A Frio County ranch seen in June. Photo: Andrew J. Whitaker/San Antonio Express-News via Getty Images
The Texas Hill Country is a top region for ranch real estate listings, and they're far more affordable here than in "luxury" ranch markets in the American West.
The big picture: Shows like "Yellowstone" and "1923" might have been filmed in Texas, but at least the ranch living they spotlight isn't increasing our local prices.
By the numbers: Nine of the top 10 counties for ranch listings as of June are in Texas, per a new Realtor.comreport.
Burnet, Fayette and Williamson counties outside Austin round out the top three, with Kerr County outside San Antonio making No. 4.
Gillespie and Blanco counties north of San Antonio help complete the top 10.
Zoom in: The San Antonio-New Braunfels area is the No. 3 metro in the country for ranch listings, with more than 560 listings in June — falling just behind Houston and Austin.
Yes, but: Median ranch prices in Texas are falling. The median listing price in the San Antonio area was $968,000 in June, down 2.7% from a year earlier.
Meanwhile, ranches listed in the West are commanding top dollar. The median ranch price in Jackson, Wyoming, was $7.9 million, the top in the country.
Reality check: Texas ranch owners aren't without their challenges. They face threats from the New World screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite hitting the cattle industry. New cases are now on the decline.
In recent years they have dealt with the impacts of drought, inflation and shrinking herds.
The bottom line: If you do feel like getting into the ranching business, head to Central Texas.
