DEBT AND LEASING IN AGRICULTURE: A QUANTILE REGRESSION APPROACH

While traditional finance theory suggests that leasing and debt are substitutes, some papers demonstrated the theoretical possibility of complementarity. Empirical studies indicate that both are possible. In this paper we will use the Tobit model, ordinary least squares and quantile regression techniques to study the relationship between leasing and debt in farm capital structure in Illinois. Our results indicate that leasing and debt are close to perfect substitutes and leased assets are less risky than debt-financed assets in Illinois farms. The results from the quantile regression help us to capture the effects of farm characteristics on the distribution of leased to assets ratio.