That's exactly it. 50 acres at $1700/acre is $85K, and when you factor in even a modest interest rate you're looking at over $100K by the time it's paid for. Mortgage on $100K depending on interest could be anything from $600-$1000/mo. With sacrificing some other luxuries and tightening the budget, that is a plausible sell for some hunters who earn upper middle class income. Not worth the sacrifice for most. But to multiply it by five by listing 270acres you're looking at a monthly nut that surpasses a lot of hunters' income. Only the wealthy can afford recreational property like that.
I was recently looking at 180 acres in a big buck area of a big buck state, listed for $2K/acre. I was very, very seriously considering pulling the trigger on it but I can't bring myself to adding upwards of $1500/mo debt to my monthly budget. The stress would outweigh the enjoyment. I'd never live there nor would I even visit it more than a few times per year. How many deer would I have to kill and how big would they have to be to justify the cost? Owning the land is the cheap part. It'll need a cabin, electric, sewer system, and running water. Then I'll need to start working the habitat & managing the ground. Otherwise what's the point in owning it in the first place? I'm not going to spend nearly $400K just so my name can be on the deed of a property I rarely step foot on. For somebody else that might be a drop in the bucket. For me it sure isn't. But even in that area that produces numerous booners annually, that property was on market for 6mo last time I looked. It still might be. Right now bigger property isn't moving very fast anywhere.