Profit Center
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Net Revenue Per Acre Trumps Yield Per Acre
I was watching Agday yesterday and noted in the business section that Mark Gold of Top-Third Marketing was the guest and had a discussion on how gross revenue per acre was more important than yield per acre. His insight is that it can be more important to budget for getting top marketing dollars for your […]
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Former Soviet Union May Become the Largest Wheat Exporter
It is projected by 2019 that Russia may become the world’s largest wheat exporter and Russian, Ukranian and Kazakhstan (RUK) wheat exports collectively may double the United States wheat exports according to the June 2010 issue of Amber Waves. This growth in wheat exports may help mitigate global food security concerns and help offset the […]
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New Drought Resistant Seed May Expand Corn Belt
The April 29, 2010 issue of Bloomberg Businessweek had a good article on how the seed companies are developing drought resistant corn seed that may expand the corn belt farther into Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. Another benefit of the seed is a reduction in the amount of irrigation that is needed. This can lead to […]
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Take Advantage of the New HIRE Credit
Congress recently passed the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act. This act provided a couple of new credits that in a lot of cases will help our farmers. The first credit is basically a direct reduction in the 6.2% employer FICA cost for new employees hired who have been un-employed after March 18, 2010 and […]
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Farmers – New Credit for Health Care Premiums Paid
Although I am usually on the other side from the IRS, I will admit that their web-site is one of the best sites I have used for accessing tax information. The recent Health Care Reform law enacted a new employer credit for certain employers who pay for their employee’s health care premiums. I would estimate […]
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What’s Your Dividend Tax Rate
For the last couple of years, farmers and other taxpayers have enjoyed a very low tax rate on dividend income. This income used to be taxed at regular income tax rates (as high as 50% when combined with some state and city taxes). However, starting a couple of years ago, the top rate on dividend […]
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Watch for Those Pesky Excise Taxes
I have taken a couple of days off from writing a post due to tax season ending on April 15. As a CPA, you tend to build up a large adrenalin rush until April 15 and then it takes a big dump and all you want to do is nothing and get a lot […]
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We Don’t Want a Partnership – Part 2
In my previous post, I discussed a situation that applies to many farmers where there was joint ownership of land and whether a partnership tax return is required to be filed. In that post, I indicated that in many cases, a partnership tax return is required and if one is not filed, then […]
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Watch Your Real Estate Tax Bill
I think that most farmers know that the residential and commercial real estate markets have gone through dramatic changes in the last few years. I know that in our area that residential prices peaked out about three years ago and in many of the cities near me the price is at least 50% below the […]
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Your CRP Payments May Not Be Subject to SE Taxes
For many years the IRS battled with taxpayers regarding whether Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) payments received by retired taxpayers were subject to self-employment taxes. The taxpayers argued that once a farmer is retired, the payments are simply rent payments and not subject to these taxes. The IRS countered that the payments are still subject to […]