Recently I taught the Advanced Agricultural Lending School in Omaha, NE. We asked lenders to discuss their best and worst experiences as lenders. Here are some of their responses:

"Top Ten Best Experiences"

• Watching young producers who can manage the whole business grow and gain net worth. Also, watching their willingness to change with new ideas.

• A charge off loan that a workout plan was put together for and working as designed 3 1/2 years later

• Having a customer tell the lender they were an asset to the organization and the lender being thought of as a business partner.

• Having a customer who had a big loss from weather say he felt sorry for me because some producers blame the banker for all their financial problems and don’t take responsibility for themselves.

• Increasing a customer’s net worth more than $300,000 in five years by debt structuring.

• Obtaining approval and better rates for any customer.

• Helping a producer either expand or with a workout when no one else would accept them.

• Having a customer say, "Thanks for understanding and working with us."

• Meeting quality people who are down to earth with great morals and character.

• Watching a new young farmer, who is well educated, working closely with his family, starting on his own and actively marketing his grain.

Yes, lenders are human, and it’s a two way street.

Next time we will discuss the "Top Ten Worst Experiences."

My e-mail address is:sullylab@vt.edu

Editors' note: Dave Kohl, The Corn and Soybean Digest Trends Editor, is an ag economist at Virginia Tech. He recently completed a sabbatical working with the Royal Bank of Canada. He is now back at Virginia Tech with his academic appointment, which is teaching, extension, and applied research.

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