Calculator on top of money and grainIn its May update released Tuesday, the Purdue/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer showed farmer sentiment remained virtually unchanged from April’s data, with continued strong expectations for future farm financial conditions. Despite those strong expectations, many farmers responding to the latest survey said they’re still apprehensive about making too many large investments on things like buildings and machinery, likely a reflection of the rocketing costs for such investments. Taxes were a big change in the latest Ag Barometer survey results; nearly 90% of those responding say they expect estate taxes to rise and around 75% of those responding say they’re “very concerned” about reductions in estate tax exemptions for inherited estates, specifically the potential loss of the step-up in cost basis for inherited farmland. Though that’s not yet caused a mass downturn in confidence in farmland prices, some respondents expressed concerns that tax policy changes like these could cause an eventual downturn in land values. See more from the latest Ag Barometer report.