High-quality farmland continues to sell strongHigh-quality farmland continues to sell strong

Does it seem like the world is spinning fast right now? As I visit with people throughout Iowa and across the Midwest, the fast pace of change for all kinds of activity is a common theme. There are few markets that have changed as much (or as quickly) as the farmland market of the past two years. During this time, all the factors came together to create a “Goldilocks market” — strong crop yields, historically high commodity prices, generationally low interest rates, and more demand than supply of farms to buy.

Since late June, however, we’ve started to observe some shifts in the factors that have combined to drive the market higher over the past two years. Specifically, grain prices have softened from their early-summer highs, and interest rates have increased. There’s still a great demand for farmland. But it seems the land market has started to plateau for the best-quality farms, and we’ve just started to see a little weakness emerge in a few places in the poorer-quality farms being offered at auction. It’s certainly not all negative —but clearly, with some of the midsummer shifts in the factors that influence land values, the Goldilocks market is no longer. This does not mean that strong sales won’t occur, as the recent sales below can attest. However, it does mean that not every sale will be a new record.

NORTHWEST

Palo Alto County. About 65 acres northeast of Ayrshire recently sold at public auction for $19,400 per acre. The farm consisted of about 64 tillable acres with a CSR2 (corn suitability rating) of 86.1, and equaled $229 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTH CENTRAL

Wright County. About 143 acres near Kanawha recently sold for $15,100 per acre. The farm consisted of 137 about tillable acres with a CSR2 of 79.2, and equaled $199 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTHEAST

Fayette County. About 152 acres near Maynard recently sold at public auction for $12,500 per acre. The farm consisted of about 146 tillable acres with a CSR2 of 84.6, and equaled $154 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

WEST CENTRAL

Calhoun County. About 91 acres southeast of Somers recently sold at public auction for $17,100 per acre. The farm consisted of 90 about tillable acres with a CSR2 of 86.5, and equaled $200 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

CENTRAL

Marshall County. About 120 acres northwest of State Center recently sold at public auction for $9,100 per acre. The farm consisted of 114 about tillable acres with a CSR2 of 69.8, and equaled $137 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres. Note: This farm was divided by a stream, and 12 of the 114 tillable acres are enrolled in Conservation Reserve Program contracts.

EAST CENTRAL

Linn County. About 41 acres north of Marion recently sold at public auction for $19,700 per acre. The farm consisted of 39 about tillable acres with a CSR2 of 86.0, and equaled $241 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

SOUTHWEST

Mills County. About 167 acres just east of Tabor recently sold at online auction for $12,000 per acre. The farm consisted of 161 about tillable acres with a CSR2 of 84.5, and equaled $147 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres. Note: This farm included several terraces and waterways.

SOUTH CENTRAL

Wayne County. About 160 acres south of Clio recently sold at public auction for $7,500 per acre. The farm consisted of about 159 tillable acres with a CSR2 of 52.0, and equaled $139 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

SOUTHEAST

Jefferson County. About 154 acres north of Batavia recently sold at online auction for $10,400 per acre. The farm consisted of 144 about tillable acres with a CSR2 of 73.8, and equaled $151 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, 800-593-5263 or visit hertz.ag.