As this post is being prepared, the 2018 Murray Wise Associates Scholarship winners are being notified of their awards. The MWA Foundation provides scholarships annually to selected students, who have submitted impressive applications that are then voted on by the Foundation Board. Provided they remain in good academic standing in an agriculturally related field of [...]

A publication we have often mentioned is the Chicago Federal Reserve’s AgLetter. The Chicago Federal Reserve does a remarkable job of reaching out to lenders and monitoring credit conditions. In the most recent AgLetter, a quote from a lender stuck out to me: “Several area banks are putting pressure on producers with tight margins to [...]

The golden rule of real estate: location, location, location. Does it apply to farmland? Absolutely! As you would expect, there is a big difference in the value of two high-quality, productive grain farms if one is located in the Mississippi River delta and the other is in central Illinois. The differences are easy to spot [...]

Prices for high quality Illinois land are generally holding firm, even rising in some areas of the state, while farm income has been going down.  This may seem counter-intuitive.  The more cash a property is generating from operations, the more someone should be willing to pay for it.  Conversely, the less cash a property generates [...]

Permanent Crop Properties MWA is seeking to acquire high quality permanent crop properties in California, Oregon, Washington and other areas of the United States. We have the ability to creatively structure leaseback and/or partnership strategies with best in class owner/operators. Contact Joe Bubon at 217-369-7463 for more information Row Crop Properties MWA also has investors [...]

If you’re anything like us, as you’ve grown older, you’ve tried to eat a little healthier. You may have replaced some unhealthy snacks with nuts or a piece of fruit. The 3 p.m. Twinkie has become the 3 p.m. mandarin orange or a handful of walnuts, almonds or pistachios. We know we’re not alone in [...]

Thank you to our friends at ICBC for visiting with us today and learning about our business. We wish them the best of luck in the Global Education and Training Program at the University of Illinois @GETillinois

 Our friend and auction partner Nick Cummings, along with his wife Sunny, were recently named  “Outstanding Young Farmer” at the National Outstanding Young Farmer Congress in Sacramento, CA. Murray Wise Associates often partners with Nick and his colleagues at the Wendt Group to conduct real estate and farm machinery auctions and we are honored to work [...]

As we turn the corner into spring and the winds pick up, I am reminded of our industry as a whole. Whether I’m walking to the car or sitting in the bleachers at my daughter’s softball games, the wind always seems to be howling in the direction I’m facing this time of year. For farmers, [...]