In their January 2024 land values report, Farmers National Company shared that the sharp increase in farmland values has slowed, and values are holding strong.
In October 2023, Arkansas became the first state to ban foreign-owned farmland. More states look to adopt similar laws, but one policy expert says the issue is rooted in politics and warns of unintended consequences.
There are efforts underway to mitigate the concern about losing farmland to solar panels. One of these is agrivoltaics, which is combining agriculture with solar installations, and it's already turning heads in Canada.
Mortgage interest rates just hit a twenty-year high, topping 7%. High borrowing costs will slowly dampen farmer demand for acres as record land prices mean all but a few will have to borrow some to buy.
“People sometimes refer to farmland as an investment in gold, plus a coupon,” Bruce Sherrick says. “You get a fairly low annual cash flow, fairly high long-term rates of return and tax advantages to the asset classes.”
“If I were picking both from a financial and an emotional perspective, the next place I could put a dollar, I still would favor farmland pretty highly,” Bruce Sherrick says.
John Phipps says there are signs that water is the new oil as water rights turn into water fights across the western U.S. He thinks it's a battle that could only heat up in the coming years.
Roughly 37.6 million acres of U.S. ag land is foreign owned, according to USDA. However, select purchases of U.S. land could come to an end following a Senate vote this week.
The House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) introduced an act to prevent foreign adversaries from exploiting U.S. land near security sites, and would push a review of current ownership in these areas.
A mid-year report from Farmers National shows land values are increasing by single digits instead of the double digits common in 2021-22. But the company says it has a strong roster of listings headed into late summer.
Under the bill, the USDA and the FDA would become members of CFIUS and their powers would be expanded to better consider ag needs when it decides if a purchase would create national security risks.
The rapid runup in land values caused farmland values to hit historic levels over the past two years. The dynamics are starting to shift, as input prices, interest rates and commodity prices are eating into outlooks.
More than 50% of farmers intend to grow their operation, based on responses in Purdue’s February 2023 Ag Economy Barometer.
If you’re thinking about scaling your farm, it’s important to first ask these questions.
The dairy industry has been impacted by overtime labor rules, rigorous permitting processes and the shortage of water. As a result, cows are migrating toward areas like South Dakota, who has seen tremendous growth.
The Office of Investment Security proposed a rule on Friday that would require foreign entities to garner U.S. government approval before they are able to purchase land within 100 miles of eight military bases.
The number of farms in the U.S. is declining while the average farm size increases and land in farms remains relatively constant. Here's the latest numbers from USDA’s Economic Research Service.
The Missouri Senate on Wednesday backed a plan to amend the state's foreign land ownership threshold. The bill also includes a provision that would limit foreign countries from acquiring farmland in Missouri by Sept. 1.
Total land in farms decreased 1.9 million acres to 893,400,000 acres in 2022 versus 2021. Here is other noteworthy farmland data, courtesy of USDA’s Farms and Land in Farms 2022 Summary.
If cash rent leases are negotiated via auction, Jim Rothermich is seeing prices drawing double – even triple digit gains. In Illinois, prices are up 90% to 120% compared to the previous year.
Much ink and many pixels have been wasted, in my opinion, on rants about people other than U.S. farmers owning farmland. Surprisingly, critics are just as hard on wealthy Americans as foreigners.
For those in agriculture, owning farmland has long been viewed as a symbol of status and wealth. Now, even individuals who don’t farm are jumping on board, looking to buy farmland.
The latest CPI shows that while inflation may be slowing, it still remains above the Fed's target. As inflation impacts farmers across their operation, Dan Basse looks at some of the concerns as farmers head into 2023.
House Republicans asked the General Accountability Office to conduct a study on U.S. lands owned by foreign entities. The letter was signed by scores of other House Republicans.
For 2022, USDA reports the value of the nation’s cropland is $5,050. That’s up $630, or 14%, from 2021. This year’s figure marks back-to-back record highs in cropland values.
Both agricultural lenders and economists are watching the possible impact higher interest rates will have on not only the number of U.S. farmland sales, but the price.
Fufeng Group recently bought 300 acres of land in North Dakota and the proximity to a U.S. military base has many concerned. But this isn’t the first time questions have been raised about China’s stake in the U.S.
John Phipps breaks down the 900 million acres of farmland in the U.S. by land use and answers a looming question about if the U.S. has enough farmland to feed America.
For 17 straight months, the rural economy has posted healthy and consistent growth. That’s according to the March Rural Mainstreet Index (RMI) from Creighton University.
Farmland currently appears to be something akin to a modern-day gold rush. It can’t be bought up fast enough, while per-acre prices fetched for recent sales set record high after record high.
The Biden Administration is deploying money and resources to ramp up clean energy projects across rural America. The White House says the plan taps federal lands to install wind, solar and geothermal energy projects.
AFBF President Zippy Duvall told members this week he will continue to press for policy that progresses agriculture, citing AFBF's work on changes to the White House's "America the Beautiful" plan as an example.
Rural America continues to see strong economic gains. For the eighth straight month, the Creighton University Rural Mainstreet Index remained above growth neutral.
Both short-term and long-term interest rates have dipped recently, making this a great time to buy that much-wanted land or take out a new operating loan.
An advisory panel has recommended amending Kansas' corporate agriculture law to alter provisions that might be vulnerable to constitutional challenges.
Real estate purchases should be based on long-term, sustainable land values and evaluated as part of a producer’s entire operation, including production expenses.
