Compeer's AgEdge

Beyond Estate Plans: Building Family Harmony Through Succession Communication


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Lisa Quist from Nationwide's Land As Your Legacy program explains the critical difference between estate planning and transition planning for agricultural operations, emphasizing that family harmony depends on communication rather than documentation alone. Through her personal experience transitioning into a seventh-generation family farm and the challenges that led to their 2012 auction, Lisa reveals why an estimated 70% of US farmland will change hands over the next 20 years and why only about 10% of farms have complete transition plans despite common assumptions. The episode covers implementing structured family meetings as the most transformative tool for succession success, creating family mission statements to guide difficult decisions, avoiding family gossip through transparent communication, and understanding why Generation One struggles to relinquish control after decades of sacrifice. Lisa provides specific strategies for making family meetings effective safe spaces, balancing the needs of on-farm and off-farm children, and treating agricultural operations like the multimillion-dollar corporations they are.

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Compeer's AgEdgeBy Compeer Financial