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Farm real estate values continue to climb
WASHINGTON - The average per-acre value of farm real estate in Virginia has increased more then 16 percent over last year's average.
That's slightly more than the nation average increase of 14 percent cited this month by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service. NASS' Land Values and Cash Rents 2007 Summary notes that farm real estate values - the values of all land and buildings on farms - in the continental United States averaged $2,160 per acre on Jan. 1, up to $260 or 14 percent from January 2006.
In Virginia, the 2006 average per-acre value was $5,700 on Jan. 1 and $4,900 last January. It was $4,050 in 2005, $3,2000 in 2004 and $2,370 in 2003.
National cropland and pasture values for 2007 are record highs as well. Cropland values rose by 13 percent from $2,390 in 2006 to $2,700 per acre. Pasture value rose by 16 percent to $1,160 per acre.
In Virginia, the average cropland and pasture per-acre value were $6,000 and $5,500, respectively, representing increases of 13.2 percent and 12.2 percent.
The NASS report notes the increase in farm real estate values "continues to be driven by a combination of many factors, which include strong commodity prices and farm programs, outside investments, favorable interest rates and tax incentives, and continue commercial and residential development. Livestock prices and recreational use remain the predominant influences that increase pasture land values."
The average per-acre value for farmland in NASS' Appalachian region - Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina - was $3,820 on Jan. 1, up 10.4 percent from last January.
The region with the highest average highest farm real estate values was the Northeast, which NASS identifies as Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. Development pressure there continued to push the average value to $5,500 per acre.
To view the NASS report, visit http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/ usda/current/AgriLandVa / AgriLandVa-08-03-2007.pdf.
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