The price is a little higher than inflation, if you say a deer lease cost $700.00 30 years ago, but then again look at the percentage of budget that $700 represented back then, and that is about what $3,000.00 is today... In some places it is more than that, in which case it is tracking the realestate market...
I am with you, I wish they were cheaper, but they are not a bad deal now.
I guess that depends on your income. I make, combined with my wife's social security disability, about 35K a year right now, about what I made 25 years ago. Only good thing is everything is paid for, no debt at all other than utilities and the ever present taxes. I belonged to a hunting club for a while that had leases around the state. That was fun, costly at the time, but a lot less than a good lease. I dropped it, though. The best lease was 13 miles west of Langtry, 13,000 acres, and I miss hunting there, but it started going up big time and I had to drop it.
I bought my little place in 1988 and it has appreciated big time, though there's still little development around there and the hunting has only gotten better. 300 bucks a year for taxes, figure that's a lot cheaper than a lease. It sorta gets old lookin' at the same trees, but at least I get to hunt and the hunting is real good there, not exactly managed, never seen a real wall hanger, but have shot a lot of older bucks off it over the years. It beats sitting at the computer net hunting. LOL And after all, you can't eat the horns. But, I'm out on the 3K leases, no thanks. I can run to New Mexico and hunt mulies for way less than that if I want an adventure. Ain't guided, but I know the Guadelupes pretty well, have spent some time there and taken a mulie there before. Just hunting in that beautiful country is worth the trip even if you don't shoot squat. I'm a big time duck hunter and have lots of duck hunting for little or nothing around here, so I'm pretty happy with my hunting activities now days, lease or no lease.
As to the magnum thing, I was in New Mexico one year with my 7. Me and a buddy walked into a store in Queens (only store for 60 miles) and a bunch of hunters were in there yakkin' about guns, asked what we were totin'. My bud has a BLR in .300 win mag, me and my 7, they all roared. Don't think there was a gun there bigger than .308 and one even was totin' a .257! Now, truth be told, my .257 is all I needed. It pushes 3050 with a 117 grain Hornady, 3150 fps with a 100 grain Game King, factory .25-06 territory, but in my defense, when I bought the 7, all I had was the .257 and I'd thought I'd get to hunt elk, which I never did. When we told 'em what we had, those other guys all roared with laughter and wanted to know why we were walkin' around with cannons. LOL
I now have a .308 Win in a little stainless M7 Remington and all the rest have sat in the gun case for the last 10 years. The little M7 does it all, very accurate, handy length, light to tote, love that thing. It's plenty of gun for the hogs, deer, even if I wanted to go elk hunting with it. I ain't gonna sell the 7, surely not the .257 (grandpa's old gun and killed my first deer at age 11 with it), but the .308 does it all for me now.
One of the "monsters" I've shot off my place. LOL! Does it really take a magnum to kill something this size????
Big pic
http://imageigloo.com/images/2893PICT0073.JPG