1

Farmland Ownership and Tenure

Results from the 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land Survey

United States Department of Agriculture

National Agricultural Statistics Service

www.agcensus.usda.gov

(800)727-9540

Highlights

Nearly 40 percent of U.S. farmland is rented or leased from someone else, 

according to the 2012 Census of Agriculture. Moreover, the concentration of 

rented farmland varies signifi cantly across the country (Fig. 1). 

To learn more about the rented land and who owns it, USDA’s National 

Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) conducted a special study as part of the 

Census of Agriculture program to collect data from landowners and landlords 

of agricultural land. The 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural 

Land (TOTAL) 

survey collected 

data in the 48 

contiguous states 

on landlords’ 

acres rented out, 

income, expenses, 

assets, debt,

race, gender,

land transfer 

plans, and more 

NASS conducted 

TOTAL in 

collaboration with 

USDA’s Economic 

Research Service.

Landlord Ownership Arrangements

Highlights

2.1 million landowners . . . 

. . . rented out 353.8 million 

acres of agricultural land in 

2014.

Top States in Rent 

Received

($ billions)

Illinois 3.8

Iowa 3.7

Nebraska 2.4

Minnesota 2.0

Texas 2.0

California 1.9

Indiana 1.5

South Dakota 1.5

Kansas 1.4

Missouri 1.3

Fig. 1

Percent of U.S. Farmland Rented or Leased, by County, 2012

percent

< 20

20 - 29

30 - 39

40 - 49

50 - 59

60 +

U.S. = 38.8%

Source: USDA NASS, 2012 Census of Agriculture.

ACH 12-27/September 2015

In 2014, more than 2 million 

landowners rented out 353.8 million 

acres of land for agricultural purposes. 

This is 39 percent of the 911 million 

acres of farmland in the surveyed 

states (and consistent with the 2012 

Census fi ndings). 

Of these landowners, 13 percent 

were farmers and ranchers (operator 

landlords) and 87 percent were 

landlords who do not operate a 

farm (non-operator landlords). Nonoperator landlords include those 

who rent out land individually or as 

participants in a variety of ownership 

arrangements (partnership, trust, 

corporation, municipality, limited 
2 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land Survey

Table 2

Income, Expenses, Assets, and Debt Related to Acres Rented Out, 2014

($ billions)

Rent 

Received Expenses

Value of 

Land and 

Buildings Debt

Operator Landlord 6.9 1.9 200.1 7.9

Non-operator Landlord 24.3 7.4 931.9 24.8

Individual/Partnership 15.3 4.8 591.2 18.0

Corporation/Trust 7.4 2.2 273.1 5.8

Other 0.9 0.2 35.7 0.7

Multiplea 0.7 0.2 31.9 0.4

Total 31.2 9.2 1,132.0 32.8 a

Refers to the 2 percent of non-operator landlords who rent out agricultural land under more

than one ownership arrangement.

Source: USDA NASS, 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land Survey.

Table 3

Ownership and Production Expenses, by Region, 2014

($ millions and share of total landlord expenses in region)

Ownership Expenses Production Expenses

$ millions

% of landlord 

expenses $ millions

% of landlord 

expenses

Northeast 270.2 86 44.3 14

Appalachian 337.9 82 72.4 18

South 347.7 68 160.4 32

Midwest 2,401.2 65 1,280.0 35

Plains 1,950.9 67 943.8 33

West 1,035.7 72 396.1 28

Total U.S. 6,343.7 69 2,896.9 31

Source: USDA NASS, 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land Survey.

Fig. 2

Landlord Expenses (Ownership and Production), by Region, 2014

West

$1.4 billion

Plains

$2.9 billion

Midwest

$3.7 billion

Northeast

$0.3 billion

Appalachian

$0.4 billion

South

$0.5 billion

U.S. = $9.2 billion 

State data available for the 25 solid-colored states. States with dots are in regional totals only.

Source: USDA NASS, 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land Survey. 

liability company, etc.). A small number rent out land under 

more than one arrangement. Of the acres rented out, 

20 percent were rented out by operator landlords, and 

80 percent by non-operator landlords. (Table 1)

A similar survey in 1999, the Agricultural Economics and 

Land Ownership Survey (AELOS), found that 12 percent 

were operator landlords and 88 percent were non-operator 

landlords. Different methodologies between AELOS and 

TOTAL make direct comparisons diffi cult, but AELOS 

found that landlords rented out 394.3 million acres in 1999. 

AELOS included Alaska and Hawaii. 

 

Table 1

Landlords and Acres Rented Out by Ownership Arrangements, 2014

Number of Landlordsa Acres Rented Out 

(millions) (percent)

Operator Landlord 280,044 70.3 20

Non-operator Landlord 1,851,796 283.4 80

 Individual 1,092,551 138.2 39

 Partnership 361,826 52.8 15

 Trust 249,632 50.6 14

 Corporation 91,011 31.5 9

 Other 56,776 10.4 3

Total 2,131,840 353.8 100.0 a

Landlords who rent out land under more than one arrangement are included in all

relevant arrangements.

Numbers in this and other tables may not add due to rounding.

Source: USDA NASS, 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land Survey. 

Economics of Land Ownership

In 2014, landlords received $31.2 billion in rent payments. 

Their expenses were $9.2 billion, and their debt related to 

the land they rented out was $32.8 billion. The value of the 

land and buildings they held on their rental acres was

$1.1 trillion. (Table 2)

Eighty-nine percent of acres rented out by operator landlords, and 94 percent of acres rented out by non-operator 

landlords, were fully paid for. 

The $9.2 billion in 2014 expenses include both ownership 

expenses (for example, interest, taxes) and production 

expenses (for example, fertilizer, feed, fuels, repairs, insurance, wages). For the United States, 69 percent of expenses were ownership, and 31 percent were production, 

expenses. This varied across regions, with the share of 

ownership expenses highest in the Northeast and Appalachian regions and lowest in the Midwest and Plains. (Table 

3) Figure 2 shows the states in each region and also total 

expenses for each region.
2012 Census of Agriculture 3

Demographic Characteristics

Of the 1.9 million non-operator landlords, 1.4 million can 

be called “principal landlords.” They are either individual 

owners or the principal in a partnership arrangement. 

The average age of principal landlords in 2014 was

66.5 years. Principal landlords are older than principal farm 

operators, whose average age was 58.3 years in 2012. 

(The 2012 Census of Agriculture defines a principal operator as the person who makes the day-to-day business decisions for a farming operation.) More than half (57 percent) 

of principal landlords were 65 years or older in 2014. They 

account for 67 percent of the rent received, 67 percent of 

the value of land and buildings, and 32 percent of the debt 

related to acres rented out. (Table 4)

Most principal landlords have college education; 25 percent have some college, and 38 percent have four or more 

years.

In terms of race, 97 percent of principal landlords are white. 

Two percent are Hispanic, regardless of race. Landlords 

who are white accounted for 98 percent of rent received, 

expenses, and the value of land and buildings, and 99 

percent of debt, in 2014.

Fifty-four percent of principal landlords are not currently 

in the paid workforce; 41 percent are employed outside of 

farming. Forty-five percent have never farmed.

Table 4

Principal Landlords: Income, Expenses, Assets, Debt, by Age

($ billions and percent)

Number of

Principal

Landlordsa

Rent 

Received Expenses

Value of 

Land and 

Buildings

Debt

($ billions)

Total 1,432,065 15.9 4.9 621.8 18.2

percent percent

< 55 years 18 11 14 12 34

55 to 64 years 25 22 22 21 34

65 to 74 years 29 30 29 31 18

75 to 84 years 19 25 24 24 12

85+ years 9 12 11 12 2

All ages 100 100 100 100 100 a

Non-operator landlords who are individuals or the principal partner in a partnership.

Source: USDA NASS, 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land Survey.

Land Uses

Of the total land rented out by operator and non-operator 

landlords, 63 percent was for cropland and 34 percent was 

for pasture. The remaining 3 percent was for other uses 

such as forest/woodland not pastured, buildings, ponds, 

ditches, and wasteland.

In addition to renting out the land, landowners also lease 

or sell various rights, including mineral rights, recreational 

rights, development rights, and wind rights. Non-operator 

landlords leased oil and gas rights on 31.9 million acres 

and sold those rights on 4.1 million acres. Out of total farmland in the United States, oil and gas rights were leased on 

61.0 million acres and sold on 11.3 million acres. (Table 5)

Table 5

Agricultural Land: Selected Rights Leased and Sold, 2014

(millions of acres)

Land Rented Out by 

Non-operator Landlord All Farmland 

Oil and gas rights leased 31.9 61.0

Other rights leased 14.9 35.6

 Of which: wind rights 3.5

Oil and gas rights sold 4.1 11.3

Other rights sold 1.0 3.4

 Of which: development rights 0.7

Source: USDA NASS, 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land Survey.

How did landlords acquire the land they rent out? 

Operator landlords purchased more than 60 percent of 

the land they rent out from a non-relative, a relative, or at 

auction (similar to the way farmland was acquired in the 

United States generally). Non-operator landlords inherited or 

received as a gift more than half of the land they rent out.

(percent acquired this way)

Operator

Landlord

Non-operator 

Landlord

All 

Farmland 

Purchased from non-relative 41 31 44

Purchased from relative 17 11 16

Purchased at auction 5 2 4

Inherited or received gift 37 54 35

Obtained some other way 2 1

Total 100 100 100
4 USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

A Look Ahead: Ownership 

Transfer

The TOTAL survey asked landowners about their plans for 

transferring ownership in the next fi ve years – what they 

plan to do not only with the land they currently rent out 

for agricultural purposes but with all their land. Operator 

landlords expect to transfer 15 percent, and non-operator 

landlords 14 percent, of the land they rent out. Operator 

landlords plan to transfer a larger percentage (70 percent) 

through trusts than non-operator landlords.

The 91.5 million acres expected to transfer to new ownership is 10 percent of all farmland (Table 6), with the Northeast, Plains, and West transferring a larger share than 

other regions (Fig. 3). Not included are the 57.1 million 

acres landowners have put or plan to put into wills.

Table 6

Five-year Plan to Transfer Acres Rented Out and All Farmland

(millions of acres and percent)

Operator 

Landlord

Non-operator

Landlord All Farmland

Acres

(mil.) % Acres(mil.) % Acres(mil.) %

Put/keep in trust 7.3 70 15.4 40 44.2 48

Sell to non-relative 1.7 17 10.5 27 21.1 23

Gift 0.5 5 8.0 21 12.6 14

Sell to relative 0.9 8 4.2 11 13.2 14

Other - - 0.5 1 0.5 1

Total to transfer 10.4 100 38.5 100 91.5 100

Source: USDA NASS, 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land Survey.

Fig. 3

Percent of Region’s Farmland Expected to Transfer in Next Five Years, 2014

West

11%

Plains

11%

Midwest

9%

Northeast

11%

Appalachian

6%

South

7%

U.S. = 10% 

State data available for the 25 solid-colored states. States with dots are in regional totals only.

Source: USDA NASS, 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land Survey, and 

USDA NASS, 2014 Farms and Land in Farms report. 

Snapshot of States: Farmland 

Rented Out

Acres 

Rented Out

Acres to

Transfer

Value of Land

and Buildings

Rent

Received

millions millions $ billions $ billions

Northeast 6.3 0.9 31.2 0.4

Pennsylvania 2.3 0.3 13.1 0.2

Appalachian 15.5 1.2 53.0 1.2

Kentucky 4.0 0.3 13.1 0.5

North Carolina 3.6 0.3 15.1 0.3

South 23.9 2.1 66.9 2.1

Alabama 2.4 0.4 6.1 0.1

Arkansas 6.5 0.5 17.7 0.7

Florida 2.7 NA 9.4 0.2

Georgia 2.7 0.2 8.1 0.2

Mississippi 4.0 0.3 11.0 0.4

Midwest 76.8 9.0 419.1 14.3

Illinois 16.2 1.9 107.8 3.8

Indiana 7.9 0.8 43.8 1.5

Iowa 16.3 1.7 100.6 3.7

Michigan 4.0 0.9 16.2 0.4

Minnesota 11.6 1.2 58.0 2.0

Missouri 9.8 1.1 39.3 1.3

Ohio 6.2 0.8 35.1 1.0

Wisconsin 4.7 0.5 18.3 0.6

Plains 148.6 22.5 368.3 8.5

Kansas 23.7 3.2 56.5 1.4

Nebraska 20.1 2.1 64.4 2.4

North Dakota 19.6 2.8 42.0 0.9

Oklahoma 13.9 1.7 32.8 0.4

South Dakota 17.3 2.6 46.1 1.5

Texas 53.9 10.1 126.4 2.0

West 82.6 13.2 193.5 4.6

California 11.6 1.8 62.6 1.9

Idaho 3.6 0.4 10.6 0.5

Washington 5.7 0.5 14.7 0.4

Source: USDA NASS, 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural Land Survey.

About TOTAL and the Census of Agriculture

The 2014 Tenure, Ownership, and Transition of Agricultural 

Land (TOTAL) Survey is part of the Census of Agriculture 

program. NASS conducted the TOTAL survey in collaboration 

with the USDA’s Economic Research Service.

For more information on the TOTAL survey, go to:

www.agcensus.usda.gov/Publications/TOTAL. For

information on the Census of Agriculture, visit:

www.agcensus.usda.gov