The Law of Supply and Demand Still Works 

by Lee Vermeer, AFM, ALC, Vice President, Real Estate Operations 

Over the last year it has been made clear again that the old standards we learned in school regarding economics still work. Over the last 12 months, the supply of land on the market has been reduced considerably, while the demand for good quality farm land has continued to expand. The result has been increasing prices and some extraordinary sales.  

The demand has come from farmers and ranchers as well as investors. Farmers have been very aggressive in trying to grow their operations and have been the predominant buyers in the market. Any time a good farm comes up for sale in an area, there are usually a number of neighboring farmers wanting to add it to their existing acreage. Investors have been looking for a good alternative to invest their money outside of the stock market or CDs. Low interest rates have contributed to the higher prices as they have increased the demand from people looking for a good, safe investment alternative that will give them a better return. The low rates have also allowed buyers to bid aggressively as their cost of ownership is reduced by the historically-low rates.  

We are seeing increased interest from landowners to explore a possible sale of their land yet this year. The very strong prices are a factor, but also the uncertainty about tax law changes for 2011. The tax rates currently in place for capital gains are set to expire the end of this year. It appears there is not a lot of support to reinstate them at this time, and rates will increase by 30% or more. This has some people looking to do a sale and close before the end of this year. If any of these thoughts have crossed your mind, give us a call at 1-800-346-2650 as we have a long list of buyers looking to invest in land, many of who would gladly discuss leasing the land back to the seller. If you have want to sell your land, be sure you fully expose the property to the market as you may leave significant dollars on the table if you don't.  

We look for the market to stay strong through the next 12 to 18 months. Interest rates are projected to stay low for that time period, and, even though we have seen some commodity markets move lower, farmer demand for good ground will continue. 

For information about your specific area, please contact: 

Roger Hayworth, Area Sales Manager for Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, eastern Kentucky, and eastern Missouri at 1-888-673-4919 or RHayworth@FarmersNational.com; 

Sam Kain, ALC, GRI, ABRM, Area Sales Manager for Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota at 1-800-798-4509 or SKain@FarmersNational.com;  

J.D. Maxson, Area Sales Manager for western Nebraska, portions of northwest Kansas, eastern Colorado, eastern Wyoming, and southwest South Dakota at (308) 660-2100 or JMaxson@FarmersNational.com;  

Keith Morris, ALC, GRI, Area Sales Manager for the Mid-South states at (901) 494-5263 or KMorris@FarmersNational.com. 

Monty Meusch, AFM. ALC. CAI. CES, Sales Manager for Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas at (817) 600-9484 or MMeusch@FarmersNational.com. 

SOLD! $7,100/Acre 

At Land Auction
Saturday, August 28  

53± Acres • Jasper County, Iowa 

For additional information, contact John and Kathy VanZee, agents (641) 521-0151 or (641) 521-5305 or click here.  

LAND AUCTION! FOUR TRACTS!  

Friday, September 3 at 10 AM 

Memorial Hall, 200 S Park Avenue
Eagle Grove, Iowa 

240± Acres • Wright County, Iowa 

§      Parcel 1: 80± acres with 74.6 acres of cropland 

§      Parcel 2: 104± acres with 103 acres of cropland 

§      Parcel 3: 56± acres of pasture land 

§      Parcel 4: 160± acres with 103 acres of cropland 

For additional information, contact Jeffrey T. Obrecht, Agent/Auctioneer, (641) 648-5065 or (515) 689-1648 or click here. 

For more details on our upcoming auctions, please click here to see our auction calendar. 

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