Agricultural Leasing in Maryland by Paul Goeringer. Department of Ag and Res. Econ. UME FS-971
 
According to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistic Service (NASS), agricultural producers lease over 42 percent of all agricultural land in Maryland, or 865,692 acres in 2007 (Ag Census, 2007). Leases for agricultural real estate, equipment, and/or livestock take different forms to meet the needs of the landlord and the tenant. This guide provides an overview of various land leasing issues facing agricultural landowners and agricultural land tenants and raises issues important from both a landowner’s and tenant farmer’s perspective.
 
Subjects discussed here include:
• The general legal enforceability of both oral and written leases;
• Common types of agricultural leases;
• The renewal and termination of leasing arrangements;
• Death of the landlord or tenant;
• The landlord’s right of reentry onto leased premises during the leased period;
• The responsibility for repairs of the leased premises;
• Noxious weed control;
• Insurance issues;
• Failure to pay rent and how a landowner can protect himself;
• Bankruptcy of the landlord or tenant; and
• Lease language that parties should consider when a leased property is subject to multiple economic uses such as hunting, mineral development, or wind energy.