| Yes |
No |
Question |
| ____ |
____ |
Is
the farm generating enough income to support
an additional family? |
| ____ |
____ |
If
not, are there viable off-farm or farm income-expansion
possibilities available to support the entering
family? |
| ____ |
____ |
Is
there a way to transfer the farm and keep everyone
in the family happy? That includes exiting and
entering families and non- farm heirs and in-laws. |
| ____ |
____ |
Can
the parents afford to give some financial subsidy
to the entering family and yet maintain an adequate
retirement income? |
| ____ |
____ |
Is
the exiting manager willing to transfer management
skills and control to the entering manager?
|
| ____ |
____ |
Have the parties involved in the transfer had
a positive, respectful, and considerate attitude
toward one another in the years before entering
a transfer agreement? |
| ____ |
____ |
Does
the entering manager have the desire and willingness
to learn farm management skills? |
| ____ |
____ |
Can involved parties communicate openly and
freely with one another? |
| ____ |
____ |
Are
all parties willing to develop a written plan
of transfer and business agreement prior to
starting the transfer process? |
| ____ |
____ |
Are
housing facilities available that will provide
acceptable yet independent lives for all involved
persons? |
| ____ |
____ |
Are all participants, including spouses, willing
to be involved in decision making regarding
work, hours, vacations, finances, and family
expectations? |
| ____ |
____ |
Are all parties willing to start with a trial
period of working together through a wage agreement
or farming independently while sharing resources
for a year or two before starting a formal arrangement?
|
| ____ |
____ |
Are
the parents willing to provide security to entering
parties by agreeing to a buy/sell agreement,
allowing the entering parties the right to purchase
assets in the future? The agreement should be
binding on the heirs. |
| ____ |
____ |
Are
the parents willing to sell, lease, gift, or
otherwise transfer assets to the entering parties
at perhaps less than going market values? |
| ____ |
____ |
Are
the parents willing to eventually move to town
or to a residence off the farm to allow the
new manager to be nearer the center of farm
operations? |
| ____ |
____ |
Can
and will the parents put together a tax plan
that will be acceptable to both parties as they
transfer assets? |
| ____ |
____ |
Are
the parents insurable and will they permit the
younger generation to carry life insurance on
them for financial protection in case of premature
death? |
| ____ |
____ |
Are parents willing to provide protection from
premature payout to off-farm heirs by establishing
installment terms for sale of assets in their
will or living trust? |
| ____ |
____ |
Are
parents willing to pledge that they will not
be domineering and will not try to control every
aspect of the entering children's business and
personal lives? |
| ____ |
____ |
Are
entering children willing to pay parents adequately
for work done after retirement? |
| ____ |
____ |
Are
entering parties willing to sacrifice standard
of living and go the "extra mile"
with work to get started farming? |
| ____ |
____ |
Are
entering parties appreciative of the farming
opportunity given to them by their parents and
are they willing to "give and take"
to make the transfer process successful? |
| ____ |
____ |
Do
entrants wish to farm because they have prepared
for it educationally and feel it is their chosen
field? (This is in contrast to those who enter
because they can't find anything else to do
or nothing else worked out.) |
Passing on the Farm / Questions to Ask Before You
Start Transferring the Farm Business