What does it take to get access to capital when you’re trying to build or grow a ranch business?

In this episode, Derek sits down with ESB Financial to dig into what it really takes to finance a ranching operation. Drawing on more than a 125-year-old community bank’s perspective, the conversation covers how lenders evaluate access to capital for beginning and growing ranchers.

Topics include balance sheets vs. cash flow, debt coverage ratios, financing cows, and land loan terms. They also cover creative loan structures and how risk tools like LRP, pasture protection, and hedging help borrowers and lenders weather volatile cattle markets.

The discussion also looks at how capital-intensive agriculture has become, with costs up three to four times in just a few years and why a “no for now” can be the start of a plan.

Whether you’re a young producer chasing your first opportunity or an established operator planning for the next one, this episode shows how to approach access to capital with transparency, preparation, and the right team.

Be sure to listen to also listen to Episode 12: Cash or Credit: An Access to Capital Conversation

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• Check out ESB Financial’s website and RSVP to their AgForum Event
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Ranch planning for 2027 starts with the decisions you make as cattle come off grass.

In this episode of the Ranch Rolodex Podcast, Zach, Derek, and Daniel talk through their fall transition: what they’re weaning, what they’re selling, what they’re keeping, and how they’re running a pencil on every decision.

They break down the value of weaning calves and preconditioning them before they hit the sale barn, why commission structures and your relationship with the barn owner can make or cost you real money, and how private treaty sales can leave meat on the bone for the next guy without shortchanging the seller.

The conversation then turns to reinvesting: where the value sits right now across bred cows, pairs, and replacement heifers, and how to match those buying decisions to what your operation is set up to do.

Interested in a Ranch Rolodex Community? Join the waitlist here. By signing up, you’re letting us know you’re interested, but it doesn’t obligate you in any way.

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Access to capital can be one of the biggest barriers to building a ranching business, especially when cattle, equipment, and land all come with a hefty price tag.

In this episode, Derek, Zach, and Dan share how they’ve financed their own operations, from conventional loans and FSA financing to private investors and self-financing. They discuss the trade-offs between borrowing money and using your own capital, including how each approach affects growth, risk, and your ability to seize opportunities.

They also dig into the importance of building relationships with lenders, managing cash flow, and keeping working capital available for the right deal. Each operation has a different approach, shaped by its goals, resources, and comfort with debt. They also discuss whether more government support is needed to help beginning ranchers access capital and why they ultimately see capital as an even bigger barrier than land.

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Resources & Links:

• Episode 3. There's No One Way to Ranch: Toby Holsted's Story of Leaving the Family Farm and His Path to Profitability
• Episode 11. Owning Dirt vs. Building a Ranch: A Land Access Discussion
• 2025 Bluestem Pasture Report
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Everyone wants to own the dirt they’re ranching on, but what if owning land isn’t always the best way to build a ranching business?

In this episode, Derek, Zach, and Dan dig into the tradeoffs between buying and leasing ground, drawing from their own experiences building ranch businesses with limited capital. They discuss how land ownership affects cash flow, why controlling productive land can matter more than owning it, and how the right approach can change as a business grows.

The conversation then moves beyond buy versus rent to the relationships that make land access possible. The guys talk about building a strong reputation as an operator, creating win-win arrangements with landowners, and why a rancher’s legacy doesn’t necessarily have to be tied to owning dirt. They also wrestle with when buying land does make sense and why the answer ultimately depends on your capital, stage of business, and goals.

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Resources & Links:

• Episode 10: What 10 Years Away Taught a Fifth-Generation Rancher with Logan Pribbeno of Wine Glass Ranch
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What happens when a fifth-generation rancher is required to leave the family operation for ten years before he can come back?

In this episode of the Ranch Rolodex, Derek sits down with Logan Pribbeno, of Wine Glass Ranch in Southwest Nebraska, a multi-generational ranch that's been in his family for 140 years. Logan's family had a rule: leave the state, leave agriculture, and stay gone for a decade. He spent those years studying economics at UC Santa Barbara and working in Silicon Valley finance through the Great Recession, and he came home viewing the ranch as a business first.

Derek and Logan dig into how that time away shaped his approach to ranch finances, from treating cattle as financial instruments to waging war on overhead and using long-term mortgage debt as an inflation hedge.

They close on ranch succession, the K-shaped economy, and how Logan structured his operation so he can leave for six months while the business keeps improving.

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Connect with Logan:

• Check out his website
• Follow on X
• Follow his podcast, Running on Grass

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Resources & Links:

• Episode 5: How Profitable Ranchers Think Differently with John Haskell
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Everyone says America needs to rebuild the cow herd, but what does it actually take for a rancher to keep back heifers when the market won't give them confidence?

In this episode, Zach, Dan, and Derek dig into the cattle market volatility and political noise pressuring producers right now. They look at the latest cattle inventory numbers, why heifer retention isn't the same as herd expansion, and dive into the USDA’s LRP program.

The conversation then moves past the headlines to the long-term threats to the U.S. beef supply including urban sprawl, the disappearing tallgrass prairie, generational land transitions, and the barriers beginning ranchers face in accessing land and capital.

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Connect with us:

• Subscribe on YouTube
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Resources & Links:

• Scholarship Pledge
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Mentioned in this episode:

Click the link below to join the waitlist for the Ranch Rolodex Community:

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What if the biggest thing holding your ranch back isn’t your resources, your genetics, or your market, but actually not knowing exactly what you’re building toward.

In this episode, hosts Derek, Daniel, and Zach sit down with the Vision Flight team to unpack why mission and vision aren’t just corporate buzzwords but essential tools for ranch decision-making, family alignment, and long-term profitability.

The conversation walks through real examples of ranchers and families that used the Vision Flight process to move past vague goals and uncover the deeper interests driving those goals. Often finding that clarity changes the entire direction of their business and personal lives.

No matter what season of life or ranching you’re in, tune into this episode to learn about the power of a practical framework for turning aspirations into a written plan you can act on.

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Connect with Vision Flight:

• Check out their website
• Follow them on Facebook

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Resources & Links:

• Use code ROLODEX20 to get 20% off your Vision Flight experience (valid through the end of 2026)
• Scholarship Pledge
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• Podcast Music by Cade Foehner
• Check out the Territory Ballroom
• Sign up for our email list so you never miss an episode