have had 4 Registered Foresters, the Oceana County District Forester & the State DNR Biologist/Forester on my 40 acres...a couple were more interested in my Tree Value only but the others, including DNR agree 100% with the Habitat Improvements I have done & going to make. 3 Year Plan.

I have hired a consultant and happy that I did. I watched many videos for 2 years prior and it did feel overwhelming. There was a couple of stand placements and corridor ideas that ended up to be critical to me. Doing this once makes it a lot easier for me to understand and repeat if needed.

I bought my 1st property at age of 61. My life long dream after providing fir my family, college, retirement planning etc. All that being done i pulled the trigger on property to finish out my hunting "career". After watching thousands of videos it stsrtedvto click. I came up with a plan i thought was good but wanted the validation of my ideas so i hired consultant. Without telling him my plan he basically confirmed i was right . His plan very close to mine. Gave me confidence to go ahead with land clearing in a couple areas. It can get costly. I'm putting in my own sweat equity. Basically boils down to access quietly, hunt the perimeters based on always blowing scent to the outside. The next layer inside property is food, then doe bedding towards the interior of your property next to food. Then enough depth of cover beyond the doe bedding for solitary bucks to bed without the doe drama nearby. Make their movements by attaching a string of features to encourage travel routes e.g. kill plots, water holes, licking branches, etc. I believe i was the one who asked about your experience with consults which prompted this video youbdid today? Another good one! Getting lots of comments.

Another good video. I wouldn't totally dismiss Federal programs, however. Many good programs are for 12 years with not only cost share, but annual payments as well.

If l was new to habit improvement I’d definitely have one look at your land that’s if you can afford to

Just started watching pretty good....what should your suggestions be had a habitat guy tell me to clear cut it so I did now what it's small 31 acers only 450' wide3/4 mile long butting up to Stateline in back house is up front near the rd with a 3 1/2 acer food plot neighbors on each side like to ride there quads looking for deer..lol

I had Randy Vanderveen come out at the end of December for a consultation, then again in April to help start implementing the plan. I would do it again and would highly advise it.

Looking for that road map.

I think that most of us know what we need to do, I just think we don't know where to do it. Bedding, travel corridor, buck and doe Bedding etc..

Good morning Mark. Thank you for the video. Mike here from Ontario. Yes I am frustrated and confused. I also watch a heck of a lot videos, listen to podcasts, and read a lot of books on habitat management. Been doing food plots for 20 years or so. Took me a long time to realize food plots are only a small portion of habitat management . I am still confused about the layout of my land and how it all goes together. Mostly the food plot location part of it. This video has me now thinking it would be a good idea to bring in a habitat consultant. I have brought in a forester consultant to help me with the forest part of the puzzle. BUT he is not a habitat consultant. In Ontario we have a tax incentive program that if you put your property into this program you get a portion of your taxes off. This is a really good program and helped me out a bit on the habit part but not near what I’m looking for. I do think I need a habit consultant to look at the whole property and the big picture. It’s my day off today so I’m going to start searching for a consultant. Thank you again for your video and pushing me in the right direction to achieve my goals. Take care my friend.

If you were to ask me, oh wait, you did. I would say that you should be hired after attending "habitat development university"

Great video topic Mark! I've soaked in as much as one can from most of the KZfaq deer property improvement guys. They provide a lot of good ideas and common sense improvents you can make to the property and your hunting habits. The one thing I've learned personally about the habitat consultant's maps however, is just because you draw it up on a map, it doesn't mean the deer will follow the script. It's not as black and white as they make it seem and I think they don't often disclose that. Deer don't understand the map, even if the plan is implemented exactly as it's drawn. That said, I also think consultants do point us in the right direction in many ways to generally make our properties and our hunting better. I have not hired one but have contemplated... but the truth is I'll likely keep learning from my own mistakes and continue to work hard to build it into a better property.