Week 21 Iowa Farmland Auction Results

Iowa Farmland Sales Report

Well, whats happening with farmland sales in Iowa this week?  Things are not any different than last weeks report, investors are still looking for places to park some 1031 funds coming from metro developments, farms are still looking for more dirt and especially those 80-acre tracts close to home.  The volume of farmland sales has dropped off dramatically as we hit planting season and going into Summer.

Iowa Drought In 2018?

Concerns of drought spreading north into Iowa is a concern especially for those directly north of the currently affected southern 2 tiers of counties in Iowa.  Rains over the previous week did push back the northern edge a bit lowering affected acres by around 7% in this week Drought Monitor Report but we are what should be a fair wet part of the year with somewhat frequent rains.  My thought is as we move farther into Summer we are not likely to see the precipitation increase but decrease instead.  Northern Iowa has been plagued with wet planting conditions and persistent rain so they fall on the exact opposite end of the spectrum with too much rain over large areas.  How will this affect farmland prices?  In a much different commodity environment, we tested this in 2012 and saw farmland prices remain strong through the drought so I would not expect it to have an effect on high-quality tillable farmland.

Farmland Auction Report For May 19-25, 2018