Our founding Broker, Nilesh Lakhlani, worked on his family farm along with his parents in Kenya, and has seen first-hand the challenges farmers face – environmental, financial, regulatory and transactional.

Modern agricultural practices initiate the processes of agricultural pollution.  Sellers may suspect these practices to have impacted the land environment causing degradation due to the modern-day by-products of agriculture. 

Before a transaction is initiated GeoTech Realty enters an investigatory process period.  During this due diligence period the seller is concerned with valuation for sale just as a buyer is concerned with valuation for investing. GeoTech Realty uses the time to determine whether there are any environmental, legal or physical defects that would make a property less attractive acquisition.  

This due diligence period is important to risk assessment and legal liability.  Federal and State laws hold prior, current, and future owners jointly liable for any contamination. Further, several external issues impacting agricultural landowners have continued to increase. These issues range from domestic water supply regulation to endangered species protection. As a result, simple land transactions may now implicate local, state, or federal laws. We are familiar with these issues and better equipped to assist both sellers and buyers involving an agricultural real estate transaction.

GeoTech’s assistance to agribusiness clients begins with agricultural real estate transaction and the preparation or review of the transactional documents and the due diligence process. A successful transaction includes the following tasks:

• Understanding the Client’s needs–Sellers exit strategy and tax benefits– Buyers interest in maximizing use, both over the short and long-term.
• Market Valuation Analysis. All parties will require determination of market value.
• Marketing Strategy. This is critically important to the seller who wants to sell it at the highest price and at the shortest period.  It is also critically important to the Buyer’s desire for ROI.
• Buyer & Seller Management
• Negotiation.
• Due Diligence (Environmental contamination, Ownership, Deed Restrictions, Covenants, Easements and Encroachments, financial concerns, water rights, mineral rights, land use concerns, etc.).
• Financing (if required).
• Appraisals, Title & Legal Entity (LLC, PA, Trust, Land Trust etc.) Concerns.
• Transaction Closing & Post Closing Issues.

GeoTech understands that from the Sellers perspective, the farm/agricultural business likely represents most of your net worth and hence your retirement. The Buyer/investor is looking to create intrinsic economic value from the land use(s) while maximizing profit. Let us help you do both while facilitating a smooth transaction. Call us…