No new land? Don't tell the Chinese that. They're are busy creating a couple of new islands. Nature is always creating new land even as it destroys land through erosion it's building deltas of rich arable soil. The earth is ever evolving, volcanoes push up out of the oceans frequently
If you are addressing only arable land, reclamation projects around the world are creating more all the time. More and more people are needing to be fed. More and more countries are starting to export food stuffs with better transportation and growing methods. American farmers can no longer rely on protective tariffs for success. The American will not support such any longer. They are too conscious of their wallets and look for value, not "home grown" at higher costs.
Trump uses banks all the time for financing projects. The riskier the project the less likely it will be that he will use only his own moneys. He gets partners. It's much healthier for his bottom line to minimize his exposure while maximizing his profits. And, I am sure he keeps his personal moneys very separate from his corporate moneys. Getting rich requires a lot of thought, work and foresight. Or, being lucky at lotto. Staying rich requires even more hard work and thought.
Leasing can make a lot of sense, especially when cost of ownership does not balance with maintenance costs or depreciation. Some equipment is too costly to keep up, especially when that equipment is used sparingly and sits most of the time, depreciating, rusting, and possibly becoming outmoded as new, more efficient models become available.
It's not good to become too "hidebound" when looking a different business models. Leasing can be a money saver. Renting the same. Co-ops may be viable in certain circumstances. It pays to look at all viable options when preparing to spend considerable amounts of money. One should never reject an option without a thorough examination of benefits vs risks.
No-one really owns their own home. I have no mortgage, purchased my house with cash. Yet, if I can't make a property tax payment the government will come, at the point of a gun, and evict me, sell the property after a time, keep what I owe with interest and give me the remainder. One only "owns" a house at the sufferance of the government.
One of the best pieces of financial advise I ever received was: "Never purchase your primary residence as an 'investment.' It should be thought of as your home, a roof over your head, protection for your family. The market may go south but, you will always have your home as long as you can pay the taxes."
It is no longer the simple agrarian world Thomas Jefferson so admired and desired. It's a big, complicated sphere which requires knowledge, agility and forethought to survive. We can wish for a simpler time but, wishing is simply a waste a of time. One must learn to function in an ever widening and sophisticated world or be left behind, dreaming of simpler times. Simpler times which required long, hard hours of physical labor to survive and shorter life spans were the order of the day.
I'm getting long here. But, aggrivatedfarmer, you have my sympathy and empathy. From your posts I have an impression, correct I hope, of how you are endeavoring to live and survive. It's a tough life where any little misstep can be fatal to your dream. And I sincerely wish you success!