Thoughts on buying Cell Towers...

[Account Closed]

A friend of mine owns a cell tower which pays him out $1,500 monthy. All the time these towers are upgraded (5G, etc) and telecom companies lease them out. Also after holding for some amount of time, often times you will be offered cash from the telecom company when a lease expires, etc. Has this community thought about or have experience with Cell Towers?

[William Jenkins]

I am in the cell tower game.  There are two ways to play.  

1.  Own the actual tower itself.  This is the most lucurative, but its not really for home gamers or mom & pop investors.  A tower can be built for $100-$200k.  Major carrier lease rates can be $2k-6k per month.  You can have many carriers on your tower but you are limited to the carriers that operate in your market.  Most markets in the US have 4-5 carriers.  Just because they are in your market however does not mean that that specific location works for them.  There are many 1 carrier towers, and quite a few that are 0 carrier towers as well.  Don't ever build a tower without a committed tenant...... You really have to be in the industry with connections to the carriers to put one of these deals together.  

2.  Own the ground/building with a tower/cell site on it and collect the lease revenue.  Carriers and tower companies will approach you if you have a good location.  Unless you are in the business it is almost useless to try to seek out a carrier or tower company to build on your property.  If you are lucky enough to get that call, sign a lease, and the tower is built.... it becomes the easiest mailbox money you will ever earn.  You can also sell your lease via easement to buyers like me for a lump sum payout.