Employee Benefits	12 Months Ended
Employee Benefits	Dec. 31, 2012
Compensation and Retirement Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of Defined Benefit Plans Disclosures [Table Text Block]	EMPLOYEE BENEFITS Farmer Mac makes contributions to a defined contribution retirement plan for all of its employees. Farmer Mac contributed 13.2 percent of the lesser of an employee's gross salary or the maximum compensation permitted under the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 ("EGTRRA") ($250,000 for 2012, $245,000 for 2011, and $245,000 for 2010), plus 5.7 percent of the difference between: (1) the lesser of the gross salary or the amount established under EGTRRA; and (2) the Social Security Taxable Wage Base. Employees are fully vested after having been employed for approximately 3 years. Expense for this plan for the years ended December 31, 2012, 2011, and 2010 was $0.9 million, $1.0 million, and $0.9 million, respectively.

Tabular disclosure of one or more of the entity's defined benefit pension plans or one or more other defined benefit postretirement plans, separately for pension plans and other postretirement benefit plans including the entity's schedule of fair value of plan assets for defined benefit or other postretirement plans.

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