b'real estatethe economys good, Justice said, people who own property elsewhere but have always wanted to be here are able to sell and reinvest in their dream farm in the Bluegrass. Biederman said theyll typically pay $12,000 to $30,000 an acre to make that dream real, depending upon the condition of the farm and improvements on it. Some people come looking for a farm thats a turnkey operation, one where all you do is Anne M. eberhArdt Anne M. eberhArdtmove in and start raising horses. The barns are built, electric and water systems installed, fences are all in good condition, and roads are paved. But others like to start from scratch, to develop farms the way they want. They want to control the destiny of their horses, he said. Raising good horses in a lot of ways is about controlling their environment. Biederman figures there are more than 20 billionaires who own property within the Bluegrass. Those people are here for a reason: They own great land, they take care of it, they dont want to sell it, and they are here because they all have great broodmares and they want to produce great horses. The trouble at the moment is main-taining inventory. As with very expensive horses, there is always a market in very, very costly farms. But the market is thinner in the middle range where farms sell for $2 million to $4 million. First, of course, no more Bluegrass farmland is being made, and some has been lost to development. Also, some of the large operations are eager to expand and purchase nearby or adjacent acreage before other buyers can have a chance. But things always change. People die and often their farms are sold. It takes a passion to be in the horse business, and many timesProximity to some of the worlds best stallions at farms such as Ashford Stud and Juddmonte (top and above) the heirs havent inherited the passion,is another reason Central Kentucky is attractive to breeders.Biederman said. When that happens, another person whodoes have that passionand the means to indulge itcomes along. One of them is Chuck Fipke, a Canadian geologist who discovered diamond mines in that countrysIt takes a passion to be in the horse Northwest Territories. He purchased Escon-dida Farm in Bourbon County. Davis said that when Fipke was askedbusinesstom bIeDermanwhy he wanted a farm in Kentucky, he had a simple answer: Because theres never been a Kentucky Derby winner from western Canada.uS-bRED112 14_RealEstate_use.indd 112 3/20/19 4:38 PM'