If you own or rent farm land in Wisconsin, how much do you understand about the process of renting that land?
Do you need a contract? What should be in the contract? How much is the land really worth? These and other questions that surround the process of renting farm land are the focus of workshops being conducted in the area in mid-December.
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Division of Extension is providing the opportunities for owners of farmland and agricultural producers to find out about land rent realities and options. These free, in-person workshops are sponsored by the Extension offices of Langlade, Marinette, Oconto and Shawano counties. Registration is not required, and all interested persons are encouraged to attend.
There are three options to attend this discussion.
• Dec. 12, 11 a.m., Cecil Village Hall and Community Center, 111 E. Hofman St., Cecil.
• Dec. 17, 3 p.m., Pound Town Hall, W8484 County Highway B, Coleman.
• Dec. 18, 12:30 p.m., Town of Antigo Town Hall, W9291 State Highway 64, Antigo (adjacent to the Langlade County Airport).
If in doubt about weather issues for these meetings, contact either the Marinette County Extension office at 715-732-7514 or Scott Reuss at 715-701-0966.
Reuss, crops and soils educator, will lead the discussion of the details that should be considered when negotiating a farm rental contract, and why having a contract is important. He will also detail some of the advantages and disadvantages of various types of annual or multi-year leasing contracts.
Current data regarding land rental rates in the multi-county area will be shared and discussed as well.
Although a written contract is not a legal requirement, it does allow for protections for both parties and allows the producer involved to more readily access crop insurance and governmental programs. Many factors can go into a contract, but the most important center on timing, payment processes, restrictions and opportunities for flexibility when unusual cropping conditions occur.
Contract templates of multiple types will be available as handouts, ranging from extremely simple to more complex arrangements. However, it is important to make sure they match legal needs and the true needs and desires of both parties. The discussion will focus on basic cropland rental situations but can expand to building leases, grazing land and other situations attendees are interested in discussing.
For questions about these topics, contact Reuss in the Marinette County office at 715-732-7510 or via e-mail at scott.reuss@wisc.edu. For those who cannot attend a program, another good source of farmland leasing information is found at http://www.aglease101.org/
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