Getting started in farming : so you have inherited a farm (1970s)

Published approximately 1979.Most people who inherit farmland consider themselves fortunate. Land has potential for both current earnings and appreciation in value. Inheriting land may also cause some problems. You have decisions to make about how to handle the land. Like most other resources that are expected to be productive, land requires management. What you do with inherited land will depend, in part, on the circumstances under which you obtained the land, your background, and your present situation. Often the person inheriting land is a widow or child of a farmer, or the widow or child of a parent who had the land as an investment. In some instances, the land may have been inherited from a more distant relative, or even from a nonrelative. A widow inheriting land may not be interested in farming the land but she may wish to keep it as a source of income. A child with a farm background who inherits land may be interested in farming the land. Any debt remaining on the land tends to complicate decisions as to how to handle the unit and the alternatives available.Initial decisions -- Appraisal of yourself -- Appraisal of the real estate -- Appraisal of current economic conditions -- Making a decision -- Farming the land yourself -- Keeping the farm as an investment -- Estate taxes -- Inheritance taxes -- Land ownership decisions -- Selling the land -- Inheriting part of a far