Start your financial assistance search with your State Department of Agriculture to see if your state has a Beginning Farmer Loan Program or other type of grants or loans for farming and ranching.
Use the search bar at the upper right of the page to find information for your state (or the state where you wish to farm). Just type your state name in the search box.
Some State and Federal loan programs work in tandem with commercial farm banks to service agricultural loans. The nation's farm banks (defined by the Federal Reserve Board as banks that have above average proportions of farm real estate and production loans in their loan portfolios) offer a variety of loans to small and large farms and agribusiness firms.
The American Bankers Association has a "special section dedicated to providing advocacy, information, training, education, and public relations for banks that make and service agricultural loans or provide credit and other financial services to those living and working in rural America."
Review the listings of farm lenders at http://www.aba.com/Solutions/AgBanking/Pages/default.aspx or in your local telephone directory to find a lender in your area.
In addition to commercial banks, the Farm Credit System (FCS) also provides credit and related services to farmers, ranchers, and producers or harvesters of aquatic products. This network of federally chartered, borrower-owned lending institutions and related service organizations also focuses on serving the credit needs of young, beginning, and small (YBS) farmers and ranchers.
Locate a Farm Credit System Lender by State, County or Zip Code at http://www.farmcreditnetwork.com/about/locations
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) provides a variety of farm loan programs, including traditional operating loans, beginning farmer and youth programs. They also guarantee farm loans made by many commercial and non-profit lenders.
A list of Farm Service Agency programs is available at: http://www.start2farm.gov/organizations/fsa-farm-service-agency
