CASE STUDY FEB 5, 2026

Selling timber in Harrison County near Scio

Learn how we got this landowner $35,225 for her timber

Getting a professional consultation for a timber sale

On October 7, 2025 a woman with an 18-acre parcel of land in Scio, Ohio called to ask us for advice on selling timber from it. She wanted to sell timber, of course, but she also wanted to learn about improving the property for deer and turkey habitat.

Her family has been hunting and using the land for outdoor recreation for many years. She said she hoped to find someone qualified to manage both the sale, and the timber stand improvement work.

Of course this what we do every day, so we made an appointment to visit and walk the timber stand the following week.

Creating a timber harvest plan to meet the landowners' objectives

We found that the property held many large poplar trees and a good mix of other mature trees.

As her stand was directly affected by the ongoing yellow poplar blight, we advised her that it was best to harvest most of them to salvage their value while she could. We also advised her to add a mix of other large hardwood trees to attract buyers without cutting this stand heavily.

And removing the poplars from the canopy would open large holes in it for sunlight to reach the forest floor again, and stimulate rapid regeneration of new trees – making perfect browse areas and habitat for white-tail deer

Selecting the timber to sell

The client asked us to begin planning the harvest and marking the trees, but to delay the harvest until after hunting season ended, which was to be Febuary 1, 2026. We marked 191 trees and set the sale date for February 5th. The harvest area was to be on 15 of her 18 acres.

Species	Trees	Total BFV	% of BFV	Average DBH
Aspen	6	2,107	3.1	20.7
Beech	6	891	1.3	19
Black Gum	1	392	< 1	22
Black Oak	4	1,315	1.9	22.5
Cherry	14	3,643	5.3	20.4
Grey Elm	2	588	0.9	23
Northern Red Oak	5	2,795	4.1	26.8
Yellow Poplar	133	52,111	76.4	22.4
Scarlet Oak	4	592	0.9	18
Soft Maple	13	2,670	3.9	20.3
Walnut	1	16	< 1	12
White Oak	2	1,078	1.6	26
TOTAL	191	68,198	100	22

BFV = Board Feet Volume, which calculates the amount of lumber potential in a stand
DBH = Diameter at Breast Height, which is the standard way to take this measurement

Getting competitive bids from timber buyers

We prepared a Notice of Standing Timber Sale and sent it (along with a bid prospectus including all you see on this page) to two dozen sawmills and loggers who we know can be counted on for high-quality work, and for doing proper restoration to the forest floor.

All the loggers received notice of the sale on January 9, 2026 and were given 33 days to visit the property and asses the quality and accessibility of the timber offered for sale.

Sealed bids were due at our offices by noon on February 5, 2026 and we received bids from 6 loggers in these amounts:

Bid amount	$ per BF
$35,225	.516
$25,750	.377
$25,730	.377
$23,888	.350
$22,600	.331
$22,255	.326

Analyzing the bids from the loggers

The seller has accepted the highest bid and that logger has been notified that the contract will be awarded to his firm.

Please notice the bid disparity. The winning bid is 36% higher than the next bid – a difference of $9,475. It is also 58% higher than the low bid.

These are the typical results we get with our competitive bidding process, as you can see in some other recent timber sales we’ve done.

You will never get full market value for your timber when you deal directly with loggers and sawmills. Always reach out to us to help you, and you will always get higher prices and better results.

When and how the timber harvest will proceed

Along with his bid, the winning bidder submitted a check for a deposit of 35% of the sale price, amounting to $12,328 and payable to the landowner. He has 10 days from February 5 to sign the sale contract, or he will lose that deposit.

He is then bound to pay the balance ($22,896) to the owner before he can bring equipment onto the property to to begin the harvest.

This is a winter job when the ground is frozen, which is the best time of the year for logging. Thus, the harvest should begin and finish before the second week of March.

The sale contract has enforcement provisions to ensure that only the 191 marked trees will be taken. We will make multiple visits during the harvest to make sure that no additional trees are taken, and that the loggers perform their work properly.

The logger must also adhere to Ohio’s BMP Guidelines for erosion control and seeding of disturbed areas. And we will take a $3,000 performance bond from the logging company to ensure that they do.

Key takeaways from this timber sale

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