Holding Ground: What 2025 Revealed About Farmland Values

If 2025 was supposed to be the year farmland values either took a sharp turn up or down, the data delivered a different story: most land markets largely held their ground.

After several years of rapid appreciation fueled by strong commodity prices, low interest rates, and limited supply, farmland values across the Midwest entered a period of what many experts call an “adjustment”. 

2025 became a year defined by stabilization, uneven performance, and a growing divide between high-quality land and everything else.

Iowa Farmland Values Rise Slightly

Nowhere was that clearer than in Iowa. According to the Iowa State University Land Value Survey released earlier this month, average farmland values rose just 0.7% in 2025—an $83 per-acre increase that left values still below the 2023 peak.  

RELATED: The author of the Land Value Survey shares what the results mean for the coming year. 

Iowa Farmland Values Vary by Geographic Region

However, despite the overall slight uptick, there was a lot of variation in values depending on where you live. Some counties—particularly in northeast Iowa—posted solid gains, while others slipped, especially after factoring in inflation.

In fact, most counties saw real (inflation-adjusted) declines, even if nominal values were flat to slightly higher. Soft commodity prices, higher interest rates, and lingering trade uncertainty pulled values lower, while tight land supply, strong yields, and steady livestock income helped prevent sharper drops, according to the survey’s author, Iowa State economist Dr. Rabail Chandio.

“It wasn’t a boom or a bust,” Chandio said. 

Indiana Farm Sale Surpasses Expectations

While Iowa stood mostly still, northwest Indiana offered a reminder that the right farm can still command a premium. A 110-acre Carroll County farm sold at auction for more than $17,000 per acre—far exceeding expectations and sparking a competitive bidding war among local farmers.

The sale underscored a trend that repeated itself throughout the year: high-quality farmland that fits an operation still attracts aggressive buyers.

Indiana Farmland Values Grow Faster Than Some Other States

Indiana’s land value growth has been steadier than neighboring states, and Purdue University’s Farmland Values and Cash Rent Survey showed continued increases across all land classes.

At the same time, brokers noted a clear shift. Buyers are more cautious with lower-quality ground, while top-tier acres continue to sell at or above expectations. Limited supply and ongoing 1031 exchange activity helped support prices, even as interest rates remained elevated.

RELATED: Here’s why one Indiana land broker says he’s cautiously optimistic about selling land in 2026. 

Zooming out nationally, USDA data confirmed that farmland values rose for the fifth straight year. The 2025 Land Values Summary showed that U.S. farm real estate increased 4.3% in 2025.

But the pace of appreciation slowed sharply compared to the double-digit gains seen earlier in the decade. The Midwest continued to rank among the most valuable farmland regions in the country, reflecting its productivity and row-crop dominance. But even there, momentum cooled.

Farm Credit Services of America’s benchmark data echoed the same theme: modest gains overall, slight declines in Iowa and Nebraska, and expectations that large price increases are unlikely in the near term. Economists increasingly described the market as “cooling”—not reversing but no longer accelerating.

Taken together, the story of farmland values in 2025 is modest movement. Rising interest rates and weaker commodity prices applied pressure, while limited supply and long-term confidence in land as an asset provided support. The result was a market that became more selective and more regional, rewarding quality and fit rather than lifting all acres equally.