“Do you know of any older farmers looking to sell land?” the investor asked. He was the picture of a shark, hungry for more parcels of land to add to his growing portfolio. Or perhaps he looked like a wolf, licking his chops as his ears perked up to hear about his next target. Yeah, that’s a more accurate description.

The scary thing is that this picture was not from some tale or nightmare. No, this was a real interaction that took place between farmer-tenant and investor-landlord just this fall.

This investor is notorious for jacking up rent prices and eating up any profit his tenants may have enjoyed, claiming that there should not be any “money left on the table.” And he swoops in to pick up any land that becomes available, throwing enough dollars out there to drown the competition.

Big bad wolf

Not all investors are this big bad wolf figure. You know which ones fit that description and which ones genuinely care about the farmers in their community. There are many — perhaps more — kind-hearted investors who understand farming and want to work with their tenants. But how can you stop the mean wolf investor from hunting his prey? How do you stop him from gobbling up precious farmland?

It’s hard to refuse an offer from one of these investors, who have the funds to drastically outbid whatever the competition is offering on your land for sale. It’s too much to ask someone to give up that money that could seriously better their life.

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It’s not like you can drive them out of the area. They are too rich or powerful to care if anyone likes them. They don’t need to be friends with the community. “Playing nice” is an idea that makes them laugh.

But maybe you can build a house that is too strong for them to blow down, to invade.

Stick together

The farmer who dealt with the investor in this story simply walked away. He told the investor that he no longer wanted to rent his ground. Now, you’re probably wondering what difference that makes. Why would he care? He will just find a new tenant.

Sure, he might find a new tenant. But he will not find one who put up with what the previous tenant faced. The old tenant improved drainage and managed farm maps. The old tenant recorded data and worked with it to find productive areas and better the unproductive spots. And that tenant stuck with the investor, even while the investor increased rent prices beyond what anyone else in the area would be willing to pay.

Although the investor can just “find a new tenant,” that tenant is not going to pick up where the old one left off. No, that new tenant will demand lower rent prices, and they will start with zero knowledge of the land. And soon enough, that new tenant will realize that the landlord is a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

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When an out-of-touch investor invades your community, don’t “play nice” with them. I’m not saying you can’t work with them to rent some of their ground, but make your needs known. Paint a picture of what the farm economy looks like and why you are the one who can’t afford to leave money on the table. Soon enough, that investor will get tired of trying to blow your house down, and hopefully it can slow their hunt for new victims.