The primary advantage of reducing a farm lease to writing is to minimize future misunderstandings and conflicts.  A well-structured farm lease should begin by setting out the date of the agreement, the proper names and addresses of the parties, and a legal description of a property to be leased.  Oklahoma law requires that a legal description of leased real property be included in any lease agreement before it can be filed of record.   Filing a farm lease also helps protect the tenant from unknown third parties.

A farm lease should also include a statement of the term of the lease.  A typical term of a farm lease is either from year to year, or for a term of years.  A year-to-year agreement provides that the lease will continue from year to year with an annual rental payment and continue for an indefinite period of time.  A tenancy from year to year continues until 30 days’ notice of termination is provided by either party.  However, a tenancy for a term of years is an agreement that identifies the exact date on which the lease will terminate.  This type of lease typically includes a specific start and ending date.  Notice is not required to terminate a tenancy for a term of years.

A well-structured farm lease should also include the exact amount of rent to be paid.  Two common leasing arrangements include crop share and cash rent.  A crop share lease provides for payment made by the tenant to the landlord as an agreed percentage of the crop grown on the leased premises.  Under this arrangement, the tenant pays the landlord the cash equivalent of a percentage of the crops sold.  Crop rent is usually due when the crops are ready for harvest.   If no specific date for payment is identified on the lease, then Oklahoma law provides that rent is payable on a yearly basis at the end of each year.   If a tenant fails to pay the rent when it is due, the lease can be terminated.   Prior to termination of the lease for non-payment of rent, the landlord is required to demand payment and serve ten-day notice to the tenant.

The landlord may want to consider including a lien on growing crops to secure rental payment as part of the rental agreement.   This type of lien attaches to all products produced on the farm.   To ensure preservation of land for future generations, a landlord should consider adding provisions to the farm lease that provide for the tenant complying with all soil conservation plans prepared by the local soil conservation district.  In addition, the landlord should consider if the tenant will be permitted to use any water located on the premises, as well.  When real property is leased, use of the groundwater is automatically included.   However, a tenant has no authority to sell water from a leased premises unless the lease specifically permits the sale.   In addition, a farm lease gives the tenant rights in the surface estate only.  The surface lease does not convey rights to any minerals located under the property.  

A landlord of farmland has no duty to keep the leased premises in repair   Unless the lease specifically provides, a tenant may not make repairs at his own expense and then recover from a landlord.   Therefore, it is important to set out specific repair provisions within the lease itself.  Fence repair is one exception to the general rule that the landlord has no duty of repair.  Title 4, §142 of the Oklahoma Statutes requires the owner to keep all principal fences in good repair.  However, the landlord’s duty only arises if the property has been previously enclosed.   By law, the tenant is deemed to be the owner of property, thus, if a landlord does not reside in the county, the duty of repairing the fences may fall on the tenant.  

Including certain provisions within the lease of farmland can avoid significant delay and expense for the future, for both the landlord and the tenant.