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3. 2012 Women in Agriculture Educators National Conference

Retirement Planning for Farm and Ranch Families

Tim Eggers

Summary

It is difficult to engage farm and ranch families in retirement planning educational programs. The program discussed by the team in this session addresses two primary challenges in a way other educators may find useful.
1) visualization of a retirement lifestyle
2) confidence in funding that lifestyle

Business, Succession, Retirement and Estate Planning are components of Managing for Today and Tomorrow (MTT). MTT is an Annie´s Project level II program funded by the USDA Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program. The presentation team developed the Retirement Planning component of the program based on their experience as educators in Iowa, Missouri, Texas, and Wisconsin. The team will explain their prioritization of topics within retirement planning and ways their two hour curriculum fits into the overall twelve hour program. They will summarize their experience in delivering the program and provide evaluation results.

Farm and ranch families are uniquely situated to implement subtle variations of retirement. This allows for individualized alternatives. There isn’t a “turning in the keys” moment. Changes in enterprises, increased use of off-farm labor sources, custom operations, custom farming, crop share and cash rent leasing of land may allow for access to assets by a beginning farmer. The default process allows for a transition from 100% of operations and management being provided by the established farm family to simple ownership of the limiting resource in agriculture – land. It tends to occur on farming operations with or without planning. This program introduces ways to encourage planning for retirement.

Details

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