The so-called farmland real estate bubble appears to be starting to deflate. After years of steep property values, a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City shows the high times may be coming to an end.
Since 2011, the price for a plot of a farmland across the Midwest has been growing at breakneck speed. Most of that has been due to the same trajectory in the price of major commodity crops like corn and soybeans. Now, with crop prices slipping, farmers are set to bring in less money. Money they could be using to buy or rent more land.
Farm Credit Services of America chief risk officer Mark Jensen says any shift in crop prices forces farmers to take notice.
“Behaviors are changing slightly. You’re starting to see a more cautious approach to what people are paying, being more selective to what I’ll buy,” says Jensen.
A return to business as usual after a corn-fueled market boom.
Harvest Public Media, based at KCUR, is a collaborative public media project that reports on important agricultural issues in the Midwest. You can read more about the project on their website.
