Keeping loans affordable for farmers, ranchers, and fishers
Recently we updated our loan rates and terms, and despite rising interest rates during 2022-23, one thing has stayed the same. We charge no more than 7% interest for operating, infrastructure, and equipment loans - ensuring access to affordable loans for farmers and ranchers. Since starting to make loans 12 years ago, FarmLink has disbursed $68 million in loans to farmers, ranchers, and fishers.
Effective use of affordable FarmLink loans can unlock the potential of the natural resource-based businesses that we support. As a Community Development Financial Institution (learn more here), we have a lot of flexibility to create fair and affordable loan products.
While our most common loans feature a 7% fixed rate, graduates of our Resilerator or Resilerador courses, can access loans at 6%. For growers in Monterey or Santa Cruz counties who work with the local Resource Conservation Districts, we offer bridge financing at 3.5% to support conservation practices. Climate change-related disasters particularly impact farmers and fishers, and we offer 0% disaster recovery loans for eligible applicants. Learn more here.
Land loans have been particularly popular in recent months, partly due to the competitive interest rates we offer. Thanks to social impact investors who provide affordable capital for loan funds, we have maintained steady interest rates. In the past four months, we have approved seven loans for land purchases or refinancing, and for fishers we’ve financed two vessel engine upgrades so far this year.
What’s one thing that sets FarmLink’s lending apart? Our approach to credit scores. While credit scores are a common measure of creditworthiness—essentially predicting your likelihood to repay a loan on time—they are not the sole factor we consider. In our underwriting process, we prioritize your credit history over your credit score due to inherent limitations in how credit scores are calculated. Your credit score does not influence the interest rate you pay, but it may affect the size of the loan we can offer.
In addition to our fair and affordable approaches to lending, FarmLink provides a comprehensive suite of client services. Our client journey is tailored to individual needs and includes one-on-one assistance for effective loan utilization, educational courses on business resilience, and agreement-building services to help secure land leases, partnerships, and sales of businesses. Check out our loan options and submit an inquiry here.
