Who is self-employed in South Dakota
- Farmers and ranchers. Corn, soybean and wheat operations in the east, cattle across the west river country, with income at harvest, at the sale barn and from program payments and crop insurance.
- Sioux Falls. Independent financial-services and healthcare professionals, agency owners and the contractors building the metro's fast-growing suburbs.
- The Black Hills. Lodging, attraction and restaurant owners in Rapid City, Deadwood, Keystone and Hill City, whose year is made between the Sturgis rally and Labor Day; and the vacation-rental owners riding the same season.
- Outfitters and guides whose income lands during pheasant and deer seasons, and owner-operator truckers on I-90 and I-29.
What is specific to a South Dakota file
- Both spouses sign on a homestead. South Dakota law requires both spouses to sign an instrument that encumbers the homestead, even when title is in one name. It does not make the non-owner spouse a borrower or add them to the income review.
- No income tax, no mortgage recording tax. South Dakota charges county register of deeds fees only; there is no state tax on the amount secured.
- Farm and ranch property. A rural residence on some acreage is straightforward. A home that is part of a working farm or ranch is reviewed differently — say which it is.
- Valuation. Sioux Falls and Rapid City have solid automated-valuation data. Across most of the state, comparable sales are thin; expect a valuation step involving a person even under $400,000.
- Winter changes nothing. Closing is electronic in January exactly as in July.
Seasonal income, read in context
A motel in Keystone makes its year in ten weeks. A pheasant lodge makes its year in ten weekends. A cow-calf operation gets paid when the calves sell in the fall. A bank's two-year tax-return average — already reduced by depreciation on buildings, vehicles and equipment — flattens each of those into a thin monthly number and declines. Twelve consecutive months of deposits show the season as it happens, and the line is sized from the actual cash.
Common questions
The house is in my name. Does my spouse have to sign?
On a South Dakota homestead, yes — state law requires both spouses to sign an instrument that encumbers it. Signing does not make your spouse a borrower.
My lodge earns almost everything from August through October. Will that count against me?
No. Twelve consecutive months of deposits show the season in context rather than averaging it away.
Our house is on the ranch. Is that eligible?
A rural residence on acreage and a home that is part of a working ranch are reviewed differently. Tell us which describes yours and we will say how it is treated first.
Is there a South Dakota tax when the lien is recorded?
No. County register of deeds fees only.