farmers wanted

[newguy]

I am a younger farmer (under 35 years of age) and I cannot justify the price of lan in our area. I have been very fortunate for the opportunities I was given. I have some great landlords that I rent from. Land just does not pencil out for me at this time. I know you can get a few good years to make it look like the land will pay but I dont think I will get 20+ good years in order to pay it off. I think if you have cash in the bank to pay for the land that is fine. It is definately hard for the young guys to get going.

nothing has changed.was exactly the same issues 40 years ago.You have to be willing to drive an old truck not build a new house and take your winter vacation in town.

[farmaholic]

.....sounds like the spouse will be real excited about that lifestyle!

[foragefarmer]

Farming is a great way life and is a great business, when things go right. To put blame on the older generations that there are less and less young farmers coming up and young people leaving rural areas is nonsense. There are so many different career opportunities for young people and they move away to pursue them. If they truly want to remain in rural areas they will make it work weather it's farming or another business it all depends on the individual and the support they receive from their parents.


Don't blame others!

[Klause]

.....sounds like the spouse will be real excited about that lifestyle!

Depends on the spouse.

[GDR]

Old guys holding on to land is good and bad. Good because most farmers cannot afford to own their entire land base but can make rental land fit their business plan. What really bugs me is the farm yards with barns / quonsets and corrals that often just deteriorate to nothing over 20 years when they could have been used by someone else. Then more good farmland and resources are used to build another farmyard.

Banks turned me down buying land just out of school so rented what I could, 10yrs later land prices had doubled banks came through based on off farm income only, 10yrs after that bought land for double again at way more than can be justified to farm it and banks financed 100% and offered more. All three of those situations make no sense to me. If only I could have bought the first time!

No one should be given anything or they will not appreciate it in the same way but a little assistance in getting the ball rolling would do wonders for anyone starting out.

Vendor backed mortgages or giving the newbies a chance on some rental land would help a lot.

Lots of young farmers in our area too, no worries about that, not very many that are not generational though.

[newguy]

.....sounds like the spouse will be real excited about that lifestyle!

if the older farmer lived that life style to pay from his land how do the new farmers expect a deal to buy their land and drive a new truck live in a new house and go on a sunny vacation every year.

[tweety]

Depends on the spouse.

Absolutely, especially if they make 6 figures. That is the secret, marry someone with means.

[farmaholic]

if the older farmer lived that life style to pay from his land how do the new farmers expect a deal to buy their land and drive a new truck live in a new house and go on a sunny vacation every year.

...because they're entitled! Everything now!

[grassfarmer]

if the older farmer lived that life style to pay from his land how do the new farmers expect a deal to buy their land and drive a new truck live in a new house and go on a sunny vacation every year.

The new farmers I know don't. Saying that some of them have the smarts, "hunger" and work ethic to be more successful than the majority of current farmers. So these things could all be in their futures if they choose to spend their money that way.

From my perspective a starting point for this discussion should be defining what successful and sustainable agriculture looks like. I would argue that we have been fooled by "bigness" as a sign of success for too long. If farms need to farm more acres with each passing generation just to sustain the same family unit I'd suggest that is not success, but failure. Not personal failure by the people involved, but a failing of agricultural as a sustainable entity in business terms.

[farmaholic]

Grassfarmer, As I was chowing down on Sunday's leftovers and reading your post at the same time....I stopped reading to look down and load my fork and the gears were grinding how I was going to responde....but as I read on while chewing away you already validated my opinion......its an Industry failure not a personal failure.....the bastards just keep squeezing us.....at times.from both sides!

[blackpowder]

A Good topic. Broad range of responses. And I must say a good example of why
I wouldn't want to screen my posters after reading Mr. Grassfarmers contribution.

4Gfarms-It sounds like you're already addicted so... I hope you have good secondary, dual income.
And try not to put all your debt efforts toward machinery.

With or without govt farms will consolidate and cycle with the generations and macro economics.
No matter the industry, inflation will always increase the size of a stand alone unit.

Landlords, retired etc... I've seen a few. And a few good ones.

Maybe different tax breaks might help. But people cant deny their nature.
And Greed is a part of some natures. It seems sometimes, the more someone was given,
the greedier they are. I will say the elder generation today are the luckiest in history. All they had to do
was buy/inherit something and hang on. You know the old saying. "I made my millions the old fashioned way--I inherited it!"

Comments about the 50 somethings seemed the most insightful. It really is up to us. The clock is ticking louder. Do we want someone to flip a check in our casket? If we spent our best years fighting with no equity, must we force someone else to do so? The percentage of us to see 80 is still low. There would be no change without death.
So,... surround yourself with good hearts. And if no one wants your little hoard/legacy, so what? There's lots (pun intended) of those in the cemetery.

[4GFarms]

BP, if you mean I am addicted to farming you are correct. I love this. Dont get me wrong some days/times are challenging. I do not have a secondary income. I am trying to expand on what my family has started. I have been a farmer since I was a kid. It is really hard to justify some expenses (land and equipment) sometimes. I just dont have the right pencil for the way things are going but we just keep at it. I am not about to risk what my dad and his dad and so on had just to say I bought land. Low risk I guess. As the saying goes, "there is always next year".