Why should I use a farm manager?
“Why should I use a farm manager?” It’s a question that we get often. “How can Iowa Land Management and Real Estate Company help my operation?” is another often asked question. “I’m perfectly happy with my current lease and tenant, and therefore how can you make that better?”, is a third question we get. The answer to these and other farm management questions can take some time to explain. However, the answer generally encompasses a discussion about the “fair market value returns” for the farming operation.
Farm management services are certainly not needed by all individual farming operations. Those that don’t need farm management services are using good practices to make sure their farm land rents are current and at “market rent”, and are comfortable supervising the day-to-day farming operations occurring on their farm. In many instances however, the ability to determine the “fair market rental value” of the farming is difficult, or the information used to determine it is outdated. In visiting with prospective clients, we’ll often hear of rental values set by surveys that are state wide or county wide. It’s a good starting point. However, information on the “farm market rental value” of an individual farm needs to be based on better information than state wide or county wide surveys as farm rental values can vary widely across individual counties.
Iowa Farm Land is a huge investment! With 100 acres of good land being worth a half million dollars, it’s worth some time and effort to maximizing farm income. Just as one expects the best returns from IRA’s, CD’s, and other investments, your Iowa land investment should also generate the best returns possible. The best returns are generally determined from the market. The farm management personnel at Iowa Land Management and Real Estate Company can go a great job of determining the market derived rental value of your farm while being fair with everyone involved.
In closing, I always think of the person who has $50,000 in CD’s and is concerned because interest being generated is down a couple percent, yet says nothing about the fact that the $1,000,000 land investment is leased at 20% under the market!
Let the staff at Iowa Land Management and Real Estate Company help you determine the fair market rental value of your farm. We’re not after a penny more, or a penny less, than the fair market rental value.