October 2022 Wallace’s Farmer “MarketPlace Extra”

As we enter a very busy stretch for the 2022 fall harvest season, the farmland market across the State of Iowa remains strong. That said, it also appears that the farmland bull market is starting to “mature”, with the top end of the market leveling out, while the second and third tiers of land quality are showing an uneven consistency, dependent on the specific neighborhood.  This push-pull type of market behavior is expected. Land buyers generally pursue the best farms with more enthusiasm than farms that have flaws, and when market conditions change, it shows up in farmland sales. And we’ve seen changing market conditions in 2022 when compared to 2021. Early in 2022, the war in Ukraine and resulting geopolitical instability pumped grain prices higher, thus supporting the land market.  Then, during the mid-summer months, we saw commodity prices soften and interest rates begin to increase, causing concern from some land buyers at sales in July and August. More recently, however, we’ve seen strength return to the grain markets, and higher corn and soybean prices going into harvest are again providing renewed support to the land market.

As we approach the fall land sales season, know that land sale results across the region will likely show some variation. It will be common to see similar quality farms, but in different areas, sell at different levels – maybe even a few thousand dollars/acre more or less for similar CSR2 rated soils!  This is because there are marked differences in generational wealth, and landowner aggressiveness, from area-to-area. Plus, more practically, some areas are going to grow a near-record crop while others will be lucky to hit 10-year APHs, and these local production realities will impact the appetite of prospective buyers in different neighborhoods. So, keep your eyes and ears open for reports on how things are going in the area most important to you, as they may provide clues to just how aggressive buyers may be for land sales in that specific area. As the sales below can attest, the possible range of sale prices in today’s land market is very large.

NORTHWEST

O’Brien County:

160 +/- acres, located south of Sanborn, recently sold at public auction for $23,500 per acre. The farm consisted of 154 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 95.7, and equaled $255/CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTH CENTRAL

Floyd County:

80 +/- acres, located near Nashua, recently sold at public auction for $7,800 per acre. The farm consisted of 58 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 88.6, and equaled $121/CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTHEAST

Bremer County:

39 +/- acres, located east of Frederika, recently sold at public auction for $13,250 per acre. The farm consisted of 35 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 80.9, and equaled $182/CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

WEST CENTRAL

Carroll County:

131 +/- acres, located north of Glidden, recently sold at public auction for $13,600 per acre. The farm consisted of 131 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 82.9, and equaled $164/CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

CENTRAL

Jasper County:

186 +/- acres, located south of Mitchellville, recently sold at public auction for $17,800 per acre. The farm consisted of 184 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 90.7, and equaled $198/CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

EAST CENTRAL

Benton County:

76 +/- acres, located north of Keystone, recently sold at public auction for $20,500 per acre. The farm consisted of 75 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 93.1, and equaled $223/CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

SOUTHWEST

Adams County:

156 +/- acres, located north of Prescott, recently sold at public auction for $9,000 per acre. The farm consisted of 143 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 71.7, and equaled $137/CSR2 point on the tillable acres. Note: This farm included several terraces and waterways.

SOUTH CENTRAL

Appanoose County:                                                                                                  

40 +/- acres, located southeast of Seymour, recently sold at public auction for $11,100 per acre. The farm consisted of 39 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 56.0, and equaled $203/CSR2 point on the tillable acres. 

SOUTHEAST

Keokuk County:

79 +/- acres, located northwest of Wellman, recently sold at public auction for $10,000 per acre. The farm consisted of 69 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 66.7, and equaled $171/CSR2 point on the tillable acres. Note: This farm included several terraces and trees.

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 www.Hertz.ag.