Farm Progress

There's plenty to do as 2017 winds down.

Kyle Stackhouse 2

December 22, 2017

2 Min Read
Kyle Stackhouse photo

Today, just a few days before Christmas, I sit in line at the feed mill. Plot data and seed guides cover the passenger seat. The laptop is charged and in the cab as well. The delivery schedules have pushed me back into the driver’s seat as our part time driver, Joe, has migrated to his south Texas winter home for several months and Corky needed the day off to take care of some of his business.

We enjoyed a family vacation last week, but now we we are ready for some down time. That isn’t happening. We knew going it was going to be a ‘busy’ vacation, not the relaxing type. That’s ok, though our kids are only kids for so long. I do have to apologize to all the Floridians as we seem to have taken the cool weather with us.

Though on vacation, I was still somewhat on duty last week as equipment we were interested in was selling on online auctions and those decisions were not going to wait. The decision ended up being pretty easy as the price surpassed our interest level about an hour before the sale closed. This triggered a purchase decision on an alternate machine.

Upon returning, we jumped back into year-end planning. I had sent my information to the accountant before I left, it is a good thing as he seems to be running slower this year. I’ve had to stay on things to make sure they get done, it takes more than a day or two to get plans worked out.

Besides waiting on quotes and bids. It is taking time to work out trade details. Because of Indiana’s limits on section 179 depreciation, there is quite an advantage to trading in the old equipment rather than selling it outright. Of course, that complicates the evaluations of bids. Often, it takes a little while to get loans. Many creditors want an updated balance sheet, as the most recent on file is 11 months old. Patience and planning is key.

The opinions of the author are not necessarily those of Farm Futures or Farm Progress.

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