Frequently Asked Questions

AgChoice Farm Credit is an Agricultural Credit Association with more than $1.4 billion in gross loan assets. Through 10 branch offices, it provides financial services to 7,500 customer-owners in 52 counties in central, western and northern Pennsylvania as well as four counties in West Virginia. AgChoice Farm Credit is part of the nationwide Farm Credit System, a financial cooperative owned by its customer-owners for more than 90 years.

Farm Credit is a nation-wide system of customer-owned cooperatives that provide financial services to farmers, ag-related businesses and rural homeowners. Established by Congress in 1916, the Farm Credit System is the nation's largest source of agricultural financing.

A cooperative, according to the Merriam Webster dictionary, is an "association formed to enable its members to buy or sell to better advantage."

So what's the advantage to you? Doing business with AgChoice means that you are an owner of the business. You select the Board of Directors who lead the organization on your behalf. You have a voice in its plans, goals and operations. The Board of Directors also has the ability to distribute patronage - AgChoice's way of sharing profits with its customer-owners. In 2008, more than $10.55 million was distributed in patronage to customer-owners.

AgChoice takes pride in its customer-owners, keeping their best interests in mind at all times. After all, knowing you makes the difference.

AgChoice Farm Credit serves farmers, ag-related businesses and rural homeowners in 52 counties in central, western and northern Pennsylvania as well as four counties in West Virginia. You are encouraged to contact your local branch office to discuss your specific financing need with our experienced loan staff.

Yes. AgChoice Farm Credit's AccountAccess makes it easy and convenient for you to manage your account. From making payments to viewing your bills online, AccountAccess is at your fingertips 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week. Create an online account today!

Most likely, the balloon term OR maturity date on your loan is near. A balloon term is a shorter term to call your loan ahead of when it would pay off which is normally done to get a lower interest rate. The full amount showing at your maturity date normally indicates that your loan is either a line of credit or other type of loan where little or nothing is being paid on principal. This is set as a reminder to be in touch with your loan officer should you wish to negotiate a new loan.

Your accounts are separated by borrowing entities, or the relationship of parties responsible for that particular loan(s). If you have loans under different borrowing entities, you would need a separate login for each.

For example, if you have personal loans and loans under the farm partnership - each account is accessed separately. You would use your social security number (for the person who is the primary on the loan) to login to your personal loans and you would use the tax identification number to login to the partnership loans. This security feature ensures only entitled persons have access to the account information.

Your branch office has no way to "reprint" your bill. However, you can use the online Account Access feature to view (and reprint) your bill. Once you've logged in, go to the "View Statements" tab. Here you will see a PDF version of your bill.

Account Access is your tool to get this information at the click of a button. Once you have logged in to your account, go to the "Account Information" tab. In this section, you are able to view your account history including the interest paid year-to-date. You also have access to your annual statement and 1098 and 1099 tax forms. This information is normally available in January for the previous year. You can also receive these figures by calling your local branch office, but they will only be able to give you the amounts - no forms can be created at that time.

Possibly. When you negotiated the terms of your loan, taking a rate that involved a pre-payment penalty would have been an option available to you. You can find out if your rate involves a pre-payment penalty by viewing your loan information online or calling your local branch office. This is not a normal occurrence, but the fees may be rather significant - so it is always good to check!

Unfortunately, at this time - no. We DO accept payments via AutoDraft, mail, in-person, wire and online access.

Late fees are assessed in accordance with the terms outlined in your note. Your loan payment is "due" on your respective due date (typically the 1st or 20th of the month). If you are not able to make your payment, please contact your loan officer immediately.

Money will be available once all conditions of the loan have been met. Time varies with the type and complexity of a loan, but funds are normally available the same day as closing unless your loan is subject to Right of Rescissions.

Lock box is our off-site payment processing facility. This highly-controlled facility takes the utmost care to ensure your payment is processed correctly.

A payment application is a breakdown of your payments into interest, principal, late charges and/or fees.

The principal is the remaining balance due without interest or fees. The pay-off balance includes interest from the date of the last payment to the pay-off date, plus principal and any lien termination fees.

AgriLine® may be your answer. AgriLine® is a service that links your revolving credit line to a checkbook. When you want a revolving credit line advance, you can simply write a check and present it to the supplier for payment. The check will be presented to AgChoice for payment and a loan disbursement will be logged to your revolving credit line.

Yes. AutoDraft is a way to pay your AgChoice loan installment. AutoDraft electronically deducts your loan installment from your bank account each month, each quarter or whenever it is due.

Yes. FastCash may be the service you are looking for. FastCash is an electronic transfer service that connects your Line of Credit loan to your commercial bank's checking or savings account. Funds can be transferred in any amount up to your available balance. Availability of funds depends on your commercial bank's schedule.

LoanLine allows you to do exactly that! Contact your local branch in order to have an administrator enroll you for LoanLine. You can then access your information 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week on a toll-free line.

AgChoice is partnering with the VISA™ network to offer you a commercial Purchase Card. The Purchase Card is for customer-owners who already have or can acquire an AgriLine® Revolving Credit Line. Contact your local branch to see how to obtain a Purchase Card of your own.

An AutoBorrow or AgSweep account spares you the daily task of estimating your cash position. Through an electronic link between your AgChoice loan and your business checking account at Bank of America® or Wachovia®, AutoBorrow or AgSweep automatically transfers funds between these accounts as appropriate, ensuring that your money achieves its maximum return on any given day.

Fixed means that the rates and payments are constant for the term of the loan. Adjustable means that the rates and payments are fixed for a period of time, typically one, three or five years, and then they adjust and are fixed for another period for the same length of time until the term of the loan. Variable means that the rates and payments are subject to change monthly, following an index, prime or LIBOR.

In general, yes, but certain exceptions may apply. To find out the answer for your individual case, please contact your local AgChoice branch location or call (800) 998-5557.

AgChoice Farm Credit offers loans and other financially-related products and services for agricultural and rural communities. Our business ranges from farm loans and equipment leases to mortgages and home refinancing. Added-value services include appraisals, business consulting, crop insurance and much more. To learn more about how we can assist you in meeting your personal and business goals, visit our Farms, Forest Products, Country Living and Business Management areas.

Additionally, we offer a full line of convenience services to better serve our customer-owners. You can receive cash advances, sign up for automatic payments, transfer funds, access your loan information, use a purchase card and utilize our cash management services; all to help you save time and money.

Applying for a loan can be as easy as a click, drive or call away. Simply use our online loan request feature or contact your local branch office.

If/when approved, you will be contacted by your loan officer and will then receive commitment papers regarding your loan.

Interest rate information for agricultural loans can be obtained if you contact your local branch office. Rates are posted weekly online for our Country Mortgages by AgChoice FC product offerings. However, you are encouraged to contact your local branch office for more up-to-date information.

AgChoice Farm Credit finances a variety of lifestyles under our Country Mortgages by AgChoice FC product offerings, including conventional home loans. Regardless of whether you are looking to build your country dream home or buy the part-time farm that you have always wanted, we have a wide range of country living financing options to meet your needs.

Learn more about our Country Mortgages product offerings today.

Available products under Country Mortgages by AgChoice FC, include conventional home loans, construction loans and lot/home site loans. Learn more about these and other rural properties that AgChoice finances.

We understand that the needs of young, beginning and small farmers are unique. Limited experience and financial resources will often turn lenders away, but AgChoice wants to work with these farmers to cultivate a strong future for their businesses and agriculture. Visit our Young, Beginning and Small Farmer Programs page which outlines special programs and incentives offered to these groups.

No. Unlike commercial banks, AgChoice does not take deposits. The Farm Credit System is uniquely structured where loanable funds are raised through the sale of system-wide bonds and notes in the nation's capital markets.

AgChoice Farm Credit does not offer grants, but our Business Management Services team provides a grant writing service to assist customer-owners in applying for funding programs available to them. Our staff has an understanding of the grant opportunities available at any given time and the experience to assemble comprehensive applications for you.

To learn more about how our specialized team can help you complete a grant proposal, check out our grant writing page.

At AgChoice Farm Credit, we can help customer-owners with either option, leasing or buying. Our on-staff professionals can help you to decide which option is best for your unique situation.

Many people are not aware of the financial and business benefits of leasing. If you are interested in improving your cash flow or gaining potential tax advantages, particularly in the fourth quarter tax planning time, you should consider leasing upcoming equipment purchases. We also offer leases on buildings, trucks, cars and much more!

Learn more about our Agricultural Leases and Forest Products Leases.

Patronage is one way that AgChoice is able to share our success with customer-owners. In 2008, $10.55 million in patronage was distributed to customer-owners. AgChoice has paid patronage to customers every year since AgChoice was formed in 1999.

In general, yes, but you should always check with your accountant or tax adviser.

In January, you will receive the 1099 PATR form which will show all taxable patronage refunds issued to you during the previous year. Your tax advisor will be able to assist you with more detailed information about including patronage distributions on your tax return.

AgChoice can deliver more benefits to its customers as it grows. Capital, much of which is derived from our profits, is necessary to support a larger loan volume. Good levels of profit increase the confidence of Farm Credit System bond investors who provide the money for us to lend and meet the ongoing funding needs of our customers. AgChoice's patronage model allows us to accomplish both of these things (building capital and being profitable), while also providing a mechanism to return profits over time to our customer-owners.

AgChoice is a cooperative association with a strong program to return profits to our customer-owners through patronage. At the same time, we are a credit institution that must operate in a financially-sound manner. An important aspect of our financial strength is maintaining a strong capital base. For our General Pool, distributing a portion of the patronage amount over a five or more year period allows us to hold a safe capital position so we can continue to meet the credit and financial needs of our customer-owners over the long-term.

Patronage is paid upon board action following careful review of the financial health of AgChoice. When the Board has determined that adequate capital exists, they will vote in favor of declaring a patronage payment. Historically, AgChoice has declared a portion of patronage available for immediate release, this is known as the Cash portion and typically is released in April. The portion of patronage that is retained for a period of time to ensure adequate capitalization of AgChoice is referred to as Nonqualified Allocated Surplus and usually is redeemed in October five or more years after it has been declared. Note that a third portion of patronage is also allocated in the customer-owner's name, but this Nonqualified Retained Surplus is intended to permanently remain with the Association in order to maintain a strong capital base.