Liquidity & Legacy
With Ted Cawkwell, The Cawkwell Group

Farm balance sheets may look strong on paper. But beneath the surface, lending behavior is changing, capital is more disciplined, and the margin for error is narrowing.

In this live conversation, Dan and Ted discuss:

Why profitable farms can still experience financial pressure

The difference between strategic sales and forced sales

How liquidity issues surface before they become obvious

What well-prepared farm operations tend to have in common

Why “just hold the land” isn’t always a complete strategy

Ted works directly with farm families, lenders, and advisors across Western Canada and beyond. As the #1 RE/MAX farmland realtor globally, he has been involved in hundreds of farmland transactions and sees patterns long before they become headlines.

This episode is not about predictions. It’s about structure, positioning, and understanding how capital behaves when conditions shift.

Chapters / Timestamps 

00:00 – Introduction & why this conversation matters 

02:30 – Market sentiment vs. reality on farmland values 

06:45 – What’s changed recently in buyer and seller behavior 

12:30 – Profitability, cash flow, and leverage pressures 

18:00 – Liquidity vs. legacy: real tradeoffs 

26:00 – Investor behavior, rental land, and capital availability 

34:00 – Risk, balance sheets, and selling strategically 

42:00 – Productive vs. marginal land dynamics 

50:30 – Perspective, cycles, and long-term thinking

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