As July comes to a close, land prices across the Midwest continue to trend upwards. An echo of last month’s land market update, much of the growth and upward trend continues to be most prevalent in auction sales. High Point Auctions in the month of July across Iowa sold at an average of $141.50/CSR2. High Point Agents have 8 additional auctions that have been scheduled for fall across Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin. With auction prices continuing to set the precedent, an auction, either before or after harvest is the best way to get top dollar for your farm. Tillable land continues to see the greatest increase, although we are also realizing increases across all categories (timber, recreational, development, pasture, etc.).
The land market continues to surge primarily due to interest rates reaching all time lows in certain loan options, as well as commodity prices rebounding to over $5.50 corn and $14.50 beans. In national news, drought continues to be a concern particularly for the Dakotas and Western United States. Locally, Northwest Iowa and Southwest Minnesota show the greatest affect by drought, crop conditions across Iowa as a whole have improved since the end of June. Also in national news, nominee to the chair of Undersecretary of Agriculture voiced support of expanding Crop Insurance, Carbon Credit Commodities, & CRP Enrollment. In relation to the land market, land owners and operators should keep an eye out for increased CRP incentives in order to meet the proposed “30×30 plan”, a proposed plan to conserve 30% of the nation’s land by the year 2030.
