ANNOUNCING LANDHERO! Additional sale data info readers have been requesting (spreadsheets, maps, sale bill pdfs) is now available on a user-friendly website - updated weekly. Read more in this newsletter!

Strong prices will show up in an adjusting market, but the overall trend currently shows market conditions are decreasing. See what I’ve heard from my realtor/auctioneer friends this past month.

This month’s newsletter includes results of my 2023 annual auction data analyses for Iowa, current U.S. Drought Monitor maps, cash rent auction data, market commentary, and of course, January 2024 Iowa land auction results.

Happy New Year! Drought was the biggest story of the year; intense heat was not. 2023 delivered an El Nino weather pattern, which typically means milder weather with more chances for precipitation. But this year El Nino did not bring much precipitation.

2023 was an extremely dry year, but in most areas yields turned out to be better than expected. The year did not have the explosive market conditions seen in 2021 and 2022, but the market was remarkably stable.

If you are a buyer, your time is now. If you are thinking about selling in the next year, your time is also now. The market continues to be steady and strong in the short term. For the long term, I think high interest rates and corn prices below $5/bushel are going to whittle down land prices.

Demand to buy farmland continues to be very strong. Even with the current economic conditions, there are more buyers than farms for sale. And, back by popular demand, I have gathered some rental data to share.

Auction volume for the month of August was the third highest in acres since I’ve been keeping track of this data. My farm realtor friends are saying fall farm auctions will be busy.

Keep praying for rain! The drought continues to grip the Midwest. What little rain fell in July did not help much.

As we are more than halfway into 2023, I am surprised by the volume of land going to auction. June 2023 had the second highest number of acres since I started keeping track in 2018. June is typically one of the slower volume months.

Planting season is in the books. I have seen some good stands of corn and soybeans. Hopefully, there will be enough rain during the growing season to have a bumper crop.

I am ready for warm weather! Per the April 24 USDA Crop Progress Report, 10% of Iowa corn is planted. Last year at this time 2% was planted, with a 5-year average for 2018-2022 at 10%. Replanting crops is a dirty necessity with cool, wet weather.

Spring is finally here! Planting season usually begins around the third week in April. My realtor friends are saying the crowds at land auctions are very optimistic about the 2023 crop year.

Spring begins at 3:24pm CDT on March 20, 2023. Planting season is just around the corner. I cannot wait to see those corn planters rolling across the landscape! My farm realtor contacts are telling me there is a lot of optimism going into planting season.

I was privileged to speak with Tyne Morgan, Host & Executive Producer of U.S. Farm Report, about the trending cash rent auction format and the explosive increases occurring in rental rates with that format, along with the current land market conditions.

2022 is now in the books. What a year it was for both the volume of acres that went to auction and price records set!

Harvest 2022 is pretty much completed. The 2022 crop year will go down in history as better than expected. With the hot, dry weather during corn pollination and lack of much needed rain in August, I did not expect yields to turn out as they did.

Harvest is progressing with the USDA reporting 94% soybeans and 77% corn harvested in the state through October 30. There’s not much rain in the extended forecast, and I expect the 2022 harvest will, for the most part, be finished in the next 10 days.

Harvest is just beginning so I don’t have much yield data to report yet. Due to sporadic rainfall across the state this summer, Iowa will have record yields in some areas and very disappointing yields in others, comparable to the 2012 drought.

It was a dry summer. Though measurable amounts of rain fell statewide the later part of August, I am not sure anyone got enough. Fortunately, with the new crop genetics, crops can get by with not much rain.

Iowa needs rain! Unfortunately, extended forecasts show extremely hot weather with little to no rain. This isn’t good for soybean yields which are determined in August.

Crops are in the ground and off to a good start. As of June 27, 2022, the USDA rates Iowa corn and soybean conditions as 80% good to excellent. There is rain in the extended forecast across the state.

Planting season is winding down. Driving around the state last week, I observed most areas are planted and I saw some particularly good stands of corn. There are few areas in the state running behind but they’re catching up.

Planting is happening at a snail’s pace. The USDA reported Iowa has 2% of corn and 1% of soybeans planted as of 4/25/22, both well below 5-year averages for this time of year.

Planting season begins, weather permitting, in the next couple of weeks. This month there were 8,376 acres auctioned. Generally, March has 6,000-8,600 acres go to auction. While there is a good number of acres coming to the market, it is not enough.

Winter is almost over with, and planting season will be getting started in six weeks. The amount of land coming to market continues to be above average. Acres going to auction in February typically range from 7,500-8,500; February 2022 came in at 8,721.

Auction activity continues to be very active in the new year and January is above the historical trend for this month. The typical number of acres auctioned in January ranges from 5-6,000; January 2022 boasted 7,976 acres, up 43.5% from January 2021.