The Iowa farmland market at the beginning of 2023 has largely ushered in a continuation of strong sale results from late 2022. While few records are being set right now, it does seem like there’s more of a leveling off in price action for quality Iowa farms.

Interest rates have certainly moved higher from a year-ago, although we’re still not seeing much leverage being added to land purchases; buyers are regularly using cash from recent-year profits to complete their acquisitions. Fertilizer prices in early February have backed off from last fall’s lofty levels, but overall input costs needed to plant the upcoming crop will still be measurably higher than a year ago. For example, when looking at budgets for 2023 corn production, there are a lot of $5-per-bushel breakeven levels. This isn’t necessarily good or bad; it’s just reflective of a marketplace that is different than 2022, which we expect to continue trickling into the farmland market.

As you can see in the sales below, there’s still plenty of strength out in the countryside when people decide they want to add to their operation or investment portfolio.

NORTHWEST
Sioux County. About73 acres north of Sioux Center recently sold at public auction for $24,000 per acre. The farm consisted of about 70 tillable acres with a CSR2 (corn suitability rating) of 96.3, and equaled $259 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTH CENTRAL
Cerro Gordo County. About 90 acres southwest of Manly recently sold at public auction for $6,900 per acre. The farm consisted of about 74 tillable acres with a CSR2 of 62.6, and equaled $134 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTHEAST
Fayette County. About 131 acres just north of Maynard recently sold at public auction for $9,450 per acre. The farm consisted of about 126 tillable acres with a CSR2 of 77.7, and equaled $126 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres. This farm was very irregularly shaped.

WEST CENTRAL
Sac County. About 111 acres southwest of Sac City recently sold at public auction for $16,300 per acre. The farm consisted of about 109 tillable acres with a CSR2 of 86.8, and equaled $191 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

CENTRAL
Tama County. About 118 acres northeast of Gilman recently sold at public auction for $16,300 per acre. The farm consisted of about 114 tillable acres with a CSR2 of 88.6, and equaled $190 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

EAST CENTRAL
Jones County. About 136 acres south of Wyoming recently sold at public auction for $13,600 per acre. The farm consisted of about 136 tillable acres with a CSR2 of 81.5, and equaled $167 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

SOUTHWEST
Pottawattamie County. About 117 acres southeast of Hancock recently sold at public auction for $11,100 per acre. The farm consisted of about 113 tillable acres with a CSR2 of 70.2, and equaled $163 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

SOUTH CENTRAL
Madison County. About 40 acres south of DeSoto recently sold at public auction for $16,050 per acre. The farm consisted of about 37 tillable acres with a CSR2 of 90.9, and equaled $191 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

SOUTHEAST
Jefferson County. About 68 acres south of Brighton recently sold at public auction for $12,100 per acre. The farm consisted of about 62 tillable acres with a CSR2 of 83.1, and equaled $160 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

Hertz Real Estate Services compiled this list, but not all sales were handled by Hertz. Call Hertz at 515-382-1500 or 800-593-5263, or visit hertz.ag.