Land Link Services
How can new farmers get onto land if they don’t have much capital and there’s no land in the family? Land Link connects new and retiring farmers for farm transitions that benefit everyone involved.
Land Link is an opportunity for beginning farmers and ranchers and established landowners to work together to secure their farming futures. These relationships benefit both parties, and they secure the future of American small family farms.
There are many programs across the country that help prospective and established farmers and ranchers find each other, develop relationships, and get assistance with land or business transfer. For more information on the benefits of and ideas behind linking programs, click here.
The Center's Land Link program brings together beginning farmers and established landowners and offers consulting services to facilitate farm transitions.
Linking Procedure
For beginning farmers and ranchers:
- Search for land in our online system.
- Land Link provides listings of existing farms and ranches looking to link with new farmers.
- Consider how your interests, goals, resources, and needs mesh with those of existing farms and ranches in our listings.
- Contact the landowners you are interested in working with.
- Work with landowners to set up a successful transfer strategy.
For landowners:
- Create a land listing in our online system so interested beginners can contact you.
- New farmers and ranchers can find your listing on the our web page. They will contact you directly if they think your operation would be a good match.
- Interview the interested new farmers to determine if they might be a good match for you and your property. Remember no one will run the farm exactly the way you would, so be open to new approaches. You'll find suggestions for approaching a transition here.
- You can modify your land listing at any time or remove it when you no longer need to be listed.
Making a match:
Getting a good fit is the most important part of Land Link, but it’s not always easy. Land linking is a big deal - retiring landowners are passing on their life’s work, and everyone involved has to be comfortable with what is happening. Motivated new farmers and ranchers must work closely with landowners to find common goals and interests. Landowners must plan for transition, partnership, sale, or other transfer of ownership and management. Look over the issues and processes landowners might use here. Land Link staff can provide a limited amount of help and referral.
Arranging a transfer:
New farmers and established landowners can work out a transfer arrangement that will work to the benefit of both parties. Linking allows small family farms to carry on a proud American tradition. At the same time, it can bring financial benefits to landowners through tax credits and retirement security. There are many reasons and many ways to link.
Land Link services are provided at no charge to the participants.
To learn more about how Land Link has worked for others and could work for you, check out: