WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Farmland values and cash rent are on the rise in the Corn Belt, the Lake States, and the Appalachians, according to the USDA Land Values ummary Report, released Aug. 4.

Daniel Munch, American Farm Bureau Federation Foundation market intel economist, said, Much of the Midwest had higher real estate values, followed by the South and Pacific Northwest, and finally the Plains and Mountain states.

Part of this increase can be linked to high 2021 and 2022 commodity prices that have translated to a higher farming value for land in row crop-heavy heartland states like Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, Kansas, and Indiana,”he added.

He said,“Washington State and heartland states of Iowa, Illinois and Indiana, made up the next highest cropland rental rate category, linked to higher value specialty crops for the former, and a high density of high-value commodity crops in the latter.”

The Corn Belt states, which include Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, and Ohio, reported an average farm real estate value of $8,100 per acre, up 7.1 percent from 2022. Farm real estate value includes buildings and land. Cropland value experienced a 7.7 percent increase to $8,540 per acre.

Nationwide, the average value of cropland increased 8.1 percent from 2022 to $5,460 per acre. Cropland cash rents increased $13 from last year to $236 per acre. Pasture cash rents increased $1 to $42.50 per acre.

In Indiana, the 2023 average farm real estate value, including land and buildings, averaged $9,100 per acre, up 13.8 percent from 2022, said State Statistician Nathanial Warenski.  

“Indiana’s cropland value was $8,400, up 8.4 percent from the previous year,” he said. “Indiana’s pasture value was $2,850 per acre, up 5.6 percent from 2022. Indiana’s cropland cash rent was $226 per acre in 2023, up $14 from the previous year.”

In Illinois, the 2023 farm real estate value, including land and buildings, averaged $9,300 per acre, up 4.5 percent from 2022. Cropland value was $9,580, up 7 percent from the previous year. Cropland cash rent was $259 in 2023, up $16 from the previous year. Pasture value was $3,820 per acre, up 3.2 percent from 2022.

In Ohio, the 2023 average farm real estate value, including land and buildings, averaged $7,800 per acre, up 8.3 percent from 2022, said State Statistician Ben Torrance. Cropland value was $8,200, an increase of 8.6 percent from the previous year. Cropland cash rent was $178 per acre in 2023, up $8 from the previous year. Pasture value was $3,700 per acre, up 2.8 percent from 2021.

In Iowa, farm real estate value, including all land and buildings on farms, averaged $9,930 per acre in 2023, up 6 percent, $530 per acre higher than last year’s value. Cropland cash rent paid to Iowa landlords in 2023 averaged $269 per acre.

The Lake States of Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin reported an average farm real estate value of $6,450 per acre, a change of 8.2 percent from 2022, the report said.

In Michigan, the 2023 average farm real estate value, including land and buildings, averaged $6,400 per acre, up 9.4 percent from 2022, said Marlo D. Johnson, USDA Great Lakes Regional Office director.

Michigan cropland value increased 11.3 percent from the previous year to $5,900 per acre. Cropland cash rent was $148 per acre in 2023, up $4 from the previous year. Pasture value was $3,100 per acre, up 6.9 percent from 2022.

The Appalachian economic region, which includes Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, reported an average farm real estate value of $4,980 per acre, up 7.8 percent from 2022, the report said.

In Kentucky, the 2023 average farm real estate value, including land and buildings, averaged $4,700, up 8 percent from 2022. Cropland value increased 9 percent from the previous year to $5,450 per acre. Pasture value was $3,400 per acre, up 4.6 percent from 2022.

In Tennessee, the 2023 average farm real estate value, including land and buildings, averaged $5,100, up 8.5 percent from 2022. Cropland value increased 9.9 percent from the previous year to $5,000 per acre. Pasture value was $4,900 per acre, up 10.1 percent from 2022. (Cropland cash rent numbers were not available for Kentucky and Tennessee.)

Nationwide, the report said U.S. farm real estate value, including land and buildings, averaged $4,080 per acre for 2023, up $280 per acre (7.4 percent) from 2022. (The 2023 farm real estate value by state saw an increase in each state, with the highest change in values from California, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania.)

For the full report, visit: www.nass.usda.gov