How Much I Paid For 50 Acres Of Iowa Farmland 

The whole breakdown of cost and explanation of how the loans and stuff work is super useful. Keep up the great work.

Greatest respect of this young gentleman! The country need more men like him.

I give you all the respect kid. You are one amazing person and the Country needs more like you. Best wishes and prayers for your success.

Very Kind of you to share your experience Spencer. GOD Bless this young man and his noble endeavor.

Thank you Spencer! It's particularly helpful to hear the detailed financial information, even though I do respect your privacy. Thank you for sharing it, and for the farming details too! I always get a lot out of your videos, even if I don't comment every time. I hope things keep going well for you! You earn your positive results with your strong efforts and the intelligence to consider what you are actually doing, and always keeping in mind if you can improve on things. I think that is an excellent way to conduct oneself! Thanks again!

My wife of 30 years is from a central Iowa farm family and, from my amateur observations of the high costs involved in starting a farm, I wish you the very best. With the increasing cost of land, machinery, and a whole lot of other things, there are obviously less risky career paths to take. But with the average age of farmers being up in the 60's, its good to see younger farmers taking up the challenge. By the way, it seems you did well on your land @ $7700/acre. My wife just got a 100 acre tract near Kamrar appraised at near $1.4 million, almost double the per acre cost. All the best.

Interesting to see how this works, I am Irish and started farming when I was a good bit younger than you, I bought my first farm at 20 ( coincidentally 50 acres) and bought another when I was 24 over the years I have bought a good few farms, like you I have always bought farms that have been neglected for years( basically because you pay the tax man for the privilege of buying a nice farm and he pays you to make a poor farm into a nice farm) I have always had to buy more land because I get to the point where I am paying more and more capital and less and less interest, while the interest is a tax write off we have to pay taxes on any of our capital repayments ( which basically means that for every euro we pay off the principal we give the tax man one as well) there are ways to avoid this however the taxes are paid eventually and I would rather be a sole trader with more wiggle room than a company with a huge corporate headache, I think you are a brave and capable young man with guts and ability, my advice is for what it’s worth, don’t ever worry about the banks because banks will never worry about you, don’t be loyal to any bank use them to your advantage and continue to shop around for the best deals you can get even after you have been given a loan because if one bank is willing to give you money so are the rest , depending on which bank has cash on hand on any given day you could get money at a considerable discount if you keep looking, I have saved myself thousands over the years by switching lenders sometimes I have switched lenders on the same property up to 4 times over the term of the loan, be aware that the quicker you can pay down your loan the cheaper it will be, like you my first farm was over 20 years the next 15 and generally it was 10 thereafter but now that I am over 55 I am down to 7 or 5 depending on a number of variables. My situation has changed over the years so I generally have what we call back to back loans now so it cuts out all the paperwork and is very fast and extremely competitive.😊

I just want to say, I appreciate the transparency because it's a good dose of reality-- for better or worse. For anyone who wants to get into a line of work, seeing how the numbers break down is so useful, yet very few people (understandably) are comfortable in providing it.

Thank you for sharing this. Nice to meet people who are honest to goodness people out to help other people learn.

Awesome video. Love watching your brother, and now we have you. Can't wait to see what you guys do and how you grow your farms.

Nice video Spencer, my former wife was a farm gal from Nebraska, they farmed about 1500 acres that had been in the family since Abraham Lincoln if you can imagine. I got to meet alot of farmers and they indeed are a special breed. I hope this goes well for you, we need new farmers.

$7,700 an acre in northern Indiana is no longer an option. Great buy. We’re at about 10-20k an acre now. Congrats keep growing

It warms my heart to see you go through this process. I just subbed. Nicely done videos too!

love to see young generation doing farming, happily subscribed!

Thanks for sharing! Your corn looks really great. I think you have made an excellent step towards agriculture especially having a brother in the same line of work. I have tried to purchase Farmland and could not even buy 5 acres in AG zone in California. The greatest hurdle has been prior farming experiences which I couldn't prove even if I was born and raised on farm. You also have had an amazing price for the land, and your video has revived my dead motivation. I may have to move out of California to try farming somewhere. Thanks again!

Congratulations on your purchase. You’ve done a very good job of analyzing your deal which, by the way, is a very good deal.

Thank you. This is great information that is rare in a transparent , realistic format. Keep it up and good luck to you and yours.

That was nice of you to put info out there that can help people.

Really appreciate this look into a part of America and an industry that most of us from other walks of life do not think much about. Very interesting! Thanks for the honest look into your process and details of your investment. Wish you the very very best and all success. Keep the great content coming!

This was a very good great video I follow your brother and you helping him I'm so impressed by both you young men I can't wait to see more of your videos if I ever get back home that way might look all up thanks again be safe out there.

This information was great, I'm not a farmer however the informtion was very educational. Hope you have a great crop, really enjoy following you and all the hard work you do. I always say a Farmer is the most important person in the nation . " Without them a nation starves "

Your transparency is amazing and fascinating! Loving your videos and look forward to them!

This person really explains the whole process my respect to him. Good luck Hope you do well 🙏👍

Let's go man can't wait to see some vids on the farm.😊

Spenser I have heard of people making a living on 50 acres, but they always grew much higher value crops than corn. When I was a Kid two brothers I worked for made a good living on 20 acres. They had several green houses i which they grew flowers and vegetable plants. Then in season (in South East MI) They grew tomatoes, peppers etc. When I was in grad school (AE) I read an article done by Tuskegee University in which they showed how a farmer on 40 acres could gross 400k per year. Growing a variety of crops like berries and such. That was in 1975. Just FYI

This is great info. I’m on my second year of “real” agricultural work, but don’t own any substantial amount of ground. I didn’t know programs like this existed until now.

I’ve have never been on a farm or had a interest in farms but that has changed from this guy

Do tillage at a slight angle 5-10 degrees off 0 or 90. The planter row units ride and plant at a more consistent depth because the tillage leaves small ridges and it helps spread the compaction at vs compacting the same tractor passes

Wow it went from FS17 (when I started watching) to farming in real life. Good work guys love the videos keep it up

this is one of the best I have seen and learnt , over the years , tried to go to classes , they shared more info not useful than needed and they asked me to take their survives , you and your brother are awesome good luck brother , having lot of experience in India but trying to get back to my roots in US is hard , learning a lot from u and u r bothers channel

Thank you very much for the information, Spencer! I am looking at expanding my small farming operation after I get done with college and have considered the FSA route.

Food is the future. Im going to keep my eye on your channel kid, you are goin' places.

Just want to wish you all the success in the future, Champ!

I have no interest in buying land or starting farming but the channel is very interesting to me. I also really like the analytical and number crunching metrics. Thank you for sharing!

Very interesting to see how the economics of farms works. Aprreciate how detailed you were about financing the purchase - it's an insight few get.

From someone who had no idea what you were taking about (at first) you explained it very very well, shoot you got me thinking I could do this 🥴 love the videos man!

Steer axle sensor could be going out, sometimes you have to recalibrate the guidance. After calibrating the globe, you’ll have to run through the calibrations for your steering

Its always good time to buy land, might seem expensive today, but in 20 years it will seem dirt cheap! You have an awesome brother!

As for your patches in the corn, this fall after harvest, you should take soil samples to get analyzed and have your local coop do a prescription based on those sample results.

For your squiggling problem, you should always do your last tillage pass in the same direction that you plant so it might be less bouncy

Thanks for sharing! Buying a farmland is always on my bucket list

Love you videos spencer keep up the great work

I lived in Florida for the last 30 years and I visited Iowa a few times and for some reason i like Iowa so much

Great break down ,count your blessings ur getting rain many places on the west coast and Canada are burning up from no rain ,great video Spencer

With the autosteer, the steady steer system isn’t going to do as good of a job as getting a steering valve out in at the bottom of the steering Column, the steering valve is going to be much more accurate than the steady steer, hope this helps

Thanks for the costs breakdowns, exactly what I was looking for.

Really enjoyed financial breakdown portion of video!!

Thank you fir your explanation. I now somewhat understood how u work numbers on a farm. Good luck.

Green Acres is the place for me farm living is the life you see Great video. Thanks for sharing

I wish you the best of luck! We need our farmers more than ever and you are the salt of the earth! ❤

172 bushels per acre average * 50.9 acres = 8,755 bushels of corn 8,755 * ~$5.95 current price of corn per bushel = $52,091 $52,091 - input costs, diesel, repair, insurance, etc = unknown Every one of those values are all not guaranteed except the 50.9 acres. Farming is wild. 😁

Good stuff!! Growing up in the city, I would have loved to have been a farmer!! Although with all the equipment today, I don't think I'd be smart enough. (smile) Looking forward to following your progress. Best wishes!

Can’t wait for the harvest!

As per the steering, check for play in the track rod ends or any ball joints on the front of the tractor buy jacking it up. Have seen others do the same as this.

Your anti rotation bracket on the steering wheel doesn’t look tight enough to the column so when the motor turns it’s having to compensate for the whole unit moving first.

The 4020 Deere is a great old tractor. You'll really appreciate that front loader too.

Prolly got suggested your video because Sean Overton/Dust Ups channel. Name dropping so that the algos send more peeps your way! Best of luck!

I love it when I see Young guys like you thinking outside the box to be producers of wealth 🤑🤑🤑🤑😉😉👍👍👍 Good job 👏👏👏

I am from Oregon, and tracing back 5 generations, 3/4s of my ancestors were farmers. In my generation, only one of my cousins was farming, and he inherited the farm (subject to whatever his brothers may have had an interest) from his dad. He was a very successful farmer, and i have often wondered how anyont could get started from ground zero given the enormous costs. Thank you for the breakdown, and I wish you all success.

Great info Spencer, I"m sure it will help others hoping to go down this road. I'd also like to see this channel grow to a viewership that would help offset some of the costs and put a few dollars in your pocket. What you're accomplished up to this point is very inspirational and it's just the beginning. Keep it up kid

I think you should construct wooden gate in the river, so you can elevate ground water levers in dry months. In wet season you can open gates and don;t bother about flod.

I can only imagine how you feel looking at your first crop planted by you on your land. Some us who have been there understand.

Great video on a new start. Here in the UK it is almost impossible as established farmers outbid those trying to break in.

Very informative. I really appreciate it. I’ve always wanted to learn about beginner farmer loans.

I appreciate you going over this so much and in detail I'm sure there's more detail you could do you can make an hour long video if you wanted to but I appreciate you being open and letting people like us more people like yourself who are wanting to get into farming and know that there are programs out there there are ways to not have to have a million dollars just to get started in farming one thing I would be interested in is how much 50 Acres ends up paying out compared to what you had to put into it and if it's able to make the payments because that's what I'm looking for to begin with is about 50 acres but I want to know, let's just say we have a good harvest if I have a good harvest is it going to pay you no for what it took to get the Harvest in and get the Harvest out once cuz 50 acres is not a lot of Acres especially compared to some of these guys with 2,000 acres 10000 Acres you know stuff like that God bless I'm praying bless your Ventures and we hope to see and hear from you soon

Thanks for breaking it all down- great job

Good luck dear. Your explanations are quite helpful.

Thanks for the education. Good Luck on your crop. Hope you get max production and a good sale price.

Lovely looking piece of land; decent price; and a wonderful crop given it was your first year. Success story.

just subscribed, hope all the best in your endeavor.

8k an acre anymore is right about the going rate. I'm finding deer ground is 7 k plus. Back in 2011 I paid 1700 an acre for my southeast Iowa farm and today that same farm brings over a million bucks all day. Thanks for the breakdown and video sir. Keep up the good work.

Great video. It is interesting for people to learn farming finance. What so many don't know is how much can and does go wrong along the way to paying the loan off. Not mentioning the cost of equipment. I farm, unfortunately for farmers where I am, bank interest loans are 26.5% twenty six and a half percent. This is only possible if I prove 120% collateral and a current offtake agreement valued equal to or more than 80% of the total value of how much I want to borrow. Unbelievable how hard it is to get into farming. I grew up on a farm, have farmed on my own for 35 years. Gone bankrupt twice and have finally come through and have a viable farm. Probably will not be a farmer in my next life........ I will say, it has been one hell of a ride. More exciting than banking I would say. I wish you all the very best, and hope you make a big success. Have faith and follow your dream!

Maybe compaction on those north/south lines? If it's farmed the same way all the time and/or something is mudded in it might do that? Might want to try to pull a deep ripper through it this fall and see if it pulls hard in those spots.

Turning long term crp to row crop ground is always hard. Your first two years are going to be bad. When we turn crp into rotation we plant an annual hay crop like teff grass. Then plant beans. Corn inputs are too high to lose that much crop. Also, ripping or plowing works much better we have found out. Will say next time spray round up on crp in August/September. Then rip ot plow in fall let freeze thaw happen, then disc, then cultivate. Rip at angle, disc opposite angle, then cultivate straight with your rows.

Thanks Spencer really helpful buddy nice farm

Great video man, enjoyable and informative

Thank you for sharing all this info!!

Good information, Spence!

Congrats on the farm man

Good information. Thankyou and good luck.

Hey spencer. I am a farmer as well, only in the Netherlands. I heared yours question about why the corn was growing better on the part that hasen’t been farmed for years. I have an idea what the cause can be. I would test the soil in both places for organic matter (the farmed and not farmed pieces). Gras naturally produces organic matter each year and therefore it’s likely, that those parts will be higher in organic matter. Organic matter helps with storing water and nutrionts in the soil. You said that after planting you haven’t had much rain. That’s why I suspect that the higher organic matter in the not farmed pieces helped store the rain you had before planting. That made it easier for the corn to germinate and grow. Do you also see a difference in yield between the pieces?

Very good start Spencer! I hope all the best for you. Reminds me of my start 20 years ago, when I paid $2,200 per acre for northern Indiana ground (and thought that was expensive at the time). You put 180 miles on your brother's tractor (round trip). WOW! It's good that you have a very good relationship with him. 😁

Thanks for the video. I'm looking at doing this as well. Not too much info on this subject.

farmers do a tough job. thanks for stepping up.

Thanks for the great detail! It would be cool to farm with you guys

im honestly dabbling in the idea of starting my own farm. probably starting with grass. not sure. but this defiantly gives me loads of starting ideas!!

Great job Spencer

Like you, I started farming on my own in 2009. Hadn't been on a working farm for 20 years. Very steep learning curve. What ive learned in corn is having a great seed bed is the most important thing that does not get enough attention paid to it. If there is time and I just should always make the time. After I get done field cultivating the field I will run a land roller over it. If it's not terribly dry and it needs to be field cultivated twice do it twice. And I take a lot of time to get every role of seating depth exactly the same. It's kind of nerve-wracking knowing that you should be going rather than messing around for an hour or more fine tuning seed depth but it pays. Fertilizing and weed control are very important but kind of a no-brainer. But again the seed bed is very important in corn.

love this series

wow great footage

And any recalibration you can do will help the gps go into settings- then calibration, and just go though any there

I always ran a diff lock when I used the steering boxes before integrated valves. Takes a noticeable amount of darting out. Tap the brake on the end to cancel it out, tap on again once line acquired.

It's on average 3-4 times lesser (per acre) than compared to West Bengal India. Here per acre is about $25-30k.

I have a true interest in exactly what you are doing….love the video. I probably will buy the land with cash.

Love the video very educational thanks 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

Well done. Many thanks.

Let’s go spencer

Thanks for doing this!

Thanks for sharing such detail.

Way to go Spencer!