Answers · Comparing Your Options
How does a bank ag loan compare to a private land loan?
A community bank ag loan typically offers lower rates and longer amortization but requires tax returns, global cash-flow analysis, and 45–75 days to close. A private loan like Turnrow's closes in 2–4 weeks on the asset alone — no tax returns, soft credit pull — at a higher rate for a 12–36 month term.
Banks underwrite you; asset-based private lenders underwrite the land. A bank wants your Schedule F, debt schedule, and every entity you own, then prices a fully amortizing loan accordingly. That produces cheaper money when your paper is clean. It produces a decline — or an endless conditions list — when you had a drought year, just formed the LLC, or earn income a spreadsheet cannot categorize.
Bank appetite for bare land is also thinner than most borrowers expect. Regulators treat raw land as higher-risk collateral, so many banks cap land loans at 50–65% LTV and shorten amortization, even for strong borrowers. Some simply do not want non-income-producing dirt on the books at all.
Use the bank when the property produces documented income, your returns are clean, and the seller can wait two months. Use private money when the clock, the paperwork, or the collateral profile is the obstacle — and treat the private loan as a bridge to bank financing once the obstacle clears.
The Turnrow angle
Turnrow lends up to 70% LTV on appraised value — often more proceeds on bare land than a bank will offer — with a written term sheet in 24–48 hours so you know your number before you negotiate.
Related questions
Five minutes, zero documents, and a written term sheet in 24–48 hours answers most questions faster than reading.
Get a term sheet