Farmers: What is the legal structure of your farm?

[Hay Dude]

Not sure. he is non-committal.
I think he is mulling it over.
If he did, not sure I would stay. HE is the whole practice. Some newbie might be worse than jumping to a different, experienced accountant.

 

[2manyrocks]

Some guys bring in a young accountant with a view to them buying the practice. If your accountant just shuts his doors at retirement, he's missing the opportunity to be paid something for the value of his client base that he has built. There shouldn't be a radical change in how taxes are prepared from one year to the next unless there's been a change in the tax law or what has been going on in your business.

 

[Torvy]

Not sure. he is non-committal.
I think he is mulling it over.
If he did, not sure I would stay. HE is the whole practice. Some newbie might be worse than jumping to a different, experienced accountant.

We ran into that with our insurance agent. Retired, sold his agency to a guy who had a similar one the next town over. Hard to grasp they were with the same company.

Maybe you will need to retire at the same time. Problem solved.

 

[LHF2019]

My accountant is retiring after this tax year.
Gonna be a long & difficult transition to a new accountant

Horizon farm credit. Have the farm loan and accounting through them. Was with PFB when I started and I was getting a new accountant every couple years. Then find out they didn’t do it properly. The best one was a fill in and I couldn’t keep him. Also that’s when i learned that each have their way of doing it. Which means what they will allow and not allow to be wrote off.

 

[Torvy]

Eek. That sounds risky. Don't know that I'd want my lender also doing my books.

 

[LHF2019]

Separate entities. One can’t access the other. But when looking to refinance just a couple signatures to transfer information. I’ve heard that concern before as well.

 

[Hay Dude]

Separate entities. One can’t access the other. But when looking to refinance just a couple signatures to transfer information. I’ve heard that concern before as well.

Excellent. I will have to look into that.
Let’s say that Horizon already has a good deal of “interest” in my business already

 

[Hay Dude]

We ran into that with our insurance agent. Retired, sold his agency to a guy who had a similar one the next town over. Hard to grasp they were with the same company.

Maybe you will need to retire at the same time. Problem solved.

Except for the divorce papers that would show up after I ”retire”.

 

[HayFarmer]

SP and I do the taxes. Horizon has my loan, but they don't do my books. Waiting for the tax form from them right now. I expect it to be in my mailbox today.

 

[tjandrews]

General Partnership with my brother. I do the taxes. Small farm, neither of us ever married, both of us in our 70's, third generation of the family to own and operate the farm. The farm and Social Security supplement each other. We keep things simple, strictly debt-free so we don't have a lender to worry about. Farm was paid off by our grandfather 75 years ago. If we can't pay for it when we want it, we find a way to do without. No hired labor, just us with a bit of unpaid help from time to time from other family.
We file a 1065 with the Feds, as well as a 1040 each. The State requires similar forms. It's really not difficult, once you get onto it.