Mike Walsten

Record prices for quality farmland keep coming. This time it was in central Illinois' McLean County where 160 acres were auctioned today via a sealed-bid auction. The tract is located six miles west of Bloomington in an excellent location along a state highway. There was a total of 159 tillable acres on the property. The soils carried a 139.2 Productivity Index (147 is maximum). There were two grain bins with dryer, a machine shed and a crib. And, best yet, according to auctioneer Wally Yoder of Soy Capital Ag Services, Bloomington, Ill., who handled the sale along with broker Brian Thompson, "it doesn't take water from anyone." All these resulted in a winning bid of $14,100 an acre, a new county record, Soy Cap's David Klein tells us. The tract was offered in two parcels. The winning bidder took both parcels.

If interested in seeing a copy of LandOwner, just drop me an email at landowner@profarmer.com or call 800-772-0023.

Mike Walsten

The value of Central Corn Belt cropland rose 22% in 2011, the strongest percentage increase since 1976, reports the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago which serves the northern two-thirds of Illinois and Indiana, all of Iowa, the Lower Peninsula of Michigan and southeastern Wisconsin. Even after adjusting for inflation, the gain is still the highest (19%) since 1976. For perspective, the value of Central Corn Belt farmland rose by more than 20% for four successive years in the 1970s, 1973, 1974, 1974 and 1976 with 1976's annual increase the strongest at nearly 30%. The bank also notes farmland values in its district rose 4% during the fourth quarter of 2011 compared to the third quarter of 2011.

The bank reports farmland values have recorded a compounded inflation-adjusted annual growth rate of 5.5% since land values bottomed in 1986 and a 2.9% annual compound growth rate since 1970. The bank also reports more than 40% of the bankers responding to its quarterly survey expected farmland values to rise during the first quarter of 2012. Iowa posted the strongest annual increase, 28%, followed by a 27% gain for Indiana, a 21% increase for Illinois and an 18% gain for Wisconsin.

Click here for the full report.

If interested in seeing a copy of LandOwner, just drop me an email at landowner@profarmer.com or call 800-772-0023.

Mike Walsten

Strong demand and high prices combined to lure increasing supplies to the market during the fourth quarter of 2011, reports the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. The quarterly survey found the value of dryland cropland surged 9% during the fourth quarter versus the prior quarter and rose 25% on an annual basis. Irrigated cropland rose 7.5% during the fourth quarter and increased 25% for the year, as well. District ranchland rose 3.1% during the fourth quarter and 14% for the year.

"Robust bidding by farmers spurred record high land values, which enticed more landowners to place farmland up for auction," says the bank's fourth quarter Agricultural Credit Conditions report. "District bankers noted an increasing number of absentee landowners were putting their farms up for sale and attributed much of the auction activity to landowners seeing top-dollar prices.

"Farmers were the main buyers, and the share of land purchased by farmers has grown during the past years," the bank continues. "Still, outside investor interest in farmland for rental income or capital gains remained high, with farmland sales for recreational or development use dwindling. About a third of district bankers expected both the price and the amount of farmland offered for sale to rise further in 2012," the bank states.

Click here for the full report.

If interested in seeing a copy of LandOwner, just drop me an email at landowner@profarmer.com or call 800-772-0023.

Mike Walsten

USDA today projects another highly profitable year for the nation's farmers, which is positive for land demand. But it does show net farm income slipping from last year's record while costs continue to rise, but at a slower pace. USDA pegs total 2012 net farm income will reach $91.7 billion in 2012, down $6.3 billion (6.5%) from last year's record and the second highest on record. On the income side, USDA forecasts a 0.7% rise in crop income and a 0.1% decline in livestock income. On the production cost side, USDA projects a 3.9% increase for 2012 compared to last year. While an increase, the rate is gain is much more moderate compared to an estimated 12.5% increase in production costs in 2011. Total farm debt is also expected to increase to $254.1 billion, a 3.8% rise. Farm equity is expected to rise to $2.22 trillion. The debt-to-equity ratio is expected to decline slightly to 11.4% in 2012 compared to 11.7% in 2011. The debt-to-asset ratio is expected to decline from 10.5% in 2011 to 10.3% in 2012.

Click here for the full USDA report.

If interested in seeing a copy of LandOwner, just drop me an email at landowner@profarmer.com or call 800-772-0023.

Mike Walsten

After several sales just shy of the mark, Nebraska saw as some very productive cropland pass under the gavel for $12,000 an acre -- believed to be a state record. The auction, conducted by Ruhter Auction and Realty Inc., Hastings, Neb., occurred Monday February 6. It featured 160 acres of flat, highly productive soil types just northwest of Harvard in Clay County. A large portion of the cropland is gravity irrigated from an eight-inch well located on the north edge of the property. For those not familiar with the area, the south-central Hastings area features intense seed-corn production. It is a high-yield, highly reliable producing area.

If interested in seeing a copy of LandOwner, just drop me an email at landowner@profarmer.com or call 800-772-0023.