In farming, sweat equity is a term that is loosely used to define the practice of using a commodity or capital asset to replace some of the cash wages for employees. Often times farms do not know how to document sweat equity as a payment for wages.
Host Katie Wantoch and Ben Jenkins, Agriculture Extension educator in Green Lake County, discuss a farmer and his son who are considering buying a new chopper and how to cash flow this purchase.
Host Katie Wantoch and Kaitlyn Davis, Extension Agriculture Educator in LaCrosse County, discuss if a farmer and his son should prioritize paying down debt this year instead of replacing some equipment.
Host Katie Wantoch and Jim Versweyveld, Agriculture Extension educator in Walworth County, discuss a female farmer who needs to have a conversation with her dad about her future and their family farm.
Research shows that the division of assets for inheritance is a common tension around farm succession planning. In some cases, the tension can be so great that the owner generation avoids making a decision until it’s too late. Take time to learn the contrast between fair vs. equal distribution of farm assets.
The best way to divide farm assets is a challenge that farm families face with each generation of owners. The fear of upsetting one’s children often causes parents to divide farm and family assets equally among all heirs. This is the second of a 3-part series about fair vs equal distribution of farm assets.
Host Katie Wantoch and Liz Binversie, former Extension agriculture educator from Brown County, answer a question from a high school senior inquiring about a future career in agriculture and their next steps.
Prospective farm equipment buyers today have several sources for finding the right machine for their operation. UW-Madison Extension offers tips for searching online for farm equipment.
Once you’ve decided to buy a piece of farm equipment, your next challenge is sourcing it. UW-Madison Extension provides tips on finding equipment off-line.
Successful farm tractor ownership requires a plan for scheduled maintenance and repairs as needed. This is especially true when purchasing a used farm tractor. UW-Madison Extension provides tips on keeping a tractor in good working condition.
If you are considering a purchase of a used farm tractor or other machine, even if you are not using it to do traditional farm work, safety must be a prime consideration. UW-Madison Extension provides some critical priority checkpoints to protect the personal safety of yourself, family members, workers and others who might be using the equipment that you purchase.
Once you have a list of tasks and implements needed to perform those tasks, do some research on the minimum horsepower required to power those implements. UW-Madison Extension provides guidance on choosing a tractor to fit your needs.
Knowing what jobs tractors are and are not intended for can help you decide if one is necessary for your operation. UW-Madison Extension provides a list of considerations when thinking about purchasing a tractor.
When you’re in the market to buy a used tractor or other piece of equipment, you’ll likely notice the differences in features between older and newer models as you look through sale listings. The good news is that despite all of these changes and the evolution of mechanized technology used in agriculture, tractors and other types of farm equipment are generally built to last. Older farm equipment that is well-maintained can be fully functional though it may lack more modern and important safety, comfort, or technology features.
There comes a time in the process of starting a farm business when you’ll likely benefit from some expert advice. UW-Madison Extension provides tips for where to find advisors who can serve as a sounding board for your ideas.
Writing out a complete business plan is a time-consuming feat. Before you spend your time and energy writing a multi-page narrative, explore your ideas with a simple tool – the Lean Canvas. Adapted for use by startups, this simple one-page matrix can be a valuable tool to help farm entrepreneurs test a business idea in the context of nine key areas.
Do you count yourself among those who dream of being a farmer? Do you have some property and want to do something productive with it, maybe even make money off it? Are you seeking land and working on developing a viable plan for a future farm business? UW-Madison Extension provides tips fir generating viable ideas for a farm-based business
A common misconception in farm estate and succession planning is that federal estate taxes are among the biggest threats to getting the farm assets to the rightful heirs. However, we propose that the biggest threat to a farm estate getting to the rightful heirs is the owner generation’s lack of succession planning and not federal estate taxes.
