September farm prices rise on modest volumes, pushed up by dairy and arable sales; urban pressures spark Auckland and Waikato prices

There were only 110 farms sold nationwide in September, the second lowest month of 2013 behind January, amd even less than the 111 sold in August.

However, that total was still 40% more than the 77 sold in September 2012.

“The September quarter is the peak work load period for the majority of farmers and as a result farm sales for the period have been moderate”, says REINZ Rural Spokesman Brian Peacocke.

“Prices for the reduced number of sales remain steady for dairy and grazing properties, with a slight easing in the median sale price for finishing properties.  Sales volumes and prices of horticultural properties have remained constant over recent months.”

The median price for the three months to September is rising however, now up to $22,851 per hectare, 5.4% above August and 27% above the per hectare price of a year ago.

“Of note this month is the consistent level of sales for finishing properties in the lower South Island, particularly Otago and Southland, where demand for good dairy support properties remains strong,” said Peacocke. Dairy farms in Otago are selling for $44,018 per hectare while support properties are not showing the same price increases despite that demand.

Auckland and Hamilton arable farms were being sold for some remarkable per hectare prices ($270,988 in Auckland and $181,123 in the Waikato) reflecting distorting demand from urbanisation.

Similar surges are being seen for Auckland lifestyle properties.

“Of note this month is the consistent level of sales for finishing properties in the lower South Island, particularly Otago and Southland, where demand for good dairy support properties remains strong.”

Higher average prices were seen for arable, grazing and dairy units, while lower average prices were seen for finishing properties compared with those same categories in August; all others were stable.

September sales included: 
    8 arable farms,
  10 dairy farms,
  25 finishing units,
  41 grazing properties,
  17 horticultural,
    9 farms of other types

The number of sales is presented here, without the average price, because average prices bounce around dramatically depending on the size and type of business unit being sold. However, the following table sets out the median prices per hectare over the past three months, as reported by REINZ.

You can find current farms for sale and listed on the market here.

for more perspectives, see

- Exchange rates
- Commodity prices
- Farm cost indexes
- Interest rate trends
- Rural credit aggregates
- Farm sales activity
- Farms for sale
- International dairy prices

for saleyard and processor price trend graphs, see

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