# Sell the farm and live the life of Reilly?



## Jack The Lad (14 Mar 2006)

Here’s a nice juicy one…

 I own and manage a farm. I’m pretty good at it; I’ve won food quality awards and so on. I estimate that the farm in total is worth about €2,500,000, after tax. And that’s conservative. I generate a pre tax income of about €55,000 per annum directly from this farm. Although I love outdoor life and the challenges a farm can present - it’s very heavy work, long hours, seven days a week, the red tape is beyond belief and the potential to expand is too limited for my liking. 

 I have a fantasy. Selling the farm, handing it all over to a brilliant financial adviser, and living the good life someplace in the sun.

 What do you think folks… could €2,500,000, invested in a conservative way, generate a decent income for the next, say, 60 years?


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## ClubMan (14 Mar 2006)

Jack The Lad said:
			
		

> What do you think folks… could €2,500,000, invested in a conservative way, generate a decent income for the next, say, 60 years?


 Does this imply that you are c. 20 and running a multi million € farm or that you expect to live to a *very *ripe old age?

Have you considered getting staff in to run the farm with you taking a bit of a managerial/back seat role?


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## bearishbull (14 Mar 2006)

2.5million in bank at 3.5% would make ya around  87k gross,your farm is not very profitble considering its value in fact your return on capital is less than the inflation rate!,investing it conservatively you could make over 100k a year easily.


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## CCOVICH (14 Mar 2006)

Is there 60 years of income left in any farm in Ireland today?

What €2.5 million, I'd be inclined to look at something else (after taking a long holiday to think about it).


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## ClubMan (14 Mar 2006)

bearishbull said:
			
		

> 2.5million in bank at 3.5% would make ya around  87k gross


Don't forget though ... even if you assume that rates stay at 3.5% for decades, neither €2.5M nor €87K will be worth the same amount in decades to come due to the eroding effects of inflation.


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## walk2dewater (14 Mar 2006)

JTL,
I will assume this is not a wind up. If so, I can quite assure you that €2.5m is sufficient to provide for a comfortable retirement for the rest of your life.

4% real is the rule
see here... http://www.retireearlyhomepage.com/novtips.html

in your case that's €100,000 before tax, of real i.e. indexed, income.

Do you realise what the cost of living is in places like Costa Rica, Guatemala, Panama, Malaysia, Thailand etc. Do you have any idea of the amount of people with a fraction of €2.5m having primary residence in these places, and what their lifestyle entails? Do you think healthcare costs, the single biggest cost of your retirement (all at the end usually), are good value in the developed countries?

I've made not less than 7% nominal return over the last 8yrs, 35% last year , and intend to retire within the next 3yrs on substantially less than what you've got. With my property paid for, I plan to live most of year in paradise on 3-6% per annum from about 1/5 of your net worth.

WTTW


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## ClubMan (14 Mar 2006)

walk2dewater said:
			
		

> If so, I can quite assure you that €2.5m is sufficient to provide for a comfortable retirement for the rest of your life.


 Not for some people it seems!


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## ivuernis (14 Mar 2006)

CCOVICH said:
			
		

> Is there 60 years of income left in any farm in Ireland today?


 
Absolutely there is. Maybe not in the short to medium term, but long term definitely. We won't be importing cheap food from half way round the world forever.


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## walk2dewater (14 Mar 2006)

To sum it all up....

€2,500,000.00 means either:

Total freedom

-or-

this
[broken link removed]



'one of these things is not like the other'...


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## Jack The Lad (14 Mar 2006)

ClubMan said:
			
		

> Does this imply that you are c. 20 and running a multi million € farm or that you expect to live to a *very *ripe old age?
> 
> Have you considered getting staff in to run the farm with you taking a bit of a managerial/back seat role?


 
I am 35, and damn it I'm going to make it to 95 if it's the last thing I do! 

Seriously, though... To answer managerial/back seat question, first problem is difficulty finding someone willing to do the work, then finding someone competent, then being able to afford to pay them! I can take on part time workers on occassion.


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## Jack The Lad (14 Mar 2006)

bearishbull said:
			
		

> 2.5million in bank at 3.5% would make ya around 87k gross,your farm is not very profitble considering its value in fact your return on capital is less than the inflation rate!,investing it conservatively you could make over 100k a year easily.


 
Welcome to the crazy situation facing farmers. We all own very valuable property, but the return from it is crap. Problem is, in agriculture you need the massive capital to produce the crap return. I've never considered it in terms of inflation... it's an excellent point.


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## CCOVICH (14 Mar 2006)

ivuernis said:
			
		

> Absolutely there is. Maybe not in the short to medium term, but long term definitely. We won't be importing cheap food from half way round the world forever.



Excellent.  Can I borrow your crystal ball?


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## Jack The Lad (14 Mar 2006)

walk2dewater said:
			
		

> JTL,
> I will assume this is not a wind up. If so, I can quite assure you that €2.5m is sufficient to provide for a comfortable retirement for the rest of your life.
> 
> 4% real is the rule
> ...


 
Definitely not a wind up.

I have travelled quite a bit in the third world, and I know what you mean. The first thing, I guess, is to dare to dream. and then to do it. You certainly have given me something to think about. Thanks WTTW.


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## Ruth (14 Mar 2006)

Hey Jack the Lad

I'm curious if there's a missus? If so - what does she think? 
If no - sell it, enjoy the funds and the freedom!   How about this for a destination for starters?  
[broken link removed]


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## Jack The Lad (14 Mar 2006)

Don't mean to be hogging the postings here, but hadn't expected this response and would like to reply to as much as possible.

CCOVICH and IVUERNIS are looking at the future of farming in Ireland. Well, essentially farmers produce food, and people have to eat, and the world population is growing, and a possible outcome of global warming is a reduction in global agriculturaly viable land.... so in theory, I think, some time out there in the future agriculture is going to be a big earner. Problem is saying when that might be. The near future is uninspiring, with World Trade Talks kicking european farmers around the pitch and a willingness by Eurocrats to rely on imports to reduce cost of running europe (BIG MISTAKE guys).... and I don't know if I want to stick it out when I could be less stressed sucking Malibu on the beach (sort of)


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## Jack The Lad (14 Mar 2006)

Ruth said:
			
		

> Hey Jack the Lad
> 
> I'm curious if there's a missus? If so - what does she think?
> If no - sell it, enjoy the funds and the freedom!  How about this for a destination for starters?
> [broken link removed]


 
Just married 6 months ago... Mrs Jack is putting me up to it!

As for the picture... Yes Please!


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## ivuernis (14 Mar 2006)

CCOVICH said:
			
		

> Excellent. Can I borrow your crystal ball?


 
Of course you can, here...

[broken link removed]

[broken link removed]

[broken link removed]

[broken link removed]

Limits to Growth

Food and shelter are the essential human necessities, everything else is a luxury.


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## ivuernis (14 Mar 2006)

Jack The Lad said:
			
		

> Don't mean to be hogging the postings here, but hadn't expected this response and would like to reply to as much as possible.
> 
> CCOVICH and IVUERNIS are looking at the future of farming in Ireland. Well, essentially farmers produce food, and people have to eat, and the world population is growing, and a possible outcome of global warming is a reduction in global agriculturaly viable land.... so in theory, I think, some time out there in the future agriculture is going to be a big earner. Problem is saying when that might be. The near future is uninspiring, with World Trade Talks kicking european farmers around the pitch and a willingness by Eurocrats to rely on imports to reduce cost of running europe (BIG MISTAKE guys).... and I don't know if I want to stick it out when I could be less stressed sucking Malibu on the beach (sort of)


 
I agree, and if I were you (and I wish I was in your shoes), I'd sell up too and enjoy myself for now while the Eurocrats piss away our future. But keep some money aside for when you return to the Emerald Isle or other pastures green (in the literal sense) when holidays in the sun aren't as attractive as they are now. Let's just hope the gulf stream hasn't switched off by then


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## walk2dewater (14 Mar 2006)

Jack The Lad said:
			
		

> handing it all over to a brilliant financial adviser


Therein lies the rub...
unless someone you would absolutely trust with your life and has a demonstrated track record with their own hard cash, theres no such thing...the brilliant financial advisor is YOU

I would also suggest that learning to manage your own money, and I'm talking the psychological aspects (e.g. when to sell) rather than the mechanical aspects (e.g. setting up a laddered bond strategy), starting off with €2,500,00 rather than say €25,000 could be a very expensive lesson indeed...

I'm glad I made my mistakes, realised what it takes to make money investing, when I was playing with buttons... it a whole lot easier to 'make' -20% than +5%, believe me... and -20% loss on €25,000 is a lot easier to recover from through a monthly salary than -20% of €2,500,000!!


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## Jack The Lad (14 Mar 2006)

That is quite a rub!

Well, although I am by no means a master of making money (see annual farm profits!) I do invest fairly carefuly, and have been succesful in doing so up to now. Your point is very valid though, I'm thinking a bit of conservatism would seem to be the key to realising the discussed venture.


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## ivuernis (14 Mar 2006)

ivuernis said:
			
		

> Of course you can, here...
> [broken link removed]
> [broken link removed]
> [broken link removed]
> ...


 
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention 

Happy crystal ball gazing


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## CCOVICH (14 Mar 2006)

ivuernis said:
			
		

> Of course you can, here...
> 
> [broken link removed]
> 
> ...



I wouldn't 'bet the farm' on any of that-not for the next 60 years anyway.

The OP seems to like the idea of luxury-so there goes the farm I guess.

Enough of the mumbo jumbo-JTL-€2.5 million buys you time if nothing else.  Time you can spend educating yourself so that you will be able to make your own informed decisions.  Unless you had no option other than farming, I would be inclined to look at something else that you can make a living at for the foreseeable future.

But of course, one thing that hasn't been mentioned is that the €2.5 million is still a 'paper profit' until you sell the farm.


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## ivuernis (14 Mar 2006)

CCOVICH said:
			
		

> I wouldn't 'bet the farm' on any of that - not for the next 60 years anyway.


 
Conventional oil and gas reserves will be mostly depleted in HALF that 60 year time frame and don't bet the farm on any combination of non-conventional oil, nuclear, biofuels and/or renewables being able to fill that gap without a drastic change in the way the world goes about its business.


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## CCOVICH (14 Mar 2006)

ivuernis said:
			
		

> Conventional oil and gas reserves will be mostly depleted in HALF that 60 year time frame and don't bet the farm on any combination of non-conventional oil, nuclear, biofuels and/or renewables being able to fill that gap without a drastic change in the way the world goes about its business.



fzaonhjksdngfsdjpiojgsdpiogjpgsdn

 Oops, I just fell asleep on the keypad there.

You say potato, I say never mind the potatoes and sell the farm-I still don't believe that it's going to be worth the trouble for the next 60 years (the timeframe originally alluded to) to own a farm in Ireland.

At this stage the 'we are all doomed unless we change' is beginning to merit a thread of it's own so that we can focus on the question originally asked by JTL.

Take the money and run.


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## ivuernis (14 Mar 2006)

CCOVICH said:
			
		

> You say potato, I say never mind the potatoes and sell the farm-I still don't believe that it's going to be worth the trouble for the next 60 years (the timeframe originally alluded to) to own a farm in Ireland.


 
Don't get me wrong, I'd sell the farm too if it was mine and worth €2.5m. I'd probably be far less concerned about all that aforementioned stuff too if I had that kind of money in the bank. 




			
				CCOVICH said:
			
		

> At this stage the 'we are all doomed unless we change' is beginning to merit a thread of it's own so that we can focus on the question originally asked by JTL.


 
Ok. I will wait until I have enough posts accumulated and can let rip in the "Letting off Steam" forum.


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## Ruth (14 Mar 2006)

Just married a farmer myself a little while ago, so I know where you are coming from. We have been discussing similar situation to yours... but mine is in for the long haul and will never sell.
Meanwhile I'll continue to dream of that lovely beach scene......  
Send us a postcard of you ever get there, and tell the missus I'm jealous already!


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## bearishbull (14 Mar 2006)

have you thought about alternatives to conventional farming like organic-which is growing increasingly popular,leisure activities ,holiday homes or building houses and selling some? i'd seriously think a lot about this and assess all your options and consult a professional,you may be able to out a lot of your 2.5mill into a tax efficient scheme/investment.
i'd personally invest in several well diversified funds and some fixed income depending on income requirement per year.i think your too young to do nothing so consider a new career or a new business to buy.you'll soon get bored of doing nothing if you just sell up and live of the income from investing your lump sum.


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## joe sod (15 Mar 2006)

You obviously have a very valuable asset. The reason why farmland has become so expensive in ireland is because of the housing market. House prices have driven the price of agricultural land way beyond its agricultural value. As land prices have risen less land has come on the market as farmers are reluctant to sell an asset which is rising in price. If you sell it will other family members not look for a share of the proceeds, afterall you inherited through your family. If it were me I would probably hold onto half of it for security and sell the other half. Alternatively I would invest in farmland in other countries where land prices are more correlated to their agricultural value. Thats the problem with ireland its such a small country that the property market has distorted everything from manufacturing to agriculture.


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## DrMoriarty (15 Mar 2006)

Jack The Lad said:
			
		

> Just married 6 months ago... Mrs Jack is putting me up to it!


So — you own _half_ of a farm worth €2.5 million and _half_ of a €55K annual salary..?


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## Jack The Lad (15 Mar 2006)

Ruth said:
			
		

> Just married a farmer myself a little while ago, so I know where you are coming from. We have been discussing similar situation to yours... but mine is in for the long haul and will never sell.
> Meanwhile I'll continue to dream of that lovely beach scene......
> Send us a postcard of you ever get there, and tell the missus I'm jealous already!


 
Hi Ruth,

Don’t want to be the cause of any sense of “what could have been” with regard to your husband selling farm. What I’m doing here really is trying the idea out in a safe way, and seeing if I can generate ideas or concepts that could be an alternative to actually selling up. There are some very smart people with good ideas and experience on this site. Although, having said that, selling up is certainly an option, though more of a “final-solution” type option. I’ve been of the opinion for a while that we farmers need to think ouside the box… we’re all millionaires, we are really! The electric fences that run around the perimeter of our farms are to fence the cattle in; not the farmers.


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## Jack The Lad (15 Mar 2006)

bearishbull said:
			
		

> have you thought about alternatives to conventional farming like organic-which is growing increasingly popular,leisure activities ,holiday homes or building houses and selling some? i'd seriously think a lot about this and assess all your options and consult a professional,you may be able to out a lot of your 2.5mill into a tax efficient scheme/investment.
> i'd personally invest in several well diversified funds and some fixed income depending on income requirement per year.i think your too young to do nothing so consider a new career or a new business to buy.you'll soon get bored of doing nothing if you just sell up and live of the income from investing your lump sum.


 
I have looked at all of the above. The only one to suit would be building houses/ selling sites, and am currently involved in same. Problem is… there’s only x number of sites available to sell… and perhaps if I were to sell the farm in entirety, having the possibility of sites would attract a broader range of potential buyers, and hopefully put the pressure on in the auction room.
You are dead right about me getting bored doing nothing. I like to work, and I work hard. But I’d like to be fairly and maybe even generously rewarded for my work… which is why farming breaks my heart.
Ideal situation, take time off, educate myself a little more, then start a business from scratch.


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## Jack The Lad (15 Mar 2006)

joe sod said:
			
		

> You obviously have a very valuable asset. The reason why farmland has become so expensive in ireland is because of the housing market. House prices have driven the price of agricultural land way beyond its agricultural value. As land prices have risen less land has come on the market as farmers are reluctant to sell an asset which is rising in price. If you sell it will other family members not look for a share of the proceeds, afterall you inherited through your family. If it were me I would probably hold onto half of it for security and sell the other half. .


 
Holding on to some of the farm would definitely be on the cards…. That would make up most of the property file in my portfolio, and would be handy to have as collateral should I ever need any. Plus, it’s the family farm (see The Field, to understand farmers and land!) Certainly I would feel responsibility for my parents welfare- they did hand it over to me. They do have their own source of income, but I would have absolutely no issues topping that up and making sure they have enough. Tax efficiency would be the byword there.


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## Jack The Lad (15 Mar 2006)

DrMoriarty said:
			
		

> So — you own _half_ of a farm worth €2.5 million and _half_ of a €55K annual salary..?


 
Ha haaa! Reality bites!
Should have mentioned that not falling out with Mrs Jack is number one priority.


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## X-Man (15 Mar 2006)

Jack........farming is a hard job as you clearly explained in previous posts' but would you realy want to be lying on a beach scratching your This post will be deleted if not edited to remove bad language.for one you would go crazy..........as you know its all go running a farm and to go from one thing totally opposite canbe a massive culture shock and in some cases can lead to serious illnesses.


you have many many options in great favour to you but DO NOT SELL UP!  your farm is worth 2.5M   so what......!   you can make half of that and still have half of your farm.HOW!?      depending on acreage you can easily sell property individually for private dwellings as people nowadays go crazy for property in the countryside.thats just 1 idea


2.5M is useless if you do nothing with it.in todays world its still alot of $$$ but it can very easily disappear.


Jack in reference to your wife.......you are a farmer who are all hard workers and on the go from early morning till late at night.do you really want a quiet boring life with nothing to do.that will kill you!     keep the farm till your at least 45 then sit back..........tell your wife to get the boots on and get stuck in rather than taking all away hoping for the life of reilly!


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## Duplex (15 Mar 2006)

Jack

You could sell the farm in Ireland, pocket half the money and buy a similarly sized farm in England.


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## Jack The Lad (15 Mar 2006)

X-Man said:
			
		

> Jack in reference to your wife.......you are a farmer who are all hard workers and on the go from early morning till late at night.do you really want a quiet boring life with nothing to do.that will kill you! keep the farm till your at least 45 then sit back..........tell your wife to get the boots on and get stuck in rather than taking all away hoping for the life of reilly!


 
Aah now… will have to defend Mrs Jack. I may have given the impression that it’s all her idea and so on. Nope. Not the case. We are side by side on this idea. She works hard too… has a job, does her own thing, fantastic woman and good looking too!


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## CCOVICH (15 Mar 2006)

Let's try and keep this out of _Shooting The Breeze_ territory.

Thanks.


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## X-Man (15 Mar 2006)

Jack The Lad said:
			
		

> Aah now… will have to defend Mrs Jack. I may have given the impression that it’s all her idea and so on. Nope. Not the case. We are side by side on this idea. She works hard too… has a job, does her own thing, fantastic woman and good looking too!


 
sorry Jack but wasn't trying to offend you or your wife.my advice is regarding your current state of affairs........you are taking in 50kPYear.not bad may i say but hard work to earn such $$.

with the current boom in ireland and especially in property you could make an absolute killing in selling some land.whats the acreage of your property.would a golf course be out of the question!!!!!


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## Jack The Lad (15 Mar 2006)

Duplex said:
			
		

> Jack
> 
> You could sell the farm in Ireland, pocket half the money and buy a similarly sized farm in England.


 
It's an option. I know of some farmers who have done likewise, and gone further afield... France, U.S. and New Zealand. I wonder though if in my case that would be frying pan to fire. What would I have. A decent amount of cash....A similar farm... more work for two or three years setting up, getting to know new governmant, legal, Tax, scientific parameters... whew. It's a good suggestion but may not be for me. 

That website is excellent, by the way, for anyone thinking of buying land in UK


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## Jack The Lad (15 Mar 2006)

X-Man said:
			
		

> sorry Jack but wasn't trying to offend you or your wife.my advice is regarding your current state of affairs........you are taking in 50kPYear.not bad may i say but hard work to earn such $$.
> 
> with the current boom in ireland and especially in property you could make an absolute killing in selling some land.whats the acreage of your property.would a golf course be out of the question!!!!!


 
Oh man, no offence taken whatsoever. Your contribution is very appreciated.

I know a guy who turned his farm into a golf course. He has to be up at 5 in the morning trimming the green etc for early punters, and has wondered if he did the right thing... maybe he's a little too hands on, and could get more workers, and look at time management and management techniques. I own a total of 165 acres... not sure if it would be suitable for golf due to layout and location. But perhaps sublet it to an established golf course "chain", if such a thing exists? maybe.


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## Janet (15 Mar 2006)

Is there any possibility in selling part of your farm and keeping part of it for your own use?  You say you enojy the work, perhaps with a smaller farm (maybe specialised to some extent - organic etc.?) you could still be doing work you enjoy but without it taking up 24/7. 

Deciding to "retire" at age 35 or so is a huge decision.  I personally think I would have little difficulty in finding useful ways to occupy myself for a good ten or twenty years (yes, have indulged in lots and lots of lotto daydreams) but many people would go mad without having a job to occupy a good bit of their time.  There are lots more questions surrounding this than the financial one.  What would you do for those 60 years?


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## Jack The Lad (15 Mar 2006)

The strange thing about farming is that if you halve the size and scope of a farm, you don't necessarily halve the workload. It goes the other way too. For example, if I were to increase stock and output by say 30%, with some moderate changes to my facilities, my workload might increase by an extra 15-30 minutes/day max. Unfortunately, due to what I now regard as downright interference from EU, ie Quotas, Nitrates Regulations etc etc, the ability to expand is well curtailed.

I'm straying from your point a little. 

Apart from yourself, a couple of others have also pointed out that the idyllic dream of retiring early would have a serious psychological impact, just doing nothing is bad for the soul, and to bring that point back around to finance (seeing as this is a money discussion site) - if you are not in a good state of mind, chances are high you will blow the lot.

What would I do? I'm a bit vague on that to be honest. Take one huge holiday for starters. Rest. Go back to college? Start a new business? You're right. It needs to be thought through.


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## Janet (15 Mar 2006)

Jack The Lad said:
			
		

> The strange thing about farming is that if you halve the size and scope of a farm, you don't necessarily halve the workload. It goes the other way too. For example, if I were to increase stock and output by say 30%, with some moderate changes to my facilities, my workload might increase by an extra 15-30 minutes/day max. Unfortunately, due to what I now regard as downright interference from EU, ie Quotas, Nitrates Regulations etc etc, the ability to expand is well curtailed.
> 
> I'm straying from your point a little. .



I understand what you mean, however.  Don't know much about farming but figured even a small farm would be a fulltime job (just maybe not 24/7 and possibly less stress if it wasn't your main source of income?)



			
				Jack The Lad said:
			
		

> Apart from yourself, a couple of others have also pointed out that the idyllic dream of retiring early would have a serious psychological impact, just doing nothing is bad for the soul, and to bring that point back around to finance (seeing as this is a money discussion site) - if you are not in a good state of mind, chances are high you will blow the lot.
> 
> What would I do? I'm a bit vague on that to be honest. Take one huge holiday for starters. Rest. Go back to college? Start a new business? You're right. It needs to be thought through.



Yep, don't know what happened there.  When I posted no-one had made that point but now there's two pages in between my post and the one I thought I was replying to.  Very strange.

Anyway, if you do a search (mostly in the careers forum I think) there are quite a few threads from people trying to decide on a career change/what to do with their life.  Could be interesting reading for you and I believe there are some books recommended too (what colour is your parachute etc.).  

Finally, not sure if this is a silly question to ask a farmer but do you ever watch Ear to the Ground?  Or even Nationwide.  Or the BBC program which I think is called Countryfile (we're talking Sunday morning telly here).  There are often slots regarding people who realised they couldn't keep going with conventional farming and how they have coped with that.  The guy who's started selling worms for composting - the organic ice-cream makers (not sure they were farmers actually) - the guy who started hiring horses out for trekking and being a guide - fully organic beef production etc. etc.  You might get some ideas from there.

Good luck.

P.S. At the risk of being cheeky, should a farmer not be out in the fields at this time of day and not stuck in at a computer


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## Sherman (15 Mar 2006)

> Unfortunately, due to what I now regard as downright interference from EU, ie Quotas, Nitrates Regulations etc etc, the ability to expand is well curtailed.


 
Erm, excuse my city slicker ignorance, but is it not a bit cheeky to be criticising the EU, given that they probably provide you, and most other Irish farmers, with good proportion of your income, directly or indirectly? Those pesky bureaucrats should keep their noses out, keep paying the money, and let Irish farmers 'take care' of the environment, just like they've always done...talk about biting the hand that feeds you!


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## Itchy (15 Mar 2006)

Can open worms everywhere...


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## CCOVICH (15 Mar 2006)

On topic please.


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## Jack The Lad (15 Mar 2006)

oh hum....



...snore....


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## joe sod (17 Mar 2006)

"Erm, excuse my city slicker ignorance, but is it not a bit cheeky to be criticising the EU, given that they probably provide you, and most other Irish farmers, with good proportion of your income, directly or indirectly?"

All the subsidies do is bridge the gap between the world price of agricultural commodities which is now exceptionally low by historical standards and the cost of producing those commodities in first world countries like Europe and the USA. If there were no EU subsidies then it would not be viable to produce food in Europe, the cost of production would be higher than world price of those commodities. However what most people don't realise is that if EU production was taken out (and EU subsidies mean that Europe is a substantial producer) there would be big shortages of these commodities and prices would shoot up. People would end up paying far more for food than they do now and much more than the subsidies currently paid to farmers. The big loser in the current set up is the producer.


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## ClubMan (17 Mar 2006)

joe sod said:
			
		

> If there were no EU subsidies then it would not be viable to produce food in Europe, the cost of production would be higher than world price of those commodities.


 So instead of paying through taxes the _EU _consumer would pay at the till? Subsidies don't change the underlying cost of production, they just mitigate the cost to the producer.


> People would end up paying far more for food than they do now and much more than the subsidies currently paid to farmers.


 This does not make any sense at all. How does the withdrawal of subsidies, increasing the direct costs to the producer suddenly magnify into even higher costs to the consumer?


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## SLAPPY (17 Mar 2006)

Good for you.    Sell now while you can get the most money.   I have a few suggestions for vacation homes.    Prices aren't bad.

How about a nice little vacation home on 5 acres in the North Carolina Hills?


Got $29,000 burning a hole in your pocket?   Minutes from unbelievable golf courses and good skiing in the winter.   Try Northern Michigan.


Or maybe you need a little more room.   Would 3,700 sq/ft.  be enough in Texas?


The Carribean beach more your style?   How about ocean front in Aruba.
http://www.remax-caribbeanislands.com/property/PropertyDetail.asp?@vchMlsNumber=4093

Maybe a ocean view condo in St. Thomas?
http://www.remax-caribbeanislands.com/property/PropertyDetail.asp?@vchMlsNumber=4150


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## conor_mc (17 Mar 2006)

That house in North Carolina reminds me of the house from Psycho!!!

That place in Texas though - nice gaff!


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## ivuernis (17 Mar 2006)

conor_mc said:
			
		

> That place in Texas though - nice gaff!


 
Looks like a "McMansion" to me


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## nopotatos (6 Apr 2006)

Wow 2.5 million.
In my view this is enough money for you + your wife + any kids you will ever have to live the rest of your life comfortably.
I think your situation is kinda like winning the lotto, but harder as you have alot of attachment to the ticket

I dont think the big issue is where to put the money, its what to do with yourself if you did sell. unless you are extravegant, you have oodles of money to do what you want for the rest of your life.

have you considered getting some help?
visit a career/ life coach? i bet lotto people have specialists to help people in your lucky situation.
take a year out? have a long think about what you want to do with yourself. 

you said you have visited africa, why not set up a charity or work heavily with a charity? 
There are a million things to do with your life.
people who say you will go crazy of boredom, lack imagination.

personally i would like to think if i had that much money ,
I would buy a commerical property in the UK(possibly) on a 75% mortgage. with a yield around 6%(on a interest only loan (5% interest rate.) this would give you 200k a year to play with.).
for work, i would play with shares/futures/ebay.
i would do plenty of voluntary work in Africa and Ireland.
Possibly go back to college for fun, screw retraining.
And you can kiss your long winters good bye cos i would be in sydney for most of em, unless i was off skiing somewhere.

thats my 2 cents.
p.s. 99% of the people cant contemplate the opportunities you have.
most people cant function without a job, so go get help from some people with some experience in this field.
p.p.s i have a friend who works for 6 months and sails/enjoys lief for the other 6 and he seems pretty happy.


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## mollser (6 Apr 2006)

Reading in the Irish Times today that growing elephant grass looks like pretty easy money - sow a bit of that down!! !


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## darex (6 Apr 2006)

Jack The Lad said:
			
		

> The only one to suit would be building houses/ selling sites, and am currently involved in same. Problem is… there’s only x number of sites available to sell… and perhaps if I were to sell the farm in entirety, having the possibility of sites would attract a broader range of potential buyers, and hopefully put the pressure on in the auction room.
> .



Just out of curiousity where are you based and approx what kind of sites are you selling?


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## Ravima (6 Apr 2006)

Mollser:

miscanthus costs up to €20K per hectare to set and there is no market for the stuff in Ireland. There is hope and aspirations that it will be a great fuel, but the farmer growing it wil lbe at the lowest rung of the ladder and will not be the same as an oil sheik.

If there was a guaranteed market for the harvested crop, then prople woudl be intereted


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## woods (8 Apr 2006)

I have not read all the answers so I may be repeating something already suggested.
I would sell the farm and take the money and buy a much bigger farm in The U.K. or New Zealand or Canada.


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