Transferring the Family Farm: Process and Implications

Currently there is a high level of interest in retirement of farmers because of an aging population and concern that the farm crisis may have disrupted succession patterns. The purpose of this study is to describe the process of exit from businesses of a group of older farmers and to determine the relationship between goals of family succession and behaviors in the exit phase. A sequence of exit from work, management, and ownership is found. Farmers who value continuity are most likely to involve sons in management of the operation. Programs for two-generation families may be useful in the early part of the exit phase while estate planning information and programs may be more appropriate to those in the latter part of the process.