WIMMERA counsellors have been inundated with requests from farmers struggling with their financial situation.
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Horsham rural financial counsellor Patrick White said this period before harvest was typically the service’s quietest time.
“Our peak time is mid-January through to April, after farmers have finished harvest and are starting to work out what they can do,” he said.
“We are finding it busy now – farmers are realising the season is not looking good and are seeking assistance now.”
Mr White said ideally now was the right time to look at options.
“People can seek help at any stage, but if they approach it now, there might be more options,” he said.
“If they want until further down the track, options might be more limited.
“But it depends how close to the edge people are.”
At there moment there is about a two week waiting period to access Rural Financial Counselling, because of demand.
“We will squeeze clients in where we can and make sure everyone gets to talk to someone,” Mr White said.
“It’s important if someone needs help, that they ask for it.”
Mr White said the poor season wasn’t the only reason farmers needed financial assistance.
“There might be health reasons or other family issues that cause financial difficulty,” he said.
“But when it doesn’t rain, it doesn’t help anyone.
“There are also a lot of small businesses that are reliant on the growing season, which is often the case in rural communities.”
Mr White said at the moment there were three main options for people, including the Farm Household Allowance and new drought concessional loans.
“The Farm Household Allowance is an income support payment,” he said.
“It is income and assets tested and people can call Centrelink for information about that, or talk to us.
“It can be time consuming to get through the paperwork, so some people come to us for assistance.”
Mr White said the federal government had announced new drought concessional loans.
“That’s a five year loan with a variable concessional rate, currently 3.05 per cent,” he said.
“It’s available through Rural Finance.”
Mr White said the other option was to use Rural Financial Counselling Services.
“We can travel out and visit on farm, so we sit down with people face to face,” he said.
“We look at cash flow and projections for the next 12 months.
“Once we do that, we can work out options.
“Someone might be about $200,000 short for their plan, so we can assist them with talking to the bank, or they might want to sell a block.
“We can help them follow through with what they want to do.
“If there is pressure form banks and creditors, we can also help with that.”
Mr White said rural financial counsellors were not accountants or lawyers.
“But we can help people look at where they are, and what options they have,” he said.
“It’s about having those conversations.”
Mr White said people could call 1300 735 578 to speak to a rural financial counsellor.