In the US an average breeding female alpaca sells for $10,000, this price has been stable for 20 years. That female will have one baby a year, the odds say that 50% of the time that baby will be another female, also worth an average of $10,000. So, plain and simple, the average breeding alpaca will double your equity every 2 years!
Now, just like the stock market, if you time it right, and throw in a little luck, you can do better than the average. For instance, if you buy a female that is 11 months pregnant, and she has a female, you just doubled your investment in less than a month!
I know it sounds like just another get-rich-quick scam, so before we go any further I must tell you "the catch." You need to remember that we are talking about equity here. You will still need to turn that equity into cash, which is where the marketing end of the alpaca business kicks in. If you are business savvy then that's the part that's fun. If not, then you can always find someone who will market your alpacas for you.
Check our Marketing Program page for more information. |
If you plan it right, and go about it like a business, you can easily use alpacas to set yourself up for an early "semi-retirement." I say "semi" because, if you have an alpaca ranch that is self-sustaining, you will always find work to do. Whether it's adding new fencing, or updating your web site, there's really no such thing as "retirement" on an Alpaca Ranch. But if you think about it, many experts say that full retirement is the fast lane to the cemetery. People who continue working after retirement age live far longer than those who end up playing shuffleboard in Boca!
Here at Dutch Valley Ranch we had a simple 10-year business plan starting in 2001. For the first 5 years we would invest and grow our herd, without selling any animals. Then the second 5 years we would start selling our alpacas and grow our business, with the ranch able to fully support itself, and our family, by 2011. Well, the key to any good business plan is that it must be flexible. We sold our first alpaca after only 3 years, then we sold one of our males the next year for $25,000. Our ranch actually became self-sufficient in 2009, 2 years early!
Check our Ranch Progression page for more information. |
Stocks vs. Alpacas
Over the past 20 years the stock market has shown incredible fluctuations, bankrupting countless pension and retirement plans, while the corporate CEOs responsible retire with multi-million dollar "Golden Parachute" severance packages. The standard philosophy is to "wait it out," as the market will always rebound. But usually this advice is coming from fund managers and investment counselors who get paid whether or not you are actually making money, but only as long as you keep your money where it is! Personally, this "wait it out" philosophy turned our Corporate Pension Plan & $100,000 portfolio into a PCBG Pension and a $3.80 dividend check!
Remember the real advantage of stocks is that they are a liquid asset, meaning you can "cash out" whenever you want to. Unfortunately, the only way to take advantage of this sole plus is by cashing out before the market's next crash. So, not being a psychic, what's the best strategy for you? Diversify!
If you're not comfortable cashing out funds right now, then don't, especially if there are penalties or tax consequences. Instead, redirect some or all of your current investment allocation to a new venture. For us, we wanted something that we had control over, we wanted to steer our own destiny, instead of watching others squander our future. We also needed to get out of the city, back to the roots of our country, and find a more sustainable way of living. Enter livestock ranching, specifically alpacas, The Green Livestock. Once we moved to the country, we redirected all of our monthly portfolio investment into an intrest-free loan on our first alpaca package. As our Ranch Progression page shows, that decision netted us a 7-year equity increase of over $1/2 million!
Below is a simple chart comparing the investment pros & cons of Stocks and Alpacas.
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Stocks |
Alpacas |
| Liquid asset |
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| Trade/comission/brokerage fees |
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| Subject to market fluctuations |
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| Capital Gains taxation |
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| Can be traded as Tax-free Exchanges |
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| Insurable |
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| Depreciable |
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| Section 179 eligible |
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| Enhanced performance by individual effort |
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| 50% average yearly equity growth |
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