12 MASS. EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 405 



There were 40 farms, or 16 percent, which had no outstanding debts. There 

 was only one farm that had outstanding debts of all six types. The percentages 

 of farms having various combinations of types of debt are shown in Table 12. 



Table 12. — Percent of Farms with Different Types of Indebtedness, 

 257 Owner-Operated Farms, Massachusetts, March 1, 1941. 



Mortgaged Not Mortgaged 



Notes No Notes Notes No Notes Total 



Open Accounts Open Accounts Open Accounts Open Accounts 

 Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes No 



Taxes past due 



Mortgage payments past due 



Life insurance loans 0.4 0.4 



No life insurance loans ... 3.1 1.2 0.4 1.2 5.9 



Mortgage payments paid 



Life insurance loans 0.4 0.4 0.4 1.2 



No life insurance loans... . 5.4 3.1 2.3 1.6 0.4 0.8 0.4 1.2 15.2 



Taxes Paid 



Mortgage payments past due 



Life insurance loans 0.8 0.8 



No life insurance loans. . . . 0.4 0.4 0.8 



Mortgage payments paid 



Life insurance loans 1.5 0.8 0.4 0.4 0.8 3.9 



No life insurance loans. .. . 9.0 4.3 14.4 17.5 1.2 4.3 5.5 15.6 71.8 



Total 21.0 9.8 17.5 20.7 2.0 5.1 6.3 17.6 100.0 



MORTGAGES 



As has been pointed out, mortgages were the most important type of credit 

 used by farmers as measured by dollar amounts. The mortgages discussed here 

 are only real estate mortgages secured by a lien on the land and buildings owned 

 by the operator. 



Table 13. — Comparison of Proportion of Owner-Operated Farms Mortgaged in 

 Massachusetts, According to Various Sources. 



Percent Owner-Operated Farms Mortgaged 



County This Study 1940 1940 Census Study of Land Tenure 



257 Farms Census Revised (1) 339 Farms Study (3) 



1934 (2) 



Berkshire 50.0 45.6 50.0 72 



Essex 71.2 49.4 53.2 44 



Hampshire 87.8 62.3 63.8 73.3(4) 71 



Plymouth 79.3 47.4 48.2 65.6(5) 58 



Worcester 57.1 52.3 56.3 ^ 48 



The State 68.9 52.0 54.7 72.2 55 



(1) The Census reports proportion mortgaged on the basis of total owner-operated farms. 

 However, there is no report on mortgage for part of tlie farms. If these farms are removed from 

 the total number of owner-operated farms, the revised figures result. 



(2) Donley, J. E. "Study of Rural Credit in Certain Areas in Massachusetts," 1935. Largest 

 proportion of records was taken in Connecticut Valley. 



(3) Data to be published from land tenure study made by Dr. A. H. Lindsey and Edward 

 Collins in 1941. Mail questionnaire used in gathering data. 



(4) 232 farms in Connecticut Valley of Massachusetts. 



(5) 32 farms Plymouth-Norfolk counties. 



