Farm Estate Planning and Rural Health, What’s The Connection?
February 5, 2010
Because you're here, I assume you are interested in your farm's long term success. Click here to learn the most cost effective way to achieve it!. 
AgricultureOnline.com: Farmers Unique Health Concerns
But what does that have to do with farm estate planning?
It is obviously true that “Farmers have a unique set of health concerns” as was stated in the opening paragraph of this collection of important and compelling articles published on www.AgricultureOnline.com.
Subjects such as Good Health And Safety Make $en$e, Rural Health Videos, General Health, Pain Management, and others are covered here in depth.
What does this have to do with farm transition and/or farm estate planning you ask? Everything!
Estate planning experts will tell you that three elements of your farm’s estate and succession plan can make more dollars and sense difference to your success than any other. And each one requires as through a knowledge of you and your family members’ health as possible.
The first is to delay the time at which any and all transfer costs and taxes are due. Take care of your health so there are as many years as possible for the delay, so the dollars required will be future dollars – cheaper no doubt because you’ll have had more years to accumulate them.
And if poor health is known about sooner rather than later your advisors will be able to adjust your planning accordingly.
The second tool in their quiver is to divide costs, taxes, commitments, and obligations among several people, younger people, to diffuse their effects. Again, health knowledge can be key. If diverting costs and or assets to the younger generation makes sense to you and your advisors they will want to know if there are any predictable roadblocks to the success of the strategy.
And the third and maybe the most important tool is to discount the amount of the tab. For example if you have delayed the potential “day of reckoning” when taxes, costs, and other obligations are due for say twenty years you can begin setting aside money in installments today. That money along with its reinvested returns will mean less money from the farm when it is ultimately needed.
There are an endless variety of products to achieve the results you seek. Each one requires the sacrifice of money today and every day going forward. And if you say you can’t afford any money now, you’ll never be able to afford the total amount when it comes due.
Now, when you read the important and insightful rural health articles in www.AgriculureOnline.com I hope they take on an additional dimension for you and your family.
Wayne Messick
Posted in Farm Estate Planning, Farm Strategic Planning, Farm Succession Planning
content rss
February 9th, 2010 at 6:52 pm
[...] Rural Health and Farm Estate Planning, What's The Connection … [...]