Farmland Price-Rent Surveys: Opportunities for Outreach and Teaching

Across North America, applied economists conduct annual surveys to assess local farmland prices and farmland rental rates. In this paper, we discuss the “Ontario Farmland Value and Rental Value Survey” and explain how the survey results support university outreach and teaching efforts. Similar to other surveys, the Ontario survey provides benchmark rental rates and farmland values at the county level that are beneficial for outreach purposes. In addition, the survey illuminates key economic relationships, such as the relationship between farmland values and urban development pressure. In teaching settings, the survey results allow students to assess and debate the merits of the classic capitalization formula using information regarding familiar regions."