Machinery acquisition is one of the major decisions for farm operators in the current high cost market. Purchasing or leasing that new machine has always been a difficult decision, but high retail prices on new equipment have made it much more challenging. New players in the market that can spread the use of a machine over several different geographic areas have added another option for farmers to consider in the process.

DECISIONS, DECISIONS: Making the right decision when acquiring equipment is no easy task, but there's a spreadsheet for that.

Being able to evaluate a number of alternative options for acquiring needed farm machinery can make the decision making process much easier.  In addition to the cost of the machine, the interest and tax implications need to be considered before making the decision to purchase or lease a new machine. William Edwards at Iowa State University has developed a comprehensive spreadsheet that will allow farmers to evaluate the options available before making what could be a several hundred thousand dollar decision. With The cost of machinery remains a major part of the crop production equation, this is a decision that can affect profitability, cash flow, tax liability and the balance sheet of the farm. This spreadsheet is designed to assist farmers with this difficult decision.

We're featuring the spreadsheet as our Farm Futures Spreadsheet of the Month. The 200-kilobyte spreadsheet should work with Excel 2000, 2002, 2010 or Excel XP. Click the link below to download the spreadsheet and put it to use.

Do you have a spreadsheet that's made a difference on your operation that you'd be willing to share with other readers? Drop us a line at [email protected] with a description of the spreadsheet. We'll pay $75 if we feature your farmer-written noncommercial program as our Spreadsheet of the Month.