The first nine months of the year saw the price of farmland in Ireland contract marginally. According to the latest data from Sherry FitzGerald Research, agricultural land values nationally, excluding Dublin, reduced by 1.8% over the period. Subsequently, the weighted average price of farmland at the end of quarter three was approximately €9,130 per acre.
Commenting on the overall market, Roseanne De Vere Hunt, Head of Sherry FitzGerald Country Homes, Farms and Estates, said “Weaker confidence levels have led to a soft contraction in the market, although positively, stock levels overall have not seen a significant reduction. Moving forward, we are hopeful of a better functioning market in the new year”.
Following a stable opening quarter, reductions of 0.9% were recorded in both quarter two and quarter three. While small, this resulted in values declining in successive quarters for the first time in almost three years. As a result, average values in the market were on par with those of the final quarter of 2017.
All regions saw values fall in the nine months to September end 2019, although decreases were most pronounced in the Midlands, 4.7%, and the West, 4.4%. The South-East and the South-West recorded the next largest falls at 2.0% and 1.7% respectively.
The Mid-West and the Mid-East, the regions in which growth was strongest for the past two years, saw the smallest decreases in the nine-month period at 0.1% and 0.5% respectively.
The fall in values was broadly similar across all farming types, with prime grassland and prime arable land both falling by 1.8% to September end, while marginal grassland reduced by 1.7%. As such, the weighted value of prime arable nationally, excluding Dublin, was approximately €11,010 per acre, with prime and marginal grassland standing at €10,320 and €6,060 per acre respectively.
While the decline in prices was not substantial, agents reported a notable deterioration in buyer sentiment across all regions in quarter three. This was largely because of the approaching Brexit deadline at the time, where there was a heightened possibility that the UK may leave the EU without an interim deal, as well as the beef factory protests which were ongoing.
Evidence on the ground suggests this increased nervousness in the market had a knock-on effect on activity levels, which reported as being down. In contrast, supply levels remained largely stable.
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For any further information, please contact:
Eoin Lynch
Junior Economist, Researcher
Sherry FitzGerald Group
Ph: 01 237 6474
Roseanne De Vere Hunt
Director
Sherry FitzGerald Country Homes, Farms and Estates
T: 01 237 6402
Jill O’Neill
Director of Communication
Sherry FitzGerald Group
Ph: 086 252 3277
Note to Editors:
(1) Founded in 1982, Sherry FitzGerald has grown to become Ireland’s largest firm of estate agents with 97 owned and franchised branches throughout Ireland.
(2) The Sherry FitzGerald Agricultural Land Price Index is a quarterly index of price performance in the agricultural land market. Over 50 Sherry FitzGerald Countrywide members provided values for different farmland types, namely Prime Arable Cropping Land, Prime Grassland, Marginal Grassland and Mature Forestry. These values were based on actual sales, or likely achievable sales, in their area in the given quarter. Each region is weighted, and values at the national level, excluding Dublin, are calculated based on the addition of these weights. These weights are based off total value of farmland sold in each region according to the CSO.
