The quantity of farmland accessible in England has began to creep up, with distributors being a mixture of landowners looking for to money in on document excessive values, retire or cut back ranges of debt.
That is in accordance with Strutt & Parker, whose newest evaluation reveals that 7,400 acres have been publicly marketed within the first three months of 2024.
That is 6% greater than the equal interval in 2023 and in addition above the five-year common. Extra land has additionally been marketed privately.
Strutt & Parker predicted that offer would enhance in 2024 and there are some early indicators that that is occurring.
Matthew Sudlow, head of farm company for Strutt & Parker, says: “Nevertheless, the variety of farms put up on the market publicly is definitely decrease than on the similar level final yr.
“This highlights that the rise in acreage accessible is essentially right down to the launch of a handful of sizeable farms and estates.
“There isn’t a one motive why provide has elevated. It’s usually stated that it’s the three Ds – demise, divorce and debt – which drive the land market.
“We’re seeing that the necessity to cut back debt, as rates of interest have risen, is a think about some cases.”
Nevertheless, Strutt & Parker is seeing extra examples the place farmers are selecting to retire as a result of they haven’t any successor or the place distributors are motivated by ‘profit-taking’ after a interval of sustained development in values.
Mr Sudlow provides: “This could possibly be simply the market returning to some normality after the Covid-affected years or a wider pattern. Both approach, patrons ought to have a bit extra selection than they did 18 months in the past.”
Strutt & Parker’s Farmland Database – which data the sale of all farms, estates and blocks of publicly marketed land in England over 100 acres in dimension – reveals that farmland values reached document ranges in 2023.
There haven’t been sufficient gross sales concluded in 2024 to present a dependable common for the primary quarter of the yr, however the common arable value for 2023 was £11,200/acre, which was up 3% on 2022 ranges and up 22% in 5 years.
Nevertheless, there will be stark variations within the costs persons are prepared to pay for land relying on location.
Mr Sudlow says: “In some cases, land is promoting for round £20,000/acre as a result of it occurs to be in the best place for a really motivated purchaser, however equally it may be doable to safe arable land for round £8,000/acre in different components of the nation.
“As we glance additional into 2024, values are prone to proceed to be extremely variable. We count on premium costs to proceed to be paid for prime properties situated in hotspot areas, however elsewhere there could also be some downward stress.
“It could possibly be a busy summer time for brand spanking new launches, however then issues are prone to decelerate nearer to the overall election, which on the time of writing is predicted to happen within the second half of the yr.”
