Fed: Farmland prices continue to increase

Prices for farmland in Colorado and other U.S. plains states saw a dramatic increase in the first quarter, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.

Non-irrigated crop land increased in value 25 percent and irrigated land jumped 30 percent year-over-year in the first quarter, according to the Agricultural Credit Conditions survey conducted by the Kansas City Fed.

The increase in price for irrigated farmland was the largest jump in the 30-year history of the survey.

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“District farmland gains accelerated in the first quarter even as record-high farmland values enticed more landowners to sell,” the Fed said. “For the first time since the survey began in the late 1970s, the annual value of district cropland rose more than 20 percent for two consecutive years.”

Credit conditions for farmers and agricultural banks are also positive, according to the Fed. Farm asset values rose and loan demand decreased as more and more farmers paid down loans and other bills with cash.

The survey covers all of the states within the 10th District, managed by the Kansas City branch of the Federal Reserve. These states include Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Wyoming and parts of New Mexico and Missouri.