Iowa farmland prices up 2 percent

Farmland prices in Iowa ticked higher in the second quarter, pushing up 2.1 percent, based on sales, Farm Credit Services of America said today.

Average farmland prices bumped up to $10,172 an acre, based on 109 farmland sales during April, May and June, the Omaha-based farm credit and insurance group said. A year earlier, the average value was based on 120 sales.

Lower commodity prices led to reports in early 2014 of more cautious land buyers and declining farmland values. But several years of record-high profitability and low interest rates continued to positively impact the farmland market through June, the group said.

This year's second-quarter sales included a record of $20,400 per acre in Sioux County and $19,700 per acre in Mitchell County, Farm Credit Services reported.

Public land auction activity was up 10 percent when compared to the same period last year, but down 27 percent from 2012 levels, Farm Credit Services said. The number of auction "no sales" was 4.9 percent, down from 5.7 percent in 2013.

Over the past six months in Iowa, farmland values shrank 0.9 percent, Farm Credit Services said. The findings included sales, plus appraisals of nearly two dozen farms in Iowa. The value of the farmsteads has been tracked over several years.

The group was unable to provide an average value, based on the half-year assessment. "Farmland values appear to have stabilized in Iowa, where the market showed signs of softening in the last half of 2013," the farm credit group said.