Farmers are wrapping up harvest, and this year's financials are about to tell the story of the 2016 growing season. Many farmers will sit down with their spouses and financial advisers to pore over what went right and what went, well, not so right. And as in any business, there may be changes made which result in a visit to your farm lenders. Before you step foot in their office, wouldn't it be nice to know what they were thinking moving into 2017?

Well, Dan Gieseke, Missouri Farm Service Agency farm loan chief; Freddie Barnard, a Purdue University ag economist; and Matt Huster, Rabo AgriFinance senior regional credit officer; tackled that very topic.

BE CAUTIOUS THIS YEAR: Keep to your farm budget this year, being sure to keep (or get) your costs control. Make sure to use the tools available to you. (Photo: TongRo Images/Thinkstock)

Here are their responses to the question, "If there is one message farm lenders want borrowers to know for 2017, what would it be?"

DAN GIESEKE, Missouri Farm
Service Agency

Gieseke: Be fiscally disciplined. There was a lot of money on the farm and spending going on in the last years. Farmers need to get their family living expenses under control. Encourage borrowers to be conservative with their money. This will be a learning experience. Many have not been through a tough time. They need to be conservative now, so they can be ready to take advantage of opportunities when they come along.

FREDDIE BARNARD,
Purdue University

Barnard: Know where you are financially and what your options are. If you have no clue where you are to start with, it is hard to move forward. Use records to do analysis. My fear is that farmers don't use them. In the '80s, we got beat up. But the tools to do the analysis then were not out there. There are tools now. Just use them, and try to make informed decisions.

MATT HUSTER, Rabo AgriFinance

Huster: Stick to the facts. Keep emotion out of it in the next few years. Buyers do not have to buy a piece of property because of location, but on what makes sense today. Don't get caught up in what your neighbor is doing. You need to get costs under control. That you can control. Your margins will be thin, but don't panic. Just stick to the facts.