1. An immigrant farmer who became a citizen of the United States worked with two generations of his family to purchase land and a home located among the most expensive agricultural land on the planet. This producer of organic vegetables and strawberries in Monterey County wanted to become a farm owner and save land from development while enhancing the local food system. FarmLink staff provided this farmer with professional advice in Spanish and discussed various options for purchasing land, including having an adult son co-sign a loan. With his IDA program savings and match money and equity from his small home, we were able to connect him with a local lender who made the loan with a guarantee from the Farm Service Agency. The $9,600 in IDA funds served as a down payment for his property, a $900,000 purchase with significant acreage, a house and an excellent on-site direct marketing facility. 

 2. FarmLink worked closely on a farm purchase with an IDA program participant and her husband. She is developing a small organic farm which is in its fourth year of operation. The couple contacted FarmLink when the process of purchasing a 10 acre farm in Southern Monterey County, offered at $250,000, seemed overwhelmingly complex. We helped them navigate through a situation where neither the seller nor the buyer had a realtor. FarmLink assisted them in writing a business plan for potential lenders. We then helped identify needs of the title company, find an appropriate attorney to solidify a purchase agreement, gather information from a 1031 like-kind exchange facilitator, and interface with lenders. The family used IDA account funds as their down payment. By securing a land-use attorney to assist the family, California FarmLink helped save them at least $9,000 in realtor fees. We worked with partner Cal Coastal Rural Development Corporation, which ultimately approved a FSA-guaranteed loan of $175,000.

 3. Jennifer is a sixth generation California farmer. In college she studied viticulture and planned to make money on the crop most of her neighbors were raising: grapes. She chose this option over the melons that had made her family's name well-known in the area. She wanted to have an independent business from her parents, so she leased small acreage, borrowed money to plant the vines and invested her IDA funds in a specialized tractor to handle the narrow rows of grapes. In fall 2007 she celebrated the first sales of her premium wines. 

 4. Jesse studied agriculture and permaculture at Humboldt State University, where he worked on the University's educational farm and became the farm's CSA manager. Today, Jesse is a member of a Marin County marketing and certification agency and is one of its youngest growers. In just a few years he has already established himself as a reliable source of tender baby lettuces, red, yellow and orange carrots, radishes, turnips, onions and garlic, all of which he sells at farmers markets and restaurants around the San Francisco Bay Area. Jesse farms organically on 10 acres protected by a conservation easement in Marin County. When looking to expand his operation, he applied through FSA for an operating loan. This required collateral, which in Jesse's case included all of his used farming equipment but not an upfront cash requirement. Jesse's 10-year written lease, good water supply, and extensive experience in farming enabled him to get approved for two FSA loans. Jesse used his IDA savings to purchase farm implements and refrigeration and storage for his farm. 

 5. Kevin ran a small produce business and was seeking to expand. After engaging in more detailed record-keeping and gaining technical assistance through California FarmLink for developing a more sophisticatd cash-flow management and monitoring system, Kevin applied for the IDA program. Over the next year and a half his business grew to the point where he needed to invest in additional infrastructure and equipment and rev up his marketing as he moved from retail farmers' markets to wholesale accounts. Instead of taking on debt, he sought out equity financing in the form of a partner who had both marketing expertise and the cash to invest in the business. The IDA account was an asset that was calculated into the value of the business when the new partner bought in. The partner's cash infusion allowed for investment in a cooler and Kevin's IDA money later funded the purcahse of a tractor. 

 Round 3 Successes in Progress:

6. One of our aspiring farmers was linked with two older ranchers in Santa Cruz County, where she is now grazing 50 Lacaune sheep. In the summer of 2007, she was selected to participate in the third round of California FarmLink's IDA program, and will invest in equipment for her planned sheep dairy and specialty cheese making operation. In the meantime, she was recieved a loan through FarmLink's Farm Opportunities Loan Program (FOLP), which will be guaranteed by the USDA Farm Service Agency. The IDA account helps to demonstrate her ability to pay back the loan. California FarmLink is happy to help her advance her dream.

7. A young couple in Glenn County are cattle and hay farmers who both work off the farm at full-time jobs. Active in Farm Bureau's Young Farmer and Rancher Program, the two are building a successful agricultural business for themselves despite the fact that they will not inherit any farmland nor take over any family operation. Their goal with the IDA savings is to use it as part of a down payment on property. They have already purchased a house and 3 acres, but will need more acreage to be able to farm the way they want to - developing a multi-species livestock operation and a more sustainable production system. They are savvy marketers with strong and lengthy agricultural backgrounds and training. They are an excellent example of the entrepreneurial farmers we are able to support through our IDA program.