I am not an MBA or a big thinker, but would like the leaser to consider this. I just bought a farm a little smaller, (156 acres) and for slightly less than your hypothetical. As a half tillable/pasture & timber farm, (don't look at all timber ground it wont help with the payment)it will generate approximate revenue leaving me with 2,000-4,000 from an average years crop share to come up with each year to make the annual payment. That is right out of the box before all of the tax advantages kick in like depreciation of fencing, the new tractor I am going to need, mileage, etc. Then look out for buffer strips, cp22,(crp payment for planting trees along waterways in pasture land), wind break, quail cover, etc. All the while I make the 10-15 percent in equity on my debt yearly from the inevitable increase in Iowa farmland values, ( on the hypothetical 200,000 farm that would have been 30,000 at this years 15% increase in land value) I enjoy developing the land for wildlife benefit as much as the hunting these days and will have a spot for my two young studs when they grow up. My backup up plan for hard times is to lease to someone for hunting to help make the payment.
Wanted to toss out this angle for consideration.
