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Roanoke, IN | I'd love to hear more of your thoughts later. I mostly agree with your thoughts on current laws helping family farms - well at least the established ones. The startups competing for the same resources can't take advantage of anything yet. Everyone climbs the mountain at a different pace. Some start at the bottom, some start halfway up, and some start at the peak. But policy should not favor kicking rocks down to those below you.
Eliminating the death tax would solve your estate planning issues. Heirs keep it - no tax due. Heirs want the cash and sells it - tax is due but there is cash available to pay. Under my proposal, the only time tax is due is when there is cash available.
Another benefit is I think the retiring farmer would be more likely to participate in selling and choosing the successor than leaving it to the off farm heirs (who generally don't know much about farm stewardship and are just looking for big $$$) to sell after death. Not as big of a reason to hang on to it if uncle Sam isn't holding the tax burden over your head for liquidating while alive. It might even incentivise a retiree to hold the mortgage on the land for a young guy as part of an overall retirement plan.
Of course then the farm management companies, banks, lawyers, and accountants all wouldn't take as big of piece as now under the current illusion of getting top dollar. All said and done, retiring farmer's family probably nets more cash under my proposal. | |
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Land inflation and 1031 exchanges
