You can sell an Iowa family farm without losing your family’s legacy. Although the land may change owners, your family’s history can still live on.
For example, you can save photos, record family stories, preserve old records, and keep meaningful items. You may also be able to keep the farmhouse or a small piece of the farm.
For many Iowa families, selling farmland is about more than money. After all, the farm may represent decades of work and several generations of memories.
Therefore, it helps to make a plan for preserving that history before the sale begins.
What Does Your Family Farm Legacy Mean to You?
First, decide what you want to preserve.
Every family will have a different answer. For example, one person may care about the farmhouse, while another may want to save the old barn or farm sign.
Meanwhile, other family members may simply want future generations to know the story of the farm.
Before making a decision, ask your family:
- What parts of the farm matter most to us?
- Are there buildings we want to remember?
- Do we want to keep any of the land?
- Does anyone in the family want to buy the farm?
- Are there items we want to keep?
- What stories should we record?
Ultimately, these questions can help your family decide what matters before the property is sold.
Document the History of Your Iowa Farm
Next, write down the farm’s history.
Start with the basics. For instance, when did your family buy the farm? Who owned it first? How many generations lived or worked there?
After that, add more details.
Write about the crops, livestock, buildings, equipment, and major events. In addition, include stories about harvest, planting, droughts, floods, or family gatherings.
Small details matter too.
For example, future generations may enjoy learning where Grandpa kept his first tractor or where the family gathered after harvest.
Once those stories are gone, they can be difficult to recover. Therefore, recording them now can preserve an important part of the farm’s history.
Take Photos Before Selling the Farm
Photos are another simple way to preserve your family farm legacy.
However, do not photograph only the farmhouse.
Also photograph:
- Fields
- Barns
- Grain bins
- Machine sheds
- Ponds
- Creeks
- Old fences
- Farm signs
- Driveways
- Trees and windbreaks
- Favorite views
In addition, consider taking aerial photographs.
For example, a drone photo can capture the entire farm as your family remembers it. Later, you can frame the image or include it in a family history book.
Video is another option. As you walk around the farm, explain why certain places are important.
As a result, future generations will have both images and stories from the property.
Record Stories From Older Family Members
Photos show what the farm looked like. However, stories explain what happened there.
Therefore, consider recording older family members while you still have the opportunity.
Ask simple questions.
What was harvest like when you were young?
Who built the barn?
What was the first tractor on the farm?
What was the hardest year?
What was the best crop?
Where did the kids play?
Fortunately, you do not need professional equipment. A smartphone is enough to preserve these conversations.
Over time, these recordings may become one of the most important parts of your family’s history.
Save Important Farm Records
Old farm records can also help tell the story.
Before cleaning out the farmhouse or machine shed, look for items worth keeping.
For example, you may find:
- Old deeds
- Plat maps
- Aerial photographs
- Farm leases
- Crop records
- Sale bills
- Machinery receipts
- Newspaper clippings
- Letters
- Farm books
- Family photographs
Some records may need to stay with the property or transaction. However, you may be able to scan or copy them first.
Digital copies are especially useful because they are easy to share with family members.
Can We Sell the Farmland and Keep the House?
Yes, that may be possible.
Some Iowa families choose to sell the productive farmland but keep the farmhouse and several surrounding acres. As a result, the family can maintain a physical connection to the property.
However, the property must be divided correctly.
For example, you may need to consider:
- Access
- Survey requirements
- Wells
- Septic systems
- Utilities
- Buildings
- Zoning
- Property boundaries
Therefore, discuss this option before putting the farm on the market.
Planning early can make the process much easier.
Can We Keep a Small Piece of the Farm?
Possibly.
You may not want to keep the house. Instead, another part of the property may have special meaning.
For example, your family might want to keep a pond, timber area, building site, or another small parcel.
Again, plan ahead.
Creating a separate parcel may require a survey, legal description, access, and local approval. Consequently, it is better to explore these issues before the property is offered for sale.
What If a Family Member Wants to Buy the Farm?
Talk about it before offering the farm to the public.
A child, sibling, cousin, or other family member may want to continue owning the property. If so, first determine what the farm may be worth.
Then discuss whether a family purchase is realistic.
For example, the buyer may need financing. Meanwhile, the other owners may have different financial goals.
Because these transactions can involve legal and tax questions, an attorney, lender, and tax professional can help the family understand its options.
What If Some Heirs Want to Sell and Others Do Not?
This situation is common with inherited Iowa farmland.
For example, one sibling may want to keep the farm, while another may need cash. Meanwhile, a third sibling may live outside Iowa and have little interest in owning agricultural land.
First, discuss everyone’s goals.
Possible solutions may include:
- Keeping the farm together
- One heir buying another’s interest
- Several heirs buying out another owner
- Dividing the property
- Keeping part and selling part
- Selling the entire farm
There is no single answer for every family. However, early communication can make the decision easier.
Should We Have a Family Meeting Before Selling?
Yes. A family meeting can be very helpful before selling a longtime family farm.
Ideally, have the meeting before choosing an auction date or accepting an offer.
First, discuss why the farm may be sold. Next, talk about what the property may be worth and whether anyone wants to keep it.
Finally, decide what should remain in the family.
For example, someone may want the farm sign. Another person may want an old tractor, while someone else may want the original aerial photograph.
By making these decisions early, families may be able to avoid disagreements later.
Should We Know What the Farm Is Worth?
Yes.
Even when family history is the main concern, the financial side still matters.
Therefore, before making a decision, understand the farm’s potential market value.
Consider:
- Total acres
- Tillable acres
- CSR2
- Soil quality
- Drainage
- Tile
- Access
- Improvements
- Farm lease
- Recent comparable sales
- Local buyer demand
Once you understand the potential value, your family can better compare its options.
Can We Choose Who Buys the Farm?
The answer depends partly on how you sell it.
For example, a traditional listing allows sellers to review offers and their terms. In contrast, a sealed-bid sale gives buyers a deadline to submit offers.
An auction uses another approach because buyers compete under established terms.
Price may be the family’s main concern. However, other terms may matter too.
Therefore, if your family has specific goals, discuss them before selecting the sales method.
Should We Keep Something From the Farm?
Many families do.
Fortunately, the item does not have to be expensive or large.
For example, consider keeping:
- The farm sign
- An old gate
- A barn board
- A mailbox
- A hand tool
- A plat map
- An aerial photograph
- An original deed
- A piece of equipment
These items can become family keepsakes.
For instance, an old barn board could become a picture frame. Likewise, a framed aerial photograph could hang in a child’s or grandchild’s home.
The monetary value may be small. Nevertheless, the family value may be much greater.
Create a Family Farm History Book
Another option is to create a family farm history book.
It does not need to be complicated. Instead, focus on the information that tells your family’s story.
You could include:
- A timeline of ownership
- Family photographs
- Aerial images
- Maps
- Farm stories
- Newspaper articles
- Copies of old deeds
- Pictures of buildings
- Memories from family members
In addition, consider creating both printed and digital copies.
That way, future generations can understand the connection their family had to the land.
Make the Sale Part of the Farm’s Story
The sale itself can become another chapter in your family’s history.
For example, take a photograph of the final harvest under family ownership. Also, save the auction brochure or property listing.
Then record the date the farm sold.
Most importantly, write down why the family decided to sell.
Future generations may wonder what happened to the farm. Therefore, give them the story while the people who made the decision can still explain it.
How Do We Preserve Our Family’s Legacy When Selling the Farm?
Preserving a family farm legacy starts before the sale. Save photos, record stories, preserve important documents, keep meaningful items, and decide whether your family wants to retain any part of the property.
In addition, involve family members in the discussion.
Selling farmland changes ownership. However, it does not erase the generations who cared for it.
Another farmer may eventually plant the fields. Likewise, another family may live in the farmhouse.
Nevertheless, your family’s history can continue through the stories, photographs, records, and traditions you preserve.
Therefore, make preserving that history part of your sale plan.
Thinking About Selling a Family Farm in Iowa?
At Whitaker Marketing Group, we understand that selling an Iowa family farm can involve more than determining a price per acre.
Families may be dealing with inheritance, memories, multiple owners, financial goals, and generations of history. Therefore, it helps to understand both the property and the family’s goals before bringing the farm to market.
Depending on the situation, the sale may involve an auction, sealed bid, traditional listing, multiple tracts, or retaining part of the property.
Ultimately, the property may change hands, but your family’s connection to it can still be preserved.
The farm may change owners. Your family’s story can continue.
Land is our Brand.
