Past research on agricultural loan pricing is not extensive and has been hampered by a lack of suitable data. The Farm Service Agency (FSA) has guaranteed approximately 5 percent of farm debt of the Farm Credit System (FCS) and banks, the primary lenders to agriculture. As a requirement of the...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture provides subsidized credit to high-risk farm borrowers unable to obtain credit from commercial sources. To boost incomes and to relieve financial stress, Farm Service Agency programs can provide additional interest rate subsidies to borrowers. However, when...

Financial, farm economy and bank factors are hypothesized to explain variation in FSA guaranteed loan principal outstanding. Regression models using state-level data (1990-1998) are estimated. Debt-to-asset ratios, percentage of agricultural revenues due to crops, interest rates, and off-farm...

This paper presents a detailed summary analysis of commercial bank, Farm Credit System (FCS), and other commercial lenders use of Farm Service Agency (FSA) guaranteed loan program over the time period fiscal 1993-2003. Key aspects of the guaranteed program are examined including the usage level...

Results of a study completed for Congress indicate direct program borrowers are more financially stressed than guaranteed borrowers and that many current farm loan program borrowers may not be able to continue farming, at least in the short-term, without access to government subsidized credit....