News

The Limits of FDIC Insurance and Iowa’s Grain Indemnity Fund

Posted on: August 28th, 2023 by ,

Where’s Your Wealth Stored and How Safe Is It? Banks and grain elevators are the pillars of many rural communities. It can seem like they’ve always been there and will always be there. Some grain farmers might have more money in grain at the elevator than they do in the bank. Regardless, the failure of […]

Reminder: It’s Time for Iowa Farmers to Send Farm Lease Termination Notices

Posted on: August 1st, 2023 by ,

Harvest is fast approaching, but before breaking out the combine, review your farm leases so you can decide whether to terminate them before it’s too late. Under Iowa Code § 562.6, a farm lease continues beyond the agreed term for the following crop year on the same terms and conditions as the original lease unless either […]

Personal Guaranties: Know What You’re Signing

Posted on: July 26th, 2023 by

Most of us have had to ask a more financially secure family member to co-sign a loan so we could buy a car, farm tractor, or enter into a lease. If you’ve ever been the co-signer, you know that even though you trust your child or family member to pay it off, there’s always that […]

USDA OKs Choice for Farmers to Keep Inflation Reduction Act Relief—or Not

Posted on: July 13th, 2023 by

In the months since we visited the scenarios of Robert and Charles—two fictional farmers who received farm debt relief under Section 22006 of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)—the Farm Service Agency (FSA) has announced two major changes in how recipients can choose to deal with their new windfall. Last year FSA repaid more than […]

Defending against preference repayment demands

Posted on: June 16th, 2023 by

Taking a break from the morning’s work, you stop by the mailbox only to find an unfamiliar envelope from some law firm. The letter inside is notification that the XYZ Grain Elevator has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization, and as part of this, you might have to turn over to the court a good […]

From Debt to Deliverance: Wade

Posted on: May 16th, 2023 by

Note: This is the final installment of a three-part blog series about ABLS clients and their debt resolution stories. In March and April, we shared the debt restructuring stories of retired and active Iowa farmers Jerry and Deb, and Paul and Linda, respectively. In this blog, meet a third Iowa farmer: Wade. Wade had his […]

From Debt to Deliverance: Paul and Linda

Posted on: April 24th, 2023 by

Note: This is the second of a three-part blog series about ABLS clients and their debt resolution stories. In March we shared the story of retired Iowa farmers Jerry and Deb and the debt restructuring plan we developed for them. In this blog meet another Iowa farm couple, Paul and Linda. An average crop in […]

From Debt to Deliverance: Jerry and Deb

Posted on: March 23rd, 2023 by

Poor crops. A barn fire. Disabling injuries. New bank managers who don’t know you and are less cooperative than the ones they replaced. Our clients have experienced devastating events like these, and more. Events that threatened to leave them destitute. In this month’s blog, and in April and May, we’ll share stories of three farm […]

Selling a farm: capital idea or capital gains tax?

Posted on: March 2nd, 2023 by

Note: This is the second of a two-part blog series on buying or selling a farm Why do you want to sell your farm? Why do you want to buy a farm? In January, we wrote that before you put your farm on the market or negotiate a farm purchase, you should ask yourself those […]

Unintended Consequences: The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022’s Farm Debt Relief Causes Farmers Massive Tax Headaches

Posted on: February 17th, 2023 by

For a deeper analysis into this topic, see a version of this article written for tax professionals and other interested parties here. On August 16, 2022, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law. Section 22006 of the IRA provided $3.1 billion for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide relief […]

Unintended Consequences: The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022’s Farm Debt Relief Causes Farmers Massive Tax Headaches (Deep Dive)

Posted on: February 17th, 2023 by

On August 16, 2022, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law. Section 22006 of the IRA provided $3.1 billion for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide relief for distressed borrowers under certain Farm Service Agency (FSA) direct and guaranteed loans. On October 18, 2022, USDA provided nearly $800 million […]

Before buying or selling a farm, ask “Why?”

Posted on: January 24th, 2023 by

Note: This is part one of a two-part blog series on buying or selling a farm. For part two, “Selling a farm: capital idea or capital gains tax?” see here. You want to buy or sell a farm. Before you push a “For Sale” sign into the ground or negotiate with the owner, make sure […]

Don’t confuse money in the bank with profitability

Posted on: January 6th, 2023 by

You look at the December bank statement. It shows a checking account larger than a year ago. You’ve had a profitable year, right? Not necessarily. Just because you have money in the bank does not mean you made money. It may seem strange, but profitability and money in the bank are two different things, even […]

Waiting to Act Only Exacerbates Financial Problems

Posted on: December 1st, 2022 by

Farmer spouses who keep the operation’s books might not be spending long hours in the field or barn, but the time they devote to the financials can just as easily make or break the family business. The spouse manager must be proactive should they see expenses outpacing income. Debt can accumulate rapidly and could, if […]

Prices up, but some farmers in financial straits

Posted on: October 26th, 2022 by

Commodity prices are trending higher, yet many farmers are struggling to pay their bills. The reasons are varied but could spell disaster if producers don’t get a handle on their finances. So say Joe Peiffer, founder and shareholder of Ag & Business Legal Strategies, and Keith Starr, the firm’s chief financial strategist, as they discuss […]

Purdue Pharma Bankruptcy: A Battle Over Much More Than Dollars and Cents

Posted on: August 10th, 2022 by

In 2019, opioid manufacturer Purdue Pharma filed bankruptcy in the Southern District of New York. A large portion of the debt listed on its bankruptcy schedules came from judgments and potential lawsuits against it for its role in the opioid epidemic. Purdue’s owners, the Sackler family, were named in many of those lawsuits and would […]

7 + 13 = 10: The CBRA’s Huge Proposals to Change Consumer Bankruptcy

Posted on: March 14th, 2022 by

When a consumer is facing bankruptcy, many are given the choice between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13. While some consumers have successful bankruptcies under these chapters, these gloves don’t fit many financially distressed consumers. The Consumer Bankruptcy Reform Act (CBRA) was introduced to streamline consumer bankruptcy and provide more consumers with the opportunity to receive […]

Death and Taxes is How We Lose It: The Importance of Succession Planning for American Agriculture

Posted on: February 24th, 2022 by

The hit TV show “Yellowstone” has achieved popularity with agricultural and non-agricultural audiences alike. Along with dramatized glimpses of ranching life, it also provides nuggets of truth with real world application. In a recent episode, while facilitating the sale of a family farm where one sibling couldn’t afford to buy the other out to retain […]

Choice of Business Entity for Farmers

Posted on: February 24th, 2022 by

The choice of business entity for a farm is an important decision that can either protect farm owners and their families from the risks inherent in the farming enterprise or expose them to those risks. Farmers employ various forms of business entity, and the choice varies greatly between types of farms and their sizes. Many […]

Chapter 12 Bankruptcy Rules of Engagement: Farming Operation or Not?

Posted on: January 31st, 2022 by

Relief for Farmers Prior to 1986, a debtor intending to reorganize debts had two options for filing for bankruptcy: Chapter 11 or Chapter 13. Unfortunately, neither option was particularly well suited for family farmers. Chapter 11 provided a complicated and expensive route to relief, while Chapter 13 lent itself to reorganizing debt loads much lower […]