Outlook for Farmland Values in 2025

Lower returns to rented land and higher interest rates began to signal the potential for downward pressure on farmland values in 2023 (see farmdoc daily from August 8, 2023). Those signals continue, with current fundamentals suggesting land value reductions of around 3% in 2025. A 3% decline would be in line with observed adjustments since the 1980s as well as expectations from professional farm managers surveyed in 2024. On the other hand, valid arguments exist for continued strength in farmland values. In particular, strength in the average financial position of grain farms suggests declines in farmland values, if they occur, are not likely to be significant in the short term.