There is growing concern Australia is in the grip of a rural financial crisis as banks foreclose on hundreds of properties and force farmers off the land but some are vowing to fight back.
Rural lender Landmark – once owned by the Australian Wheat Board – held the long-term mortgages of hundreds of Australian farmers but at the height of the global financial crisis sold its loan book to big four bank ANZ.
Up until a recent decision to halt foreclosures for 12 months, ANZ was foreclosing on drought-stricken farmers that missed repayments.
With slumped property prices, some rural families also faced a situation where their debt was higher than the value of their farms.
Like hundreds of other farmers, Rodney Culleton did not choose to be an ANZ customer but faced the bank’s new loan agreements and demands for fresh guarantees after Landmark offloaded his loan.
