MWA Auctions and Real Estate had an active December, auctioning farms in four different Illinois counties, that all varied in terms of soil quality.
On December 3rd, 100 acres was auctioned in Gifford, IL with Class “B/C” soils (121 weighted average PI) bringing $9,150/Acre. This is a strong price for a mid-tier farm and this sale illustrates that it isn’t just the top-quality farms that can bring strong prices. In addition to a great sale, this auction had an added element of excitement. MWA, in cooperation with the agribusiness management class from Parkland College, offers a $1,000 scholarship to the student who can most accurately predicted the final sale price of a Champaign County auctions every semester.
Students study comparable sales and soil types and make an informed estimate of selling price and then attend our auction for a live test of their predictions. Mitchell Meenan was awarded the scholarship this semester – Congratulations Mitchell!
The next day, December 4th, MWA auctioned 196 acres in southeastern Douglas County, IL. This farm was a Class “B” farm. 183 of the 196 acres were tillable and the farm had a weighted average PI of 132. This farm sold for $9,566/Acre, which equates to $10,245 per tillable acre. This sale once again exemplified that it isn’t just the “A” farms that can bringing good prices if conditions are right.
The next week on December 10th, MWA brought 163 acres to auction. The property had a mixture of timber and tillable acres and was sold at auction for $4,723/Acre. The recreational market had retreated in recent years, but this sale showed that there is still demand for recreational tracts. The timber acres had a permanent CREP easement, and the value placed on it by the buyer was for recreational purposes.
To wrap up the MWA auction calendar for 2019, on December 12th, MWA auctioned a prime farm in Macon County, IL consisting of 240 acres of Class “A” soils (142 weighted average PI). This property sold for $10,916/Acre, showing that good to exceptional farms have remained strong in recent years even with lower commodity prices and farm incomes.
There were a mix of farmer and investor buyers at the all of our sales this past month with strong and competitive bidding amongst and between the two groups.