Land as an Investment: Can I Afford It?
Farmland is a major investment demanding high upfront costs. Learn key factors related to repayment capacity and how to reduce your overall risk.
3 minute readFAQS
Find answers to common land loan questions or learn more about FarmLend.
Land Loans
FarmLend allows you to apply online for a land loan through participating Farm Credit associations across the U.S. We offer a secure, simple online process so you can move quickly on a land sale, or easily start a refinance. Apply when it is convenient for you and receive a response in three business hours.
Land loans are still closed and serviced by your local participating Farm Credit association.
Using FarmLend, you can apply online for a land loan through participating Farm Credit associations for all types of land and land improvements used for agricultural purposes.
For recreational land or rural home lots, you can apply for a land loan directly through your local Farm Credit association. Use the Farm Credit Locator to connect with your local association.
Yes! You can refinance a loan on land used for agricultural purposes through FarmLend and its participating Farm Credit associations. Apply online when it is convenient for you and receive a response in three business hours.
Get competitive fixed, interim-fixed, variable and adjustable-rate loans. If your financial needs change, you can convert a variable-rate loan to a fixed-rate loan. Fees may apply. To find out more about interest rates for your land purchase, complete our online application. It takes about 10 minutes and you will receive a response in three business hours.
Participating Farm Credit associations offer flexible terms, including long-term options. Financing can be fixed to the maturity of the loan, intermediate fixed term or variable, either through the entirety of the loan or locked at a time of your choosing. All loans have the flexibility
to mirror payments with income flow, ranging from monthly to annually.
On new purchases, down payments of 35% are typical on many land loans. The amount of the down payment is impacted by many factors and is specific to each credit request.
Deposits or earnest money can vary based on seller requirements. In some instances, all or a portion of the down money may be non-refundable. Contact the seller, auctioneer or real estate agent for details.
FarmLend has no application fee and loan fees from participating Farm Credit associations are typically minimal compared to other lenders.
Fees associated with real estate often include title work, appraisal, abstracts, filing/recording, flood determination and others. Fees are the responsibility of the buyer unless otherwise outlined or negotiated.
Property closing guidelines are most often outlined within the terms of the sale. Closing can occur as quickly as 10-15 days and go out as long as 45-60+ days after an offer is accepted. Consult the seller or seller agent to discuss closing terms and time frame.
Real estate financing decisions are made on a mix of information which may include a credit bureau report and one or more years of a statement of financial position (balance sheet), income statement (tax return) and/or projection. For the online application, you'll enter information about the land you want to purchase, the type of loan you desire and the applicant's assets, liabilities and income.
We offer quick decisions on loan applications. If you apply online, we provide a response within three business hours. The online application takes about 10 minutes to complete
Once all required financial and application information is gathered, we can typically process approvals in 7-10 business days. Financing decisions are based upon multiple factors, all of which impact some portion of the resulting time frame. Call 844-888-0858 with questions or to discuss further.
Most buyers wait until they receive the details of their approval from our lending team before finishing a purchase agreement with the seller.
If any of the specifics of your credit application changes, we will need to re-evaluate the approval to reflect those new details.
Our loan payment calculator is a great tool to help you understand how much you’ll be paying for the land. You can calculate payments based on the principal amount, interest rate and term of the loan. Factor in your local real estate tax rates and you’ll have a realistic idea of the cost of owning the land.
A great way to figure out if you can service the debt associated with a land purchase is to run some scenarios using our affordability calculator. Quickly try different combinations of loan terms, commodity types, yields, prices and down payments to find out if a land purchase is feasible for your operation.
About FarmLend
FarmLend is currently available for agricultural land loans through Farm Credit Services of America and Frontier Farm Credit. FCSAmerica offers loans for land in Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming. Frontier Farm Credit offers loans for land in eastern Kansas.
Yes, FarmLend uses robust security and encryption technology.
FarmLend was developed by Farm Credit Services of America to offer a convenient online application for land loans through participating Farm Credit associations.
FCSAmerica is part of the Farm Credit System, a network of mission-driven, customer-owned financial cooperatives that have been serving agriculture for more than 100 years.
FarmLend offers a simple, secure online process for land loans from participating Farm Credit associations. Apply when it is convenient for you and receive a response within three business hours.
FarmLend can help save time, add convenience and simplify the financing process.
FarmLend allows farmers, ranchers and land investors to apply online for a land loan from participating Farm Credit associations across the U.S.
FarmLend provides one more financing channel to meet the needs of today’s agriculture. As agriculture continues to change at the speed of technology, FarmLend is financing at the speed of agriculture.
What Our Customers Say
"A loan application on my terms and on my time."
Kevin P.
Refinancing
Nebraska
Nebraska
"Applying for an online land loan was like sending a text message. It took me five minutes to fill out the application and I could go on with my day."
Randy Q.
Estate Planning Purchase
South Dakota
South Dakota
"They were proactive in communicating with me throughout the entire process."
Crystal N.
First-time landowner
Iowa
Iowa
Learning Center
Refinance Your Land Loan? Consider These Factors.
Review common strategies and key factors to consider when refinancing your land loan.
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You’ve found farmland. But what happens next? Our step-by-step guide explains what to expect at each stage of a farmland purchase.
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