Posts By: Betsy Urso

Seminars cover wide field of key topics Capital Press By: Mitch Lies From a national perspective on the impacts of interest rates on rural America to how to save money on energy costs, seminars at the 2019 Northwest Ag Show will investigate a wide range of topics important to Oregon farmers and ranchers. Robert Owens, director… Read more »

Get your 2019 game plan ready now FarmFutures By: Jacqui Fatka and Mike Wilson 9 key marketing and management areas to focus on going into the New Year. Another year of record yields across much of the Midwest has turned into a good-news, bad-news story. With harvest complete farmers will be tested on other aspects… Read more »

Farmer Mac: A secondary lender securing billions for ag loans FarmFutures By: Mike Wilson This publicly traded, government-sponsored enterprise secures long-term fixed-rate loans for hundreds of rural banks. “If you’re the borrower and you don’t execute your plan, you put a lot of doubt in a banker’s mind,” says Curt Covington with Farmer Mac. While… Read more »

Early Exclusive: Are Delinquency Rates on Farm Loans Trending Higher? Farm Journal’s AgPro By: Tyne Morgan Trends in delinquency rates are something economists watch to gauge the health of the farm economy. (Farm Credit) Pinched profits on the farm are causing concern for some ag lenders. Rising debt to asset ratios are one red flag… Read more »

Increase in Interest Rates Affecting Operating Loans AgWeb Powered by Farm Journal By: AgWeb Guest Editor Agriculture leader Farmer Mac says interest rates are having an impact on operating loans. That’s because most of those loans are on a variable rate. Rising interest rates mean land may not be an attractive option for investors. If… Read more »

Early Exclusive: Rising Debt to Asset Ratios in Ag Raising Red Flags US Farm Report By: Tyne Morgan Interest rates continue to climb, with the Federal Reserve expected to raise the benchmark right one more time yet this year. The rising rates are putting a further strain on farmers. Ag Lender Farmer Mac says increased… Read more »

Early Exclusive of Farmer Mac’s “The Feed” AgriTalk Radio By: Ashley Davenport Today on AgriTalk, representatives from Farmer Mac discuss their latest findings of their quarterly report, “The Feed,” and their insights into interest rates and farm loans in 2019. Farm Journal’s AgTech Expo takes place in less than one month. Keynote speakers Josh Henritig… Read more »

Takach: Good US Economy Typically Bad for Ag Economy DRGNews.com By: Jody Heemstra The 2018 ABA National Agricultural Bankers Conference is underway in Omaha. Director of Economic Research and Business Innovation at Farmer Mac Jackson Takach says the general overview of farm economy heading into 2019 is reminiscent of going into 2018. To view the… Read more »