Oops . . . made a mistake on last entry

In the prior blog entry there is reference to the most recent tax law regarding bonus depreciation.  It was stated that the 50% bonus depreciation was extended through 2010.  That was an error . . . here is the corrected info:

A 100% writeoff in the placed-in-service year of the cost of property eligible for bonus depreciation under Code Sec. 168(k) . This will apply for property acquired and placed in service after Sept. 8, 2010, and before Jan. 1, 2012.

A 50% bonus first-year depreciation allowance under Code Sec. 168(k) for property placed in service after Dec. 31, 2011, and before Jan. 1, 2013.

So bottom line, Bonus Depreciation is going to be around through the end of 2012.  Now that is a planning opportunity.  And remember . . . there are no offset limitations to bonus depreciation . . . it can offset earned income, interest, dividends, pensions, rental income, capital gains . . . any kind of income.  The only stipulations . . . the assets must be NEW and placed in service by the end of the year to be eligible as a deduction for that year.  A new alpaca is a male or female of breeding age who has not yet produced a cria.
 
Sorry for the error . . . but what great news!

Expanded Tax Deductions + Great Sales Prices = Exceptional Year End Opportunity

Just the basics for this entry. The IRS has expanded the Section 179 Deduction available for 2010 and 2011 to $500,000 with a purchase ceiling of $2,000,000. They have also extended the 50% bonus depreciation through 2010. Both of those deductions make year end buying a great tax strategy.

When you couple those deductions with our year end sale, you have an opportunity to maximize your tax deductions while getting exceptional values. Select any alpaca on our sales list and get the second one for free (of equal or lesser value). For example, if you were to select Bella (list price $7,750) and Chloe ($6,750) you would get them both for $7,750.

So start pondering your tax situation and pick out the alpacas that will enhance and or diversify your breeding program.  Just make your decision by midnight on December 31st for it to apply to 2010. 

Our Buddy Dick

DICK FANDRICH

08/31/1929 to 09/09/2010

Many of you who have visited our farm over the years met our buddy, Dick Fandrich, so we wanted to take this opportunity to share with you that Dick died late Thursday night of congestive heart failure. He would always tease that to know him was to love him and for the most part that was true. Doc Hunter phrased it well when he said Dick was one of those very funny, larger than life guys who just kept defying death. He'd had a stroke over ten years ago, multiple heart attacks and next to no concern for his diabetes. Years ago during one of his more challenging health related days he chose going to breakfast over going to the emergency room as he was concerned when they allow him to eat. We eventually went to the ER but not before he had his favorite breakfast. He was everything from an airline mechanic to a bus driver to a detective sergeant for the San Francisco Police Department to a real estate broker to a marketing entrepreneur and who knows how many other different professions over his 81 years.  More than anything he was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather, friend and dreamer with patience beyond that of Charlie Brown and his football.  He believed what you told him and was one of the most optimistic individuals you would ever want to meet.  He will be truly missed.

Be Careful What You Name Them

Many of you know that Peggy's mom moved into our home late last year and remodeled the area that formerly was our office. She has been helping come up with names for our new arrivals. 

When the little munchkin to the right arrived Mom could see from her window that she was quite small compared to some of the others who had arrived this year.  Mom's family is from Yugoslavia and the language is Croatian.  The word "tiny" in Croatian is "mala".  So she called us down in the pasture to give her suggestion as to a name for our latest addition to the herd.  Peggy thought it was quite appropriate but noticed that our friend, Felipe, immediately smiled upon hearing it.  So not being the greatest at remembering her Spanish, Peggy asked what does "mala" mean in Spanish . . . many of you know the answer . . . bad girl.  My mother felt it wasn't appropriate to label a perfect tiny little girl with a name that was so unappealing . . . but how could you not! 

So, the perfect tiny little girl is Tucker Creek's Mala and she is doing her best to deserve that moniker.

We have had times before where we named a critter and they just became their name . . . like Tucker Creek's Bungee Buuud . . . we had to add mesh to the tops of the gates so he wouldn't jump through to get back to mom when he was weaned . . . not to mention what a treat he was to weigh.  So, becareful what you name them . . .

Two Cooked Long Enough to Become Girls!!!

The two most recent deliveries were both female . . . yeahhhhhh!  But one delivered on day 384 and the other on day 365.  The obvious question, of course, "did you mess up the breeding dates" and the answer to both is a very clear NO.  Each of the ladies was bred only once . . . pretty tough to confuse.  And thank heavens the second took a year . . . she was only 13.2 pounds . . . you would not have wanted her to come out any sooner.  Both are very healthy. 

The first born on August 1 (day 384)  is named Tucker Creek's Astoria and she is the product of Cordelia and Sun Tzu and true to her father's contribution has incredibly dense crimpy fiber. 

On August 23 Khani delivered a beautiful Sun Tzu baby girl named Tucker Creek's Mala on day 365.  It was Khani's first delivery and it was truly text book.  She may be tiny but makes up for it in spirit.

The next group of cria should start arriving around Labor Day.  Ten to go . . . five are ours and five are client animals.  So there are still some opportunities to buy bred females and have a cria in 2010 AND take advantage of the tax benefits available this year but currently scheduled to go away in 2011.  Amor, Chloe, Gidget and McKenzie are all bred to Hemingway's Bogart.

A Dozen and Counting . . .

Here is the count down to date . . . a dozen on the ground . . . nine boys and three girls . . . all out of Sun Tzu except for one beautiful girl out of a Glacial Storm son. 

June 19 - Marcella presented Susan Jones of Oregon Coast Alpacas with a feisty little man who is officially named Sinclair.  That did not stay his name for very long.  He was born the day before shearing day and there was a plethora of experienced alpaca people on the farm . . . including Carrie Hull of Coarse Broads and Timber Basin Alpacas and Hailey Parker from Snowy River Alpacas.  Maybe the poor little guy didn't have a chance with the three of us checking on him.  None of us ever saw him eat, pee or poop . . . yet he gained weight, was as active as could be and was in the middle of everything.  Think he was just testing the stupid humans.  He was nicknamed Sly . . . and Sly he was and is.  He continues to be the ringleader of this year's crias.

June 22 - a foursome.  My friend, former llama breeder and fiber artist, Rose Power, came over to check on the results of shearing day.  Little did she know she was going to have the opportunity to test her old mid-wifrey skills . . . three of them came within a twenty minute window.  Great fun . . . and only one little girl out of that quartet.  Loki delivered a handsome dark brown and white male . . . a spinner's dream . . . multiple colors out of the same animal.  Queen Amidala presented us with a little moustached dark brown male who became Hunter (named after our very own vet, Russ Hunter).  Elana presented Becky Hay of Autumn Meadows with a handsome almost black male named Zhavago.  He is very precocious and will come and lay next to you in the pasture. Then came our beautiful little fawn female, Aurora, out of Tiffany and Duke . . . the last breeding of a Glacial Storm male.  Do miss that guy.

June 23 - Another little girl, this time for Susan Jones of Oregon Coast Alpacas.  A gorgeous light brown female named SuzieQ.

June 25 - Lollipop delivered her first cria, a very handsome light fawn male that Peggy's mom named Tucker . . . seems appropriate that we have a future herdsire carrying the name of the farm.   Then twenty minutes later Chelsea's Athena delivered another very handsome male (and he is very white) who is named Quartz.

June 28 - Skyla had yet another male name Lava . . . the trend was getting a little overwhelming at this point.

July 10 - We had planned a trip to San Diego with great care to make sure the first wave of cria all had delivered prior to leaving.  Well . . . what do they say about the best laid plans . . . on the day we were scheduled to leave two of the girls had yet to deliver.  Peggy was just ready to jump in the shower (cutting it as close to flight time as possible) and of course there was a head and two legs hanging out of the back of Jasmine.  So it was rush down to the pasture to make sure all was good (find out it was yet another boy) and make a quick call to Susan Jones from Oregon Coast Alpacas to see if she could come over and complete the rest of the duties . . . luckily she was available and all was good . . . Thank you, Susan.  The other who was scheduled to deliver prior to our leaving town just delivered today . . . on day 384 . . . and no there was no confusion on her breeding date as she was only bred once.  So much for planning.  His name you might ask . . . this is a David naming philosophy.  We had yet to come up with a name for him so David resorted to his tried and true method . . . Jasmine's little man was our 80th male . . . so David said to name him Boy 80 . . . so we tried to make it a bit more warm and fuzzy so we made it Spanish . . . Nino Ochenta.

July 26 - Katrina presented Autumn Meadows a very crimpy dense grey male named Bayou.

August 1 - And today, Cordelia delivered a GIRL, the wait was worth it.  She is dark fawn and Peggy's mom thought we should have a girl named Astoria . . . after the town we live in.  We thought that was a pretty name.

That catches us up on this year's deliveries.  We only have one more we are waiting on for this group . . . Khani out of Hemingway's Bogart and K-2's Chandra.  It is her first.  She is not acting at all concerned and is on about day 342.  Her line typically results in girls . . . her granddam, Karoline, has only had four girls out of six to date; her mother, Chandra has had no boys out of four cria to date . . . let's hope Khani follows in their footsteps and helps improve our ratio of male to female cria. 

So I'm posting this entry even though it is not completed.  It is missing all the photos and a lot more links.  I'll start that part tomorrow.  It will make me feel a bit more caught up.

Failure to Post--No excuse!!

As you can see it has been three and a half months since we have posted to our blog.  Is there a reasonable excuse--no.  So we are not going to bore you with one.  Babies are on the ground and more on the way; shearing is over; this year's cut is at the coop (thanks to Carrie); farm visits are scheduled (including Alpaca Farm Days at the end of September) and we are gearing up to open our farm store with all the beautiful products from the coop (NAAFP). 

We'll be adding posts over the next few days.  But to get started here are a few photos taken during our shearing weekend by a very talented local photographer, Jennie Kendrick.  It is a great shot of the farm--but all the critters are in the barn patiently (or impatiently as the case may be) waiting their turn with the clippers.

And I just loved this shot of Sun Tzu . . . what more can we say . . . he's got it all . . . and he is just plain cool. 

So, check back soon.  Several of the topics have surfaced because of questions we have received recently via email or the phone from soon to be alpaca breeders; others are just updates on what is happening in the realm of Section 179 and Bonus Depreciation (will they or won't they be extended for 2010 or future years); and of course, there will be the photos of this year's cria. 

AlpacaLease - a division of Alpacas at Tucker Creek

Today's economy is causing us to carefully watch how we spend our money but even more carefully how we can save money.  Let's face it, the cost of entry into the alpaca business or any business can be down right daunting.   AlpacaLease is designed to make entry into the alpaca business much more user-friendly.  But it is also designed to make herd diversification a lot less costly as well. 

AlpacaLease does not require any long term commitments--you select the time frame.

AlpacaLease has no monthly payments--just one payment at the start of the lease period based on 15% of the selling price of the animal--male or female.

Should you decide to purchase the alpaca you leased, every dollar you paid in lease payments will be applied to the purchase price.

So if you have been hesitating to enter into the alpaca business but were concerned about taking that step because of the cost of entry--consider leasing.  If you lease a bred female, at the end of the lease term you own the cria. If you are leasing a male you can breed as many females as you wish (including outside breedings) for one flat fee.  You treat the animal as if it were your own.  You are required to maintain mortality insurance based on the selling price of the animal.  The males must also have fertility insurance. 

If you are an experienced breeder and have considered herd diversification but have been procrastinating in this economy this could be the answer--whether you lease a male or female you could add the diversity you have been wanting for a very economical cost.

Any of the animals listed for sale on our site are eligible for the AlpacaLease Program.  So whether you are new to the industry or an experienced breeder with AlpacaLease you can bring flexibility and diversity to your breeding program.  If this interests you, please feel free to contact us at 877-915-0522 or peggy@alpacalease.com.

Local Newspaper Highlights Alpacas at Tucker Creek

Recently Bob Duke, the business reporter for the local newspaper, The Daily Astorian, selected us for an interview for his column entitled "Making the Dollar". Each week he features a local business asking them the same four questions. We were not sure how he was going to handle it since we are not exactly a traditional store front type of business--but he did a pretty good job. See what you think! Click here to read the article.  The cria is Ace owned by Susan Jones of Oregon Coast Alpacas.   What a handsome little man. 

TESTING THE ALPACA INDUSTRY . . . HOW CAN THAT BE DONE WITHOUT A LOT OF MONEY!

Today’s economy has most of us wondering what it is going to take to turn things around. There are lots of theories and much is being tested. Being a rather conservative retired accountant I believe in a very conservative approach. Do what you can . . . today. If you have a goal, make careful slow steps toward that goal. Being an alpaca breeder, I want people to buy alpacas, breedings and alpaca related products. What can be done to encourage a market with so many problems to purchase any of the above?

Guess, we all just need to be creative and do what we can to work together. So if your goal is to have alpacas but in this economy it just seems really scary . . . test the waters. But how do you do that?

1. Buy a few males to make sure you enjoy having them around. After you are confident you want to take the next then you can think about females and the higher price tag that comes along with them.

2. Buy a package of females that includes their breedings for the first two years. That way you can concentrate your efforts on developing your business knowing that you are not required to come up with those additional funds.

3. Lease a package of bred females. Now there is a concept. How do you lease an alpaca? The farm agrees to transfer all care and responsibility for the animal for a specific period of time . . . a year for example. In that year you are completely responsible for its care . . . feeding, husbandry, shearing, veterinary care, insurance . . . just as if you owned it. At the end of the year you have a cria who will be yours . . . free and clear. You now just need to decide whether you want to continue leasing that particular female or return her.

It is truly a time for us all to get creative (regardless of our industry) and find methods that work for a wide scope of customers—we are not in a one size fits all economy. This is a wonderful industry and we need to craft different financial tools to allow more people to join us without creating huge monetary obstacles in their paths.

So if you have been sitting on the fence wondering whether alpacas are right for you . . . give a call to your favorite alpaca breeder and see if they can come up with a plan that will work for you.

President scheduled to sign legislation to extend increased Section 179 limits through 2010

President Obama is scheduled to sign the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act tomorrow.  It contains a variety of provisions to encourage employers to add employees to their payrolls and to invest in equipment.  The provision we are noting today relates to Section 179.

CODE SEC. 179 EXPENSING

For 2009, the maximum Code Sec.179 deduction was $250,000 and the phase-out limit for qualifying property purchased during the year began at $800,000. First introduced in 2008, enhanced Code Sec. 179 expensing expired on December 31, 2009. Without legislation, Code Sec. 179 expensing for 2010 is limited to $125,000, with a $500,000 cap (both adjusted for inflation). The HIRE Act extends enhanced Code Sec. 179 expensing, at the $250,000/$800,000 threshold levels, through December 31, 2010.

Unlike bonus depreciation, Code Sec. 179 expensing is available on both new and used property. Also unlike bonus depreciation, the $800,000 qualifying property ceiling for Code Sec. 179 property effectively limits expensing to small businesses. Finally, Code Sec. 179 is keyed to the business’s tax year rather than the 2010 calendar. The extension under the bill applies to purchases made in tax years beginning after December 31, 2009 and before January 1, 2011.

The HIRE Act does not extend bonus depreciation.