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Farmland Access Conference November • 2020
Resource List
What to consider first – Visit the Beginning Farmer Resource Network of Maine (BFRN) to learn more about your first and next steps. Many links to resources in the searching process. https://extension.umaine.edu/beginning-farmer-resource-network/find-resources-and-assistance/first-considerations/ New England Farmland Finder - This website was created to help New England’s farm seekers and farm property holders find each other. For many new and established farmers, simply finding available land is a huge challenge. On the other side of the equation, more and more private, public and organizational landowners want to make land available for farming. They want farmers to find them! https://newenglandfarmlandfinder.org/ Maine FarmLink - Maine FarmLink, a program of Maine Farmland Trust, is a linking service that helps connect people who are seeking farmland, with farmland owners (or their representatives) who are looking to sell, lease or work out non-traditional tenure arrangements, based on their respective interests, needs and goals. https://mainefarmlink.org/ Don’t forget the offline strategies! Newspapers, local town offices, advertising magazines distributed by local Real Estate agencies, etc. USDA NRCS Web Soil Survey - Web Soil Survey (WSS) provides soil data and information produced by the National Cooperative Soil Survey. It is operated by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and provides access to the largest natural resource information system in the world. NRCS has soil maps and data available online for more than 95 percent of the nation’s counties and anticipates having 100 percent in the near future. The site is updated and maintained online as the single authoritative source of soil survey information. Web Soil Survey Instructions https://websoilsurvey.nrcs.usda.gov/app/
AgPlan https://agplan.umn.edu/
Develop your own Business Plan
Learn what you need to include in your Plan with Tips & Resources
View Sample Business Plans for ideas
Share your Plan — print, download and work with your own Reviewers
https://landforgood.org/wp-content/uploads/LFG-Farmland-Access-in-Urban-Settings-Guide.pdf
Beginning Farmer Resource Network of Maine - The Beginning Farmer Resource Network is a coalition of Maine agriculture agencies and organizations working together to connect aspiring and beginning farmers to resources for farm business success. https://extension.umaine.edu/beginning-farmer-resource-network/find-resources-and-assistance/first-considerations/
Land For Good Leasing Toolbox https://landforgood.org/resources/toolbox/
Land For Good Acquiring Your Farm Tool https://landforgood.org/acquiring-farm-login/
Are you a new farmer? Do you need help navigating the various programs and services available to help you succeed in your
new farming enterprise?
BFRN is a coalition of Maine agriculture agencies & organizations working together to connect aspiring and beginning farmers to resources
for farm business success.
"Because finding what you need to start farming shouldn’t be like finding a shear pin in a haystack!"
Check out our website: http://www.umaine.edu/beginning-farmer-resource-network/
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What to Consider First Learning How to Farm Searching For, Assessing and Acquiring Land Planning and Managing your Farm Business Planning of Facilities and Equipment Financing your Farm Business Managing Risks Understanding Regulations and Taxes Managing Your Farm’s Woodlands Farming the Water: Aquaculture Marketing Your Farm Products Families and Farming Resources for Military Veteran Farmers Addressing Health, Safety and Injury Prevention
Members of Leadership Council
Coastal Enterprises, Inc. • Gray Harris, Sustainable Ag. Program, [email protected]• Brett Richardson, Sustainable Ag. Program, [email protected]
Cultivating Community • Alex Redfield, [email protected]
Farm Credit East • Shannon Webber, [email protected]• Kathryn Bisson, [email protected]
Legal Food Hub, A Project of the Conservation Law Foundation • Phelps Turner, Staff Attorney, [email protected]
Land For Good• Abby Sadauckas, [email protected]
Maine AgrAbility Program • Lani Carlson, [email protected]
Maine Agricultural Mediation Program • Leslie Forstadt, [email protected]
Maine Aquaculture Association • Sebastian Belle, [email protected]
Maine Association of Conservation Districts • Hildy Ellis, [email protected]
Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry • Stephanie Gilbert, Agriculture, [email protected]• Leigh Hallett, Agriculture, [email protected]• Yvette Meunier, Agriculture, [email protected]• Andy Shultz, Maine Forest Service, [email protected]
Maine Farm Bureau • Julie Ann Smith, [email protected]
Maine Farmland Trust • Sue Lanpher, [email protected]
Maine Federation of Farmers Markets • Jimmy DeBiasi, [email protected]
Maine Marine Extension Team (Sea Grant/Cooperative Extension) • Chris Bartlett, [email protected]• Dana Morse, [email protected]• Jaclyn Robidoux, [email protected]
Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association • Ryan Dennett, [email protected]
Maine Sustainable Agriculture Society • William Giordano, [email protected]
United Farmer Veterans of Maine • Chris Phillips, [email protected]
University of Maine Aquaculture Research Institute • Anne Langston, [email protected]
University of Maine Cooperative Extension • Donna Coffin, [email protected]• Leslie Forstadt, [email protected]• Tori Jackson, [email protected]• Richard Kersbergen, [email protected]• Jason Lilley, [email protected]
USDA Farm Service Agency • Jackie Bell, [email protected]• Mary Anne Coffin, [email protected]
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service • Thomas Kielbasa, [email protected]
USDA Rural Development • Brian Wilson, [email protected]
USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service Wolfe's Neck Center for Agriculture & the Environment
September 2019
If you represent an agency or institution that works with Maine farmers and are interested in presenting to BFRN, please contact Tori Jackson, chairperson, at [email protected]
SCORE Maine• Allyn Lamb, [email protected]
• Stephen Veazey, [email protected]
Finding Your Farm NECESSARY, DESIRABLE, OPTIONAL WORKSHEET
This worksheet will help you identify and sort priorities among all the factors you are considering in your farm search. For each category on the left, list what’s necessary, desirable or optional. For example, is it necessary to own your land? Does the property have to be in a certain location? Must you live on-site, or is living nearby an option? Do you need a barn or could you do without?
Necessary Desirable Optional
Tenure
(own? lease?)
Location
Natural features
Built features
Housing
Community
Other
603.357.1600 landforgood.org
© 2013
Securing financing … some tips from Maine FarmLink Gather important documents needed to show your financial standings. Show your income to debt ratio at a glance. Be prepared before walking into a meeting and know what they are going to request before they request it.
Having this information readily available when sitting across the desk, or on the phone, with a loan officer will help streamline the application process—particularly if you’re prepared to answer questions about the documents. And, while some lenders won’t require all these documents and others might need more information, this is a great way to demonstrate to any lender that you are prepared to seriously talk about a loan.
1. Tax returns
Mortgage lenders want to get the full story of your financial situation. Lenders generally want to see one to two years’ worth of tax returns. This is to make sure your annual income is consistent with your reported earnings through pay stubs and there are not huge fluctuations from year to year.
2. Pay stubs, W-2s or other proof of income
Lenders may ask to see your pay stubs from the past month or so. Your tax returns help give them a clear idea of your overall financial health, while pay stubs help them gauge your current earnings. If you’re self-employed or have other sources of income (such as child support), you may need to show your lender proof through 1099 forms, direct deposits or other means.
3. Bank statements and other assets
When assessing your risk profile, lenders may want to look at your bank statements and other assets. This can include your investment assets as well as your insurance, such as life insurance.
Lenders typically request these documents to make sure you have several months’ worth of reserve mortgage payments in your account in case of an emergency. They also check to see that your down payment has been in your account for at least a few months and did not just show up overnight.
4. Credit history
In order to assess you as a borrower, lenders often pull your credit report — with your verbal or written permission.
You should be prepared to write a statement that explains negative items on your credit report
This helps a lender evaluate what kind of risk you are. Lenders may look at one-time unavoidable circumstances differently from habitual delinquency
5. Gift letters
Your friends and family might help you buy a house by giving you money. If that’s the case, you’ll need to provide a written confirmation the money is indeed a gift and not a loan. The documentation should list their relationship to you as well as the amount of the gift.
6. Photo ID
You’ll likely need to provide a photo ID, such as a driver’s license. This is simply to prove you are who you’re claiming to be.
7. Renting history
For buyers who don’t already own a home, many lenders will request proof that you can pay on time. They may ask for a year’s worth of canceled rent checks (check that your landlord has cashed). Or, they might ask your landlord to provide documentation showing that you paid your rent on time. Your renting history is especially important if you don’t have an extensive credit history.
Maine Farmland Trust Revised: September, 2004Technical Bulletin: What is a Conservation Easement? Page 1
Technical BulletinWhat is a Conservation Easement?
Many lands are best protected if landowners are motivated to pursue economically viablealternatives to development. A conservation easement is a voluntary, legal agreement between alandowner and a non-profit land trust which permanently restricts use of the land for agriculturalproduction, wildlife habitat or open space.
Placing private land in a conservation easement:
! Keeps land in private ownership and available for agriculture, habitat preservation andlimited residential use. An agricultural conservation easement puts farm use as primaryobjective.
! Permanently alters the property deed to prevent or minimize subdivision, and limitsconstruction to agricultural and limited residential building as negotiated with the owner.
! May include specific protections for important environmental, scenic or historic resources.
! May qualify the owner for significant income and inheritance tax savings.
! May be purchased with Land Trust conservation grants (although at this time funding forsuch purchases is extremely limited).
! Does not create any new government regulation, or require public access
! Requires the Land Trust to monitor and enforce the easement in perpetuity, including legalaction if necessary
