I'm 68 and have 100 stock cows. In 2014, I had my best year ever in the cow-calf business. I figure my cows are worth $2,800 each. A young neighbor has been helping me for six years.

I'm thinking about selling him my cows ($280,000), and renting him my grazing land and facilities. I would figure utilities and repairs into rental rates. I'm willing to carry the paper on the cows to be paid back over five years. What type of an agreement should we write? How much risk am I taking? — S.G., Missouri

Should you sell your cow herd? Compare tax issues vs. beef market price risk before making decision. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Our advice: Sell the cows outright and lease your grazing land and facilities; otherwise, a tax issue you might be trying to avoid by deferring gains could be replaced by a more serious beef market price risk.

Investigate some unknowns before deciding to bankroll your neighbor. First is his ability to repay. This sounds like a respectable way to wind out of the cow-calf business, which you'd probably admit has as much to do with trying to exit the cattle market near a high at your age.

Your neighbor could be underwater quickly on these depreciable assets, and his problem becomes your problem if you're the bank. When you sell out near the high of a market, it is generally not wise to participate in the financing.

Related: 6 steps to determining a 2015 pasture rental rate

When the grazing land base to support the cows isn't essentially "free," meaning it's probably owned and there's not a higher-value opportunity cost to use the grazing land alternatively, the ROI for a cow-calf operation is quite low, especially with high-priced cows.

Second, if you proceed with your plan, remember as the lender, you must take adequate collateral and look at his financials as a bank would, and seek legal counsel to draft the agreement.

Jerry and Jason Moss operate Moss Family Farms Inc. Questions? Email [email protected]