A family wanting to expand farming operations, another family wishing to own a small hobby ranch and an in-state investor seeking to diversify holdings are among those purchasing land in Wyoming.

The 700-acre farm purchased by a local farm family on the Wyoming-Nebraska border near Huntley, Wyo., sold for $592,000, or $846 per acre.

“The farm sold in mid-2011, and shortly after that period is when we started seeing the market for farmland go up, especially quality irrigated land,” says Paul Schadegg, Wyoming farm manager for Farmers National Co. “I would estimate that this particular farm would bring $850,000 today because of the increase in value of irrigated land.”

The farm featured about 260 acres of flood-irrigated cropland and 435 acres of pasture, along with two building sites that included two older homes, a garage and a machine shed.

“This particular land is average to below-average farm ground for the area,” Schadegg says. “It was all flood irrigated at the time, but the buyer has already put one pivot in.”

The sale came with 314.5 shares of water supplied by the Goshen Irrigation District. Crops typically grown on the farm are corn, alfalfa and wheat.

This was a sale to dissolve a family trust. The buyer was a Goshen County farm family wishing to expand operations. They used a combination of cash and loans. Annual taxes are about $3,200.

North-central Wyoming

A local family looking for a small ranch bought the 193-acre Nickel Ranch 10 miles south of Sheridan near the foot of the scenic Bighorn Mountains.

The ranch was listed for $1.3 million, or $6,736 per acre.

“It brought close to that,” says Chase Brothers Properties co-owner John Chase.

He says the ranch has excellent water rights, which are used to irrigate nearly 90 acres. Additional features include a nice home, steel shop, historic barn, excellent water rights and 165 State of Wyoming lease acres.

The sellers are near retirement age and sold the place, in part, to have time to pursue other interests.

Southeast Wyoming

A partnership composed of in- and out-of-state residents sold its 1,390-acre Rabbit Creek Ranch in north Albany County to an in-state investor for recreation and investment purposes.

The asking price was $3,655,000, or $2,629 per deeded acre. The transaction came with 80 acres of state and federal lease and a hunting cabin.

Among the appeals are rugged mountains, canyons, several creeks, springs, four ponds and excellent big-game hunting and trout fishing, says J.R. Kvenild and Roy Ready of Western Land Sales.

Located in the scenic, but isolated, Laramie Range, the property is bounded on one side by thousands of acres of state and federal lands, which increased its value for hunting and other recreation purposes.