Honoree: Mid-Size – Financial Services Industry

Company Overview

The premier conservation and ranch real estate firm in Texas, King Land & Water, draws on a team of experienced professionals with vast knowledge in all aspects of ranch real estate. Headquartered in Fort Davis, Texas, King Land & Water applies unequaled expertise on behalf of motivated buyers who want to own and enjoy the land in Texas and become stewards of the state’s diverse land and water resources.

Sustainable Business Strategy

King Land & Water refer to their business as a “Conservation Real Estate Company” and they work hard to represent buyers and sellers of unique lands in Texas. Their area of focus emphasizes lasting conservation tools such as conservation easements and working to expand State and Federal protected areas. Conservation is the fundamental foundation of King Land & Water’s work. In fact, their company’s name came from the “Land & Water Conservation Fund”, which dedicates federal dollars to natural resource conservation in the US. 

Conservation real estate refers to selling special lands to buyers who are committed to being good stewards of the lands they obtain. Their properties frequently feature unique forms of flora and fauna, water resources, and often, stunning, one-of-a-kind views. Conservation real estate investments have helped buyers realize significant value increases in their properties while simultaneously affording them the opportunity to enjoy the natural splendor of these special lands.

King Land & Water prioritizes conservation not only with real estate, but also through investments. Some organizations they have partnered with include Borderlands Research Institute, The Conservation Fund, Friends of the Lydia Ann Channel, Port Aransas Conservancy, The Nature Conservancy, McDonald Observatory, UT Marine Science Institute, Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation, Devils River Conservancy, Texas Wild Film tour, and The River and the Wall.

Environmental Stewardship

James King, Co-Owner of King Land & Water, worked as Director of Land Protection for The Nature Conservancy for 20 years statewide before creating the company with his wife, Tammy King. James and Tammy focused on a new direction for Tammy’s real estate business in Fort Davis, wanting to transform it into a statewide conservation-based brokerage firm. James uses his decades of relationships with landowners, buyers, sellers, NGO’s, as well as state and federal natural resource agencies to protect over 750,000 acres of lands and waters in Texas. Their son, Harrison King, followed in their conservation real estate footsteps and has now joined the company in their Austin office, following his parent’s legacy of conservation work around the state. 

Conservation Programs

Conservation Easements

Some buyers purchase land in particular areas that become subject to increased commercial or residential development pressure. As a result, oftentimes, they choose to create conservation easements to help preserve the lasting wild and scenic attributes of their property. Landowners can use conservation easements to protect views, wildlife habitat, and valuable water features while taking advantage of significant tax benefits. With this, they aim to restrict future development rights and uses of the property in tailored ways specific to each easement. When an easement is placed on a property, the owner still maintains possession, fee ownership, the right to quiet enjoyment, and use of the land. 

A cluster of conservation easement properties in the general vicinity of one another has the effect of creating a conservation “neighborhood” of ranches. These “neighborhoods” work to reinforce and bolster land values, and these easements allow buyers and sellers to feel at ease that their lands will remain conserved for present-day enjoyment and future generations. James King has seen properties with conservation easements increase significantly in value over time, especially in areas where such easements are on properties that are adjacent to or near other lands with conservation easements.

For example, King Land & Water has done great work with easements in San Antonio, Texas. Their firm represented over 30 landowners in selling conservation easements to the City of San Antonio through their Edwards Aquifer Protection Program.  This program focused on protecting water quality and quantity within the Edwards Aquifer for the benefit of the people in San Antonio, and to date has over 150,000 acres in conservation easements over the recharge and contributing zones of the aquifer. These easements also contribute to protecting a wide diversity of natural resources and open space.  

Building a Sustainable Future

King Land & Water believes that Texas is growing at a rate in which the conservation of land and water needs to happen at an increasing pace to keep up with a growing population and its impacts on rural lands, working ranches, and our natural lands and waters.  Increased funding by the Texas Legislation for purchasing conservation easements, as well as buying recreation and conservation lands for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and other state, local, and federal agencies is critical to address these growing threats. In planning for the future, King Land & Water aims to work with these agencies and landowners to increase land and water conservation throughout the state of Texas.

Texan-Led Conservation

The King Family has been in the land business in Texas since 1854. James King has been a licensed Real Estate Agent since 1983, and as a sixth-generation Texan, he has deep relationships with the buyers and sellers of unique properties in Texas. James and Tammy raised their children in Texas, and someday plan to raise grandchildren here. They see the land as their legacy, and Texas their home. The next generation in their family, Harrison King, is already a key player in growing and continuing their business in Texas.