Bill Gates Harvests $113 Million In Nebraska Farmland, Takes Out $700 Million In Loans

 

Over the past six years, billionaire Bill Gates has spent more than $113 million purchasing Nebraska farmland and has taken out two loans totaling $700 million against it.

Gates owns about 20,000 acres of farmland in Nebraska, where longtime friend and fellow billionaire Warren Buffett resides. The farmland is held by more than 20 shell companies.

Why would one of the world's richest people need to take out a loan? Many high-net-worth individuals borrow against their assets if they need money they can spend. If Gates sold the assets, he would generate taxable income, according to University of Nebraska College of Law professor Adam Thimmesch.

Gates's farmland acquisitions are raising concern in Nebraska because of his involvement with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which includes programs addressing sustainability and climate change. If he donates the land to a nonprofit, it could become tax-exempt, which would "decimate" the counties where it's located, according to an email from state Sen. Tom Brewer, a Republican whose district covers 11 rural counties...more