Farm Lease Agreement
PDF and
Word
A comprehensive farm lease template is an essential legal tool for farmers and businesses who wish to lease out their farm land to third parties.
Reviews
What is a farm land lease template?
Definition
A farm land lease template is a legally binding document that sets up the rules for using agricultural land for farming operations. This document provides a clear legal framework aimed at clarifying lease conditions, preventing disputes, and protecting both parties’ rights throughout the duration of the lease.
A simple farm lease agreement template includes the following important elements:
- detailed description of the parties involved;
- location and size of a farm;
- purpose and type of the lease;
- payment mode, frequency of payments, and late fees;
- duration of the lease;
- termination of the lease and its renewal (optional);
- obligations of the parties involved;
- applicable law; and
- dispute resolution.
The parties involved in a farm lease agreement are a landlord and a tenant. A landlord is an owner of a farm who wishes to rent it to a tenant. Under a farm lease template, a landlord could be an individual or a business. It is also possible that a landlord could be represented by a property manager authorized to sign this document on their behalf. A tenant is an individual farmer or a business that wants to use the farm for specified agricultural purposes.
Types of the Farm Lease
There are three most popular types of the farm lease template:
- Cash Rental Lease. According to this type of a farm land lease template, a tenant can use a farm for various agricultural projects and pay regular rental cash payments in exchange. This is the most popular type of farm lease in the U.S.
- Crop-Share Lease. This type of farm lease allows the tenant to use a rented farm to raise specific crops only. Once the harvest is collected, a tenant shall return to the landlord a portion of it. This portion constitutes a rental payment under a lease contract and substitutes a regular cash payment under the normal lease.
- Livestock-Share Lease. In this farm lease agreement sample a tenant shall use a rented farm to increase or grow livestock (e.g., cows, horses, etc.). Rent is being paid in the form of a percentage from the increased number of livestock. This type of farm lease agreement remains less popular.
How to draft a farm lease agreement template?
The law does not define a form for a farm land lease template. Therefore, parties are free to incorporate any provisions they want. At the same time, inclusion of certain clauses is essential to ensure the coverage of all important elements of the lease, like farm description, parties’ details, amount of rental payments, and lease duration.
Therefore, below we made a short list of key elements a well-drafted farm lease contract should have:
Description of the Farm
The text of a contract must define the type of a farm and its precise location and size (in acres or hectares). The parties should also define for which particular purpose a rented farm could be used. Failure to adhere to the purpose of usage may result in earlier termination of a lease contract by a landlord.
Besides that, a farm lease agreement sample shall define the type of lease (i.e., cash, crop, or livestock), as it directly affects the applicable payment model under the contract.
Maintenance of the Farm
The duty of maintenance is a duty of care that requires a person to ensure safe and efficient usage of a rented farm. The maintenance may include either of the following duties:
- minor repairs (e.g., repair of a fence);
- collection of waste or its disposal;
- drainage and irrigation system maintenance, etc.
The parties to this contract can define who shall be responsible for the maintenance of a farm during the lease period—a tenant or a landlord.
Payment Model
Even a simple farm lease agreement template shall stipulate a clear payment model. In particular, a tenant should be aware of how much, when, and how to pay rent. Thus, the text of a contract shall define:
- form of payment (e.g., cash, share of crops or livestock, etc.);
- frequency of payments (e.g., monthly, within a certain period of time after the harvest, etc.);
- acceptable payment methods (e.g., cash, debit card, etc.);
- allocation of additional costs (e.g., veterinary control over the livestock, feeding, etc.);
- penalties in case of a delayed payment (optional).
Duration and Termination
A farm lease contract template must define the day on which the lease starts and the day on which the lease ends. The start date of the lease could be the same date the parties sign this agreement or any other date in the future. The laws do not limit the maximum duration for which the farm could be rented for. However, the average period of farm renting varies between 2 and 5 years.
Another important component is the terms and conditions for a lease termination. In case of a material or severe breach of the lease, either party should be able to end the contract immediately. The list of events of material breach differs for every party. A tenant commits a material breach of a contract when they modify or sublease the farm without a landlord’s prior written consent. For a landlord, a material breach is when a landlord cannot give a tenant access to the farm on the first day of the lease or when a rented farm does not correspond to the description provided in the original lease contract.
Besides that, either party should also be able to end a farm lease contract any time with or without a cause by sending a prior written notice to another party. A notice period may last between 14 and 90 days on average.
Renewal Clause
Parties may wish to include in a farm land lease agreement template an automatic renewal clause. If this is so, a farm lease is being prolonged automatically after its end date for the same period of time as the duration of the original lease. If either party opposes such an automatic renewal, in that case that party shall send a prior written notice about the non-renewal before the agreed lease end date.
How to customize a lease template at FasterDraft?
To get a fully personalized legal document template, follow the instructions given below:
- Click the “Create Document” button.
- Answer simple questions in the form.
- Select a template’s format—farm lease agreement template Word or PDF.
- Make a payment.
- Download, print, and instantly use your customized farm lease agreement.
Table of content
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
-
1. What is the difference between a farm lease template and a commercial lease agreement?
A farm lease template is a legal document that defines terms and conditions for a temporary usage of the farm for various agricultural purposes. Those purposes may include raising livestock, crops, etc.
Contrary to that, a commercial lease agreement is a formal document under which one party rents out commercial premises from the other party for doing business. In other words, you may need a commercial lease contract when you want to open a restaurant or a bar.
Apart from that, the content of both documents also varies significantly. For example, rental payments under a commercial rental agreement should be performed in cash only. However, in a farm lease contract template, a tenant can make rental payments in various forms, including
- cash payments;
- fixed percentage from harvested crops;
- fixed percentage from raised or increased livestock; or
- hybrid.
Finally, the list of a tenant’s duties and obligations also differs depending on the type of contract. For instance, in a farm lease agreement, a tenant is required to adhere to federal and state environmental laws when doing business on the farm, which is not the case when renting office space under a commercial lease agreement.
-
2. Which clauses shall a basic simple farm land lease agreement form include?
Neither federal nor state laws define the exact list of clauses a farm lease should include.
Besides that, the final content and structure of the document widely depend on the arrangement between the parties. For instance, under one farm land lease template, parties may not include an automatic renewal clause, while in another similar farm rental contract, the same clause could be kept.
At the same time, there is a list of mandatory elements every farm lease contract template should have to remain complete and legally sound. Those mandatory elements are the following:
- description of the farm (location and size);
- purpose of the lease;
- amount and frequency of lease payments;
- duration of the lease;
- grounds for immediate termination of the lease;
- maintenance duties;
- dispute resolution clause; and
- applicable law clause.
-
3. How to sign a farm lease template?
A landlord and a tenant shall put their signatures at the end of the document. Without either party’s signature, a document will not become legally valid and binding for the parties.
You can put a signature by hand after printing out the document, or you can e-sign it using online e-signature tools.
Looking for something Different?
Start typing to find out our collection of legal documents and contract templates