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Document and Entity Information	6 Months Ended
Document and Entity Information	Jun. 30, 2011	Aug. 01, 2011 Class A Voting Common Stock	Aug. 01, 2011 Class B Voting Common Stock	Aug. 01, 2011 Class C Non-Voting Common Stock
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Jun. 30, 2011
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2011
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q2
Trading Symbol	AGM
Entity Registrant Name	FEDERAL AGRICULTURAL MORTGAGE CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000845877
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		1,030,780	500,301	8,821,878