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A legacy farm is one where the state has paid the owner a certain amount roughly equivalent to what a developer would pay for the land, and in return the land is listed as farm land in perpetuity. It cannot be sold for any purpose other than farming. My family has such a farm in New Jersey. There can never be houses built there.

Edit to clarify: The state pays the difference between what the land is worth as farm property versus developable property. In my uncle's case, the difference amounted to about $1000/acre, so he got $100,000 for his 100 acres. In the future, the land can still be sold for whatever it can bring, but ONLY as farm land.

Very interesting.

Which states do that?

I've heard of the Federales paying farmers not to farm.

I've heard of states giving agriculture land owners such as farmers or ranchers an Ag Exemption from state sales taxes of stuff they buy that's ag related.

But sure have not heard of states paying ag folks full retail development land prices to keep farming.

all states do it... it is called a conservation easement - every one is different from the next ome

Read my re-edited edit for clarification. I don't know how many states do this, but it is in everyone's interest that they do. We are losing tillable land at a horrifying rate, and once farm land becomes houses, it is gone forever.

Okay.

Sounds like you are selling your private property rights to land you own, to the gooberment....

Wonder what happens if they go broke? Then the farm goes on the auction block?

Are the new owners bound by the same stupidity, only they don't get the goobermint payout?

Bullshit.

What is in everyone's best interest is for government to keep their damned paws out of anyone's private property rights. And quit any subsidizing of industry where natural markets would be picking it's own winners and losers, rather than have them picked by big govt and the ensuing regulations.

It's a step, but it can still be sold to some huge corporation, further eliminating the chance for young people to enter farming.

If someone wants to buy farm land and build condos, you are guys saying that should be prohibited? Downright unAmerican of ya. And no, there shouldn't be any .gov subsidies to keep it farmland either. You own, you do what you want. That's the American Dream.

I know exactly what a "conservation easement" is.

That ain't it.

There may be some instances where some portions of land are allowed to remain in agriculture, but the VAST majority of "conservation easements" by CRP or USDA/NRCS are taking agriculture land OUT of production and putting it under the heavy thump of govt control forever, never to return to productive ag land, but to restore it to it's natural state for "environmental reasons"... And give the public access to your private owned land.

Don't we have enough public land that you can't plow up and grow crops on, without the government buying more of it to keep out of ag production?

Bad subject for me.

I wonder why we have "welfare farmers or ranchers"...

We are the government. We are here to help.... NOT.

It is, because there is stipulations in each case... and the farm has to be in a sensitive area.. its not like they just pick any old farm...

Nowhere did I say that the legacy farm program is mandatory. It is a viable option for families struggling with the dilemma of keeping their land as a farm but also struggling with the economics of being farmers. Or where sons and daughters may argue over farming versus developing after the parents pass away.

If you'd rather your land turn into condos forever than feed people, that's up to you.

I'd rather maintain control of my private property rights, and my heir's free will to do with it as they see fit.

Hell, I may even want to sell the ranch when I get too damned old to run it, and buy a house on smaller acreage and have couple of million $$'s in the bank.



If agriculture is to be profitable in the future, then the first thing that needs to happen is to get govt fingers out of the pie.

As I said, you are perfectly free to do so. Others may not be in your position.

But remember: If agriculture is to exist at all in the future, it can't happen in subdivisions.

1031 money keeps land prices inflated around here.

If agriculture is to exist in the future, at all, we need to quit hamstringing it with dumbass subsidies and stupid govt regulations, and let it get back to the natural markets of supply and demand.

The reason it more profitable to sell land to a developer is that you make much more money that trying to scratch out a living, and sell what you produce for government approved compensation.

The USDA ain't a damned bit "for" agriculture. They are about buying agriculture products as cheaply as they can so that they can feed the boos in the inner cities on welfare and food stamps as cheaply as they can.

That way, not only the inner cities, but the rural areas are under the thumb of govt.


If it cost a farmer ______$$ to grow a bushel of corn, then by God they ought to be able to sell it for a profit. Not be fed the carrot on a string as long as you walk in the direction the person with the string wants you to walk.

It ain't the farmers that benefit the most from subsidies. It's the people buying a gallon of milk in the store for $2.39, and not paying the $8 it costs to produce.

Lol... you do realize the vast majority of american farming as you would think.... specifically this iowa piece.. is grain and not food for the “boo’s” as you put it...

This post is going down like 90% of the political threads on here... 99% of the posters havent a clue wtf they are talking about, but do so with such authority...

Land prices are indeed high. We have ground in western Iowa that is mixed in regards to cropland/timber. Many of the farms were purchased when land was between $400-$900 per acre. Worth way more now. Not sure that $10,000 would be seen around here but I have seen some pretty rough ground go for over $7000 per acre

Bad time to buy land for framing. With the climate change you could be in a desert or under ice and snow. Suggest we wait and see.

LOL.

You do realize you are not talking to an inner city dumbass, don't you?



So grain isn't food?

What feeds the beef? What feeds the milk cows? Where does bread come from?

You sure are right about most of the posters here not having the most remote clue.

ol mean rough land around here is allus converted to subdivisions. even when in the past it had row crops (cotton early on, later corn).

a lot of pine timberland that housed top knotch deer hunting is also being converted to subdivisions at a frightful pace.

i understand class A farmland in california is being converted to subdivisions. don't know if it's still happening.

foodprices in the future are going to have to be sky-high to pay for those investments plus annual taxes.

of course if money ($$) continues to cheapen, they may be buying a bargain. i don't know.