Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation, commonly known as Farmer Mac, is a congressionally chartered, stockholder-owned company that provides a secondary market for agricultural real estate and rural utility loans in the United States. Established under the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987, Farmer Mac enhances the availability of credit by purchasing qualifying loans from agricultural lenders, packaging them into mortgage-backed securities and guaranteeing timely principal and interest payments to investors. This structure helps lenders manage risk and supports the long-term financing needs of farmers, ranchers and rural utility providers.
Farmer Mac’s core activities include purchasing agricultural mortgage loans, structuring and securitizing those loans into mortgage-backed securities, and issuing guarantees on those securities. By offering guarantee and securitization services, the company enables originators—such as commercial banks, Farm Credit System institutions and other agricultural lenders—to free up capital for new lending. In addition to traditional agricultural real estate products, Farmer Mac offers programs tailored to small-balance, niche and specialty farm operations, as well as rural energy and water infrastructure financing.
Headquartered in Washington, D.C., Farmer Mac operates through a network of offices and participates in markets across all 50 states. Since beginning operations in 1988, the company has expanded its program offerings to include standby purchase commitments, precautionary repurchase commitments and other forms of credit enhancement. These tools allow the company to adapt to evolving market conditions and to support a diverse range of agricultural and rural utility financing needs.
Governed by an independent board of directors and a team of executive officers, Farmer Mac maintains a risk management framework designed to uphold its financial strength and mission. The company’s ability to provide reliable guarantees and liquidity to the agricultural lending sector plays a critical role in promoting stability, sustainability and growth within the U.S. agricultural economy.
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