> It doesn�t pay to buy and own land in most parts of USA because the cost
> is
> higher than the return. Leasing is cheaper, but long (decades) leases are
> essential.
>
> Vaughan Jones
> Hamilton
> New Zealand
>
Again vaughn has no understanding of USA realities. Landlords aren't
going to give you a 20-30 year lease here. And if you don't control
enough land, you're at the mercy of the landowner and market forces. If the
landlord can make more money selling ag. land for spraWLmart or housing
development, they will do so. And with low milk prices, low grain prices,
low beef prices, no farmer can afford to lease for the price that
spraWLmart or housing will pay.
The USA is different, period. spraWLmart ain't gonna build many NZ stores
because you do not have the population base to cash-flow them. I work three
other farms besides my own. I get rental agreements 5 years in length. And
I have no illusions that renting from farmers in their mid-80s is secure,
so you farm accordingly. You have no clue what his heirs will do when the
rental agreement expires.
Dave G.
