April 2026 Wallace’s Farmer MarketPlace Extra

Everywhere I go, people are talking about Iowa farmland and farmland values. It comes up in farm shops, grain elevators, fertilizer co-op offices, rural diners, and bank boardrooms. Someone asked me recently why we talk about it so much – and when I answered, I thought I’d given a mostly complete response. But afterward, I wanted to do better. So, I went looking for data that would help me tell a more complete story. I found exactly what I was seeking to find in a USDA report from February 2026 on Farm Sector Income & Finances – Assets, Debt, and Wealth.

I knew that farm real estate made up a big part of the total asset base of agriculture. But did you know that farm real estate makes up more than 83% of total farm sector assets? 83%! Non-real estate related crop and animal inventories, purchased inputs, and machinery/vehicles make up the small balance of farm sector assets. The numbers are breathtaking – total assets are roughly $4.5 trillion for U.S. agriculture, and real estate assets top $3.7 trillion.

I also confirmed the numbers on farm sector debt. The collective Debt-to-Asset ratio for agricultural assets is 13.75%. This means for every $1 of assets, there is just under 14₵ of debt on those assets. When looking at real estate related Debt-to-Asset figures separate from non-real estate assets, the numbers are even stronger at under 11%. This is one of the reasons why there’s still strength in land values, despite current weakness in commodity prices and profitability. Put simply, lots of land is paid for, and there’s little land for sale. Will every sale in today’s market look strong? Certainly not. But there is still more demand than supply in today’s Iowa farmland market, and the following sales continue to reflect that reality.

NORTHWEST

Dickinson County:

Located southwest of Milford, 79 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $15,600 per acre. The farm consisted of 75 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 (Corn Suitability Rating index) of 90.5, and equaled $182 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTH CENTRAL

Floyd County:

Located north of Floyd, 159 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $17,400 per acre. The farm consisted of 159 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 89.8, and equaled $194 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTHEAST

Dubuque County:

Located southeast of Worthington, 176 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $16,300 per acre. The farm consisted of 163 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 74.8, and equaled $235 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

WEST CENTRAL

Carroll County:

Located northwest of Manning, 119 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $16,200 per acre. The farm consisted of 111 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 75.0, and equaled $232 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

CENTRAL

Marshall County:

Located east of Melbourne, 79 +/- acres recently sold via sealed bids for $11,266 per acre. The farm consisted of 79 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 70.8, and equaled $159 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres. Note: The tillable acres included 5.1 +/- acres of CRP-enrolled waterways.

EAST CENTRAL

Johnson County:

Located east of Iowa City, 75 +/- acres recently sold for $11,750 per acre. The farm consisted of 74 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 74.5, and equaled $160 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

SOUTHWEST

Pottawattamie County:

Located northeast of Crescent, 75 +/- acres recently sold at timed public auction for $12,750 per acre. The farm consisted of 73 +/- tillable acres with an average CSR2 of 67.8, and equaled $193 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

SOUTH CENTRAL

Lucas County:

Located northeast of Chariton, 88 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $10,100 per acre. The farm consisted of 82 +/- tillable acres with an average CSR2 of 64.9, and equaled $167 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.  

SOUTHEAST

Jefferson County:

Located northwest of Donnellson, 40 +/- acres recently sold for $12,750 per acre. The farm consisted of 39 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 70.9, and equaled $184 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

Hensley is president of Hertz Real Estate Services, which compiled this list, but did not handle all sales. Call Hertz at  800-593-5263  or visit hertz.ag.

Related Articles