All Forum Posts by: Sara Lung

One possible solution to this problem is to hire an appraiser. So that both landlord and farmer will feel that the price is what the land is worth. The problem with this solution is that the value of California agricultural land prices are going up everyday. There is not a lot of comps data available for large acreage land half way between Sacramento and San Francisco. The few comps available are at lease one year old. So, the appraiser's data is not usable. It could be 20% behind.

What to do? How to ensure so that if the land is sold, I or my children can get a good price for the land?

Thank you, Mr Devincenzo.

After the land is leased to a farmer for 30 years, the land and the farm on top of the land become two separate, distinct, marketable properties. If I or my children sell the land, the land buyer becomes the new landlord and takes over the lease where we left off. The new landlord will get the triple net lease rent payments from the farmer just as we will have done. The new landlord will step into our shoes and continues the lease.

On the other hand, if the farmer sells his farm that's on top of my land, he sells his trees, his irrigation system, his big agricultural well, all on top of my land. The new farmer takes over the lease where the old farmer left off. The new farmer will pay me the triple net lease rent payments for the rest of the 30 years just as the old farmer will have done.

All of this is good and fine to me.

The one thing that is not clear to me is when the farmer wants to buy the land below his trees, but I don't like the price he is offering for it. I want to sell the land to someone else. Let someone else become the new landlord for the farmer. Well, during the time I wait for a new land buyer, (1-2-3 years, land sells slowly), the farmer gets pissed off because his offer to buy land was rejected for being too low. He decides to retaliate by trashing his farm, weed everywhere waist high, trees all sick with disease, irrigation system vandalized, etc. etc. He can make my land very very undesirable, unappealing to any other prospective land buyer. He can make my land utterly impossible to sell for a good price. This is my big big big big worry.

How can the lease be set up so that this worry is alleviated? How to ensure so that if the land is sold, the farmer will cooperate by keeping his farm healthy and well kept, so that I or my children can get a good price for selling the land? Do you sense there is a conflict of interest here for the farmer? I kinda do. If he keeps the trees healthy and the farm well kept during the 1-3 years while the land is for sell, he will essentially price himself out of the ability to purchase the land below his trees.

Help! What do you think? I do want my children to have the ability to sell the land to someone else other than the farmer.

Thanks everyone for your insights. Thanks BP for providing this great forum.

Sorry I have been away for a while.

I am still working on this 30 year lease. Thank you, Mr Pestorich, Mr Gully, Mr Jackson for your tips. Mr Badr too, although posting only one time would be already noted.

The 75 acre land is located about half way between Sacramento and San Francisco, a few miles from I-80. I am only interested in leasing it out for trees, not selling. There has been a lot of interested for the land. They all want to buy, or lease with option to buy, or lease with first right of refusal to buy. I don't want any of these. I only want to straight tripple net lease for 30 years. If my children wants to sell the land during the 30 years lease, Is it possible to get a good price while the farmer's trees are on the ground? Do my children have to sell to the farmer? If my childrent don't sell to the farmer, will the farmer trash the ground, disease all the trees, making it impossible to sell to anyone else? This is a major worry.

What do you think?

Thank you for your great pointers.

Can you give me a good resource for studying about farm land leases? A good agricultural web discussion forum like BP hopefully? My land currently grows wheat annually by another farmer. But an almond farmer wants to lease it for 30 years.

Any other thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks again.

Please I need help setting up a 30 year long term lease to a farmer for him to plant almonds. I have 75 acres farm land in No Calif. I want to lease it to him for a flat fee once a year and forget it and go do other things. Like a 30 year Tripple Net lease. This lease could mean 30 years of peace of mind, or 30 years of legal dispute nightmare. I will consult a lawyer later to set it up properly. But I want to learn all about long term agricultural lease first. Can someone give me a good resource for studying about farm land leases? A good discussion forum like BP hopefully please?

Thank you all who share here in BP very much. I have learned so much from you here and will share my experiences too.

I am a buyer in a short sale transaction, in escrow going on 4 months waiting for the bank to accept the purchase offer. The listing agent is representing both seller and me, the buyer. Seller has long moved out and living in another state. Last month I found the house occupied. The agent said his partner, also an agent, is living in it, so that the house is occupied to prevent vandalism. Agent said the seller is fully aware of this. I don't know if this partner agent occupant pays rent, and if so to whom. But as the time dragged on and on waiting for the bank. I started thinking if there is a conflict-of-interest going on here. Agent has the responsibility of pushing the sale through by calling the bank frequently. Once the sale goes through, his partner will be out of the house. He is probably thinking, "why should he do that?" The longer the bank drags on, the longer his partner can stay in the house. I don't know if he and his partner has any financial arrangement over the house. Buy definition, in a short sale, seller can not receive any money. I feel their arrangement between seller, agent and his partner is delaying my purchase of this house, by not pushing it through the bank hard enough.

What do you all think? Thanks. Thanks all in BP.

BTW, in another thread I started about usury law and the high interest my contractor charged. I accepted the advice from the BP bloggers and paid the contractor right away. Thanks BP experts. I really appreciate all who contribute here. I learned so much, and hope my experience can help others too. Thanks again.

To me, it's just too much. My contractor's invoice is due upon receipt. 2% a month interest starting on the 10th day. That's 24% a year!!!! Way, way to much in my opinion. What do you think? Thank.

My mother and I sold a property we jointly own, and took back a loan in the form of a Promissory Note and Deed of Trust. The borrower is paying the note on time every month. Now my mother wants to move the note and Deed of Trust to be only in my name before she passes away. What's the simplest way to do this?
Thanks.