Real Estate News

Farm Real Estate Values Continue Upward

WASHINGTON, Aug. 2, 2002 - U.S. farm real estate values, including land in buildings, averaged $1,210 per acre as of January 1, 2002, up 5.2 percent from the previous year, according to the annual Agricultural Land Values report released today by the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS).

The report also reveals that all States, except Delaware, Nevada, New Mexico, and Washington, showed gains from the previous year. The Lake States and Southeast regions showed the largest percentage gains from last year. The Northeast region, with its urban influences, had the highest average value of farm real estate at $2,810 per acre. The Mountain region, with its expanse of pasture and rangeland, had the lowest value at $507 per acre.

The average value of cropland in the U.S. rose 4.4 percent to $1,650 per acre. Cropland values were highest in the Pacific region and lowest in the Northern Plains. Values varied widely across States due competitive uses of land and different circumstances. The impact of suburban and resort influences in States such as Wisconsin, Vermont, and Arizona resulted in continued above average gains in cropland values. Washington was the only state to show a decrease. Poor commodity prices, concerns about the availability of irrigation water, and difficulty in securing financing have combined to hold cropland values down in Washington.

The average value per acre for pasture in the U.S. increased 5.0 percent, with the majority of States going up. The Mountain and Southern Plains regions, accounting for half of the pastureland in the U.S., both showed increases from the 2001 figures. Pasture values were highest in the Northeast, at $2,330 per acre, and lowest in the Northern Plains, at $251 per acre.

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	Did You Know?
	Three theories exist regarding who has legal title to a mortgaged property Under the title theory title to the security interest rests with the mortgagee. Most states, however, follow the lien theory under which the legal title remains with the mortgagor unless there is foreclosure. Finally, the intermediate theory applies the lien theory until there is a default on the mortgage whereupon the title theory applies.