Auction Results Indicate Iowa Land Market Conditions Have Plateaued

According to statewide auction results tracked by Iowa Appraisal, research data indicates Iowa land market conditions have plateaued.  

Iowa Appraisal’s farm appraisal expert Jim Rothermich, MAI, ARA, ALC announces a 13.4% increase in Iowa land values, based on dollars per CSR2 point, for the period January 1, 2022, to January 1, 2023, with a statewide average price for tillable farmland of $178 per CSR2 point (based on a weighted average CSR2 of 77.2). This equates to average statewide dollars per tillable acre of $13,742. The January 1, 2022, statewide weighted average price for tillable farmland was $157 per tillable CSR2 point, using weighted average CSR2 of 79.3, equating to $12,450 per tillable acre. 

The first six months of 2022 continued the prior year’s explosive increases, landing up 15.3%. Prices peaked in May then declined, leveling through the rest of the year. Historical amounts of land (almost 150,000 acres) were auctioned in 2022. Auction data suggests the market has “plateaued," though land prices remain at historical highs.