Iowa farmland prices down 11.3% in past year, national land values up 2.4%, says reports

Iowa farmland prices were down 11.3 percent to $7,095 per acre on Sept. 1, compared to the same time last year, Christopher Doering reports for The Des Moines Register. The Iowa Chapter of Realtors Land Institute said in a statement, “Factors contributing to current farmland values include: lower commodity prices, increasing interest rates. Other factors include: lack of stable alternative investments, cash on hand and limited amount of land on market.”

Doering writes, "It was the latest survey to show land prices dropping across Iowa and other parts of the Corn Belt. The biggest impact has come from low corn and soybean prices, which have left farmers and ranchers with less money to invest in equipment, land and other input costs. In August, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago said Iowa posted year-over-year declines in land values for at least four consecutive quarters. From April 1 through July 1, Iowa’s land values were unchanged, but they have dropped 7 percent during the past year, the most of any state overseen by the Chicago Fed."

Overall, U.S. farm values increased by 2.4 percent from 2014 values, a considerably lower number than the past five years, says an August land values report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Chris Kick reports for Farm and Dairy. Ohio, Michigan, Missouri, Wisconsin and Indiana saw land values increase, while Iowa, Minnesota and Illinois saw decreases. "On a national level, farm real estate is averaging $3,020 per acre, compared to $2,950 per acre in 2014, $2,730 in 2013 and $2,300 in 2011." (Farm and Dairy graphic)