Why does Bill Gates own farmland?

1. Limited resource. There are over 900 million acres of farmland in our country, which sounds like a lot until you think of all the things we grow, mouths we feed, and global trading we do. Around 40% of that land is rented to those who do the actual planting and harvesting, so being a farmland landlord is a pretty common gig. As food standards and environmental regulations change, more and more people are looking to update and upgrade farming practices, which makes any farmland that's for sale even more appealing.

2. Need to sell. When we think of farmers, we usually picture people who have all their wealth tied up in assets. They don't live lavishly, they just work the land and make money on what they're able to cultivate. Most private farms have been in families for generations, with the understanding that the value of the business is the land itself. When farming becomes problematic-due to health or economics-the easiest solution is to sell at least a portion of the land and move on to something else. The value of the land combined with the owner's need for cash means a good farmland investment is usually lurking, you just have to be ready to jump on it when the time is right.

3. Should you invest? I'm a big proponent of farmland investing and there are a good number of ways to go about it without being a billionaire. Sites like AcreTrader.com allow you to invest in the land and product without buying a farm outright, so you can reap the rewards without landing yourself in a mess of red tape. If you want to actually get your hands dirty, you can find a way to rent farmland and grow your crops without owning, if that's what suits you. Whatever your goals, there's a lot of money to be made in American farms. As long as people need to eat, that's going to remain the case.