About Dawson County, NE

Time after time...I ask the same double question when a Landowner says he/she/they want to sell the farm.

Only ten words long but oh so powerful: "Is it rented and do you have a written lease?"

At least 50% of the time the seller states it is a gentlemans agreement...a handshake lease...nothing in writing.

In Nebraska and many farm states...there is no state law that says you must have a written lease to rent your farm ground.

However...in Nebraska, there is a law that protects the tenant if there isn't a written lease.

While the written lease should have specific dates and terms of the lease, the Nebraska Supreme Court ruled in 1984 that if there is no written lease...then the current lease expires on March 1 of the following year IF the owner/landlord notified the tenant of the lease being cancelled prior to September 1 of the current crop year.

What this means is: If the landlord did not notify the tenant by September 1 that the unwritten aggreement expires after the crop season...the same terms are in effect for next year...including rent amount and terms.

Conversely...if the landlord did notify the tenant...then the tenant is out after the crop season whether they want to be or not. The owner is free to sell the property, to rent it to someone else, or to rent it to the current tenant at a higher rate.

This is huge in todays markets where prices are skyrocketing both in value and rent per acre value.

The Nebraska crop season runs from March 1 to the following February 28/29th. The verbal lease change notification must be given to the tenant by September 1 of the current crop season. I recommend to put that in writing and if possible...get the tenants signature as proof they received it.

My best recommendation is to get into a written lease with definitve terms protecting both parties.

If you are thinking about selling...make sure you understand how the lease can impact the sale price.

I have seen this impact estates as well and not always in a positive light.

Estates can be tricky if there is no lease. Understand this...If there is no lease and the owner passes away...the tenant is only protected until the above dates...they are not entitiled to any more or any less.

They can't tell you they get it for years to come and you can't boot them off in the middle of the season or after Sept 1 for the following crop season.

example: Owner dies in October while the tenant is starting harvest and there is NO written lease. The tenant gets to farm next summer too at the same rate.

If you have family who do own farm land and you know it is possible that you may be an heir or executor of the estate...ask the owner if they have a written lease for the farm ground and make sure you know their wishes...and recommend they get it in writing.

I can guarantee you that someone will say it is different if there is not a written lease. So best to be prepared!!

Central Nebraska is closing in on being the warmest on record. Today's high of 55 and tomorrows projected high of 60 will seal the deal. What is going on?

In a nutshell...the jetstream...that high ridge of air that flows from west to east across the US has shifted farther north this year. That shift occurred in very early December.

The one side of me is loving it!! Late March weather in January.

The other side is remembering the old Farmer's warning...(my 85 year old Father in Law)...Warm, dry winters mean hot, dry summers.

I hope he is wrong there...but right now January has been way warmer than November or December were and I did not see anything to indicate February will be colder.

We have only had 3 days in January of 2012 that the high temp was below freezing...but we had 20 days that the high was over 40! The average high for January here is 36.8.

Last year we barely got above 0 (zero) for 2 weeks... What a difference!!

Oh...did I mention that I am not complaining?

CORN....King CORN! Seeds of Gold! The bins are full and it actually was another fantastic season in Nebraska farm country.

I mentioned in an earlier blog that Nebraska has 26,000 Farmers producing over 1.52 BILLION Bushels of CORN this harvest season.

Other interesting facts are the reduction in energy used to produce each bushel of CORN. 37% Less energy than 10 years ago.

Soil Erosion is down 44% and goes hand in hand with that energy reduction since most Farmers are now doing a No-Till type of ConservationFarming where they do not plow under the old stalks of the previous crop.

Interestingly, only about 13% of corn grown in the United States receives irrigated water.

One nice thing in America is that approximately 95% of all farms are family owned.

GPS isn't just for driving to Grandma's house or showing homes anymore.

Most farmers are using GPS to plant their farms which make the rows straighter, and optimizing all the acreage possible ...not only for planting but for harversting as well...(You didn't really think those farmers could hold a steering wheel that straight did you?)

The average per acre yield is better than 166 bushels...a 24% increase per acre since 2003.

So how about fertilizer and chemicals? The CORN farmers of today have increased the amount of corn grown by 87% for each ounce of fertilizer applied. Todays' Farmer better understands the dangers of chemicals and fertilizers and are much better prepared to be good stewards of the land and with the above and below ground water supplies.

For more information go to www.nebraskacorn.org

The numbers are coming in for the Nebraska corn crop and once again they are staggering.

Did you Know:

There will be about 1.52 BILLION Bushels of corn harvested in 2011 in Nebraska alone!

The corn is what we call "field corn". The corn used for human consumption IS NOT this corn.

There are roughly 9 million acres of corn planted each year in Nebraska!

Those acres remove 72 MILLION TONS of greenhouse gas from the atmosphere each year...or more than 9 million cars worth!

There are about 26,000 farmers in Nebraska.

There are roughly 66 MILLION cattle fed annually in Nebraska! That's a lot of steaks and hamburgers!

The corn raised in Nebraska goes primarily to feed cattle, buffalo, hogs, chickens, and Ethanol.

The numbers and information you hear on the national media about corn usage are almost never accurate!

You can learn more at www.nebraskacorn.org

The corn is ready to pick...the seller is ready to sell...

Drive by this Farm for Sale 2 miles north and 1 mile west of Overton, NE.

160 acres of irrigated crop ground. Zimmatic Pivot System with nozzled drops. Registered 850 gallon well with electric pump. Located 7 miles from Lexington, NE on 13th and 1 mile south.

Listed below average market at $4,800 an acre. Call for more details or check out www.mikemccann.com

This property would qualify for a 1031 exchange. Tenant rights expire with this crop year.

If you are looking at buying and this one will not work for you, give me a call and we will find what will!!