Most of them are, at least in the US. A lot of farmers are genuinely wealthy and live a life of ease. Some of them are land rich, meaning they inherited a land title that’s now worth 6-7 figures on paper and little else. Every year, some of the latter are at long last forced to sell their last asset (often below market value) and become regular poor, and the rich farmers (and the financiers) get a little bit richer.
Sometimes it’s not a farm, but some other established business outfit, farms are just peculiar because they need a significant chunk of real estate attached to them to be economically sustainable, usually, and the value of the land doesn’t depreciate as the rest of the business shrivels.
Most of them are, at least in the US. A lot of farmers are genuinely wealthy and live a life of ease. Some of them are land rich, meaning they inherited a land title that’s now worth 6-7 figures on paper and little else. Every year, some of the latter are at long last forced to sell their last asset (often below market value) and become regular poor, and the rich farmers (and the financiers) get a little bit richer.
Sometimes it’s not a farm, but some other established business outfit, farms are just peculiar because they need a significant chunk of real estate attached to them to be economically sustainable, usually, and the value of the land doesn’t depreciate as the rest of the business shrivels.