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Land Values Hold Strong into 2021

According to the latest Land Values Report from Farmers National Company, sale volumes were up 49 percent during October and November compared to the previous year. Northern Plains farmers are currently buying 90 percent of top-quality farmland coming up for sale. Prices for lower quality cropland are flat. A regional report cites government payments, crop insurance, low interested rates and rising grain prices were all factors in strengthening land values in the last quarter of 2020. Investor interest and farmer demand will continue to drive the land market in 2021.

Average Cropland Value Increases in 2019

The average value of agricultural cropland in the United States is $4,100 per acre, up 1.2 percent from the previous year. That’s according to the USDA 2019 Land Values report released this week. That value of cropland ties the 2015 record-high and represents a 55 percent increase in values over the last decade.
 
North Dakota cropland values average $1,740 per acre and $2,070 per acre in South Dakota. A higher value of $4,840 per acre is reported in Minnesota. The average cash rent rate is $70 per acre in North Dakota, $119 per acre in South Dakota and $164 per acre in Minnesota. The U.S. pasture value average is $1,400 per acre, up 2.2 percent from 2018.
 

Land Values Remain Steady

Despite another year of falling farm income, land values remain steady to slightly softer in eastern North Dakota and northwest Minnesota. “There have been a few pockets where a lot of land is on the market,” says Jayson Menke, broker, Acres & Shares.

Menke attributes the strong values to a limited supply of land currently on the market. Top quality ground continues to hold its value better than the average ground. “Even though there are some farmers struggling financially, there are still people who have money from the ‘boom years’ and are still able to buy land.”

Hear more from Menke.