May 2026 Wallace’s Farmer MarketPlace Extra

Does it seem like the world is spinning faster than normal right now? Mideast wars. Deposed dictators. Wild stock market swings. Social-media hysterics. AI everything. If allowed, the 24-hour news cycle can steal your peace.

In comparison, as I’ve written about for several months, the current farmland market is comparatively stable. Almost boring. We’ve been operating in a low/tight/no margin environment for a couple years now, and the Iowa farmland market is holding together. The seeming equilibrium of farmland supply and demand is a major reason why. Yes, there are fewer buyers in today’s land market than there were from 2021 to 2023, but the supply of land being offered to the market is also down 30-50% – depending on the neighborhood – when compared to those go-go years. So, in the current land market, there are enough buyers to compete for what is being offered at stable price levels.

Why would buyers continue to pursue an asset in a struggling industry like production agriculture? Time and again, a handful of common themes come up when I ask people why they want to buy more land. Farmland has outperformed most other assets in the long term, with less volatility. Farmland is a hedge against inflation. Farmland is weakly correlated with stock performance, making it an excellent portfolio diversifier for investors. Farmland is a hard asset that won’t disappear in scandal. And farmland often offers more than just financial benefits – hunting, recreation, and family relationships, to name a few. There are others. The strong sales below remind me just how much Iowa farmland buyers believe in their reasons, because they continue to put their money where their mouth is.

NORTHWEST

Clay County:

Located south of Dickens, 75 +/- 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 94.8, and equaled $165 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTH CENTRAL

Hancock County:

Located west of Britt, 53 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $18,500 per acre. The farm consisted of 52 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 79.5, and equaled $237 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTHEAST

Allamakee County:

Located southwest of Waukon, 148 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $15,400 per acre. The farm consisted of 139 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 86.9, and equaled $189 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

WEST CENTRAL

Greene County:

Located southwest of Grand Junction, 64 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $14,500 per acre. The farm consisted of 62 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 78.7, and equaled $190 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

CENTRAL

Hamilton County:

Located northeast of Stanhope, 120 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $11,100 per acre. The farm consisted of 100 +/- cropland acres with a CSR2 of 71.1, and equaled $187 per CSR2 point on the cropland acres. Note: The farm also included 17 +/- acres in CRP that paid $300/enrolled acre.

EAST CENTRAL

Cedar County:

Located northeast of Tipton, 73 +/- acres recently sold for $16,350 per acre. The farm consisted of 72 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 87.7, and equaled $189 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

SOUTHWEST

Adams County:

Located north of Prescott, 120 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $8,400 per acre. The farm consisted of 103 +/- tillable acres with an average CSR2 of 68.5, and equaled $143 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

SOUTH CENTRAL

Ringgold County:

Located south of Kellerton, 65 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $7,400 per acre. The farm consisted of 62 +/- tillable acres with an average CSR2 of 48.9, and equaled $159 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.  

SOUTHEAST

Henry County:

Located south of Mt. Pleasant, 40 +/- acres recently sold for $8,500 per acre. The farm consisted of 36 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 52.8, and equaled $179 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres. Note: The tillable acres on this property recently transitioned out of CRP.

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