October 2026 Wallace’s Farmer MarketPlace Extra

I love this time of year – I’ll bet you do, as well. Harvest is the payoff period for so many of our efforts across recent months (and years). As harvest approached this year, I was half nervous and half excited to see how crop totals would compare to pre-harvest estimates. And because I work every day at Hertz Farm Management in the land business, I have also been unusually expectant of something different in the land market this year.  For whatever reason, all the “motion” in the world has had me believing that we were approaching a turn of some sort. Why? I think it’s because there have been so many things happening simultaneously.  Let’s take quick inventory.

It seems in Iowa we’ve grown a respectable, though not a record, corn and soybean crop – and in general, it’s a positive to have the bushels. Second, China returned to the commodity table, buying large quantities of our soybeans – that is also a positive. Third, the strongest El Nino of record has been organizing in the Pacific and is beginning to impact our weather (and that for South America) – another seeming positive for our market positioning. Next, Europe has been suffering through a historic drought this year, effectively cutting production of everything they grow – bad for them, but again, good for our market positioning. And finally, Russia and Ukraine are now in year 5 of brutalizing each other, killing tens of thousands, and destroying both of their productive abilities and export capacities – this is awful – and it is drawing the world wheat market higher and dragging corn and soybeans along for the ride. As I reflect on each of these market realities that impact our markets, I struggle to recall a time in my life when there have been so many concurrent worldwide issues – and I have not even mentioned the war with Iran, the resulting disruptions across the Middle East, or our own farm policies – each of which impacts demand.

As a result of all this motion, we wrapped the month of August with 3-year highs in both the corn and soybean markets. This grain market movement has put on-farm profitability back into play. Profits on the farm, as they typically do, are likely to create an uptick in demand for available land assets. I’ve also mentioned in this column that I thought we were going to see a bigger flush of land sales in the market this fall – e.g., more supply. So far, that is also occurring. So, what does this movement in both demand and supply mean for land prices? Depending on the neighborhood, it may initially look uneven. But the sales below reflect a pretty healthy market across the State.

NORTHWEST

Emmet County:

Located southwest of Armstrong, 153 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $14,800 per acre. The farm consisted of 144 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 (Corn Suitability Rating index) of 84.2, and equaled $187 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTH CENTRAL

Hancock County:

Located southwest of Klemme, 83 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $14,200 per acre. The farm consisted of 82 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 87.8, and equaled $164 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

NORTHEAST

Black Hawk County:

Located south of Washburn, 109 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $15,275 per acre. The farm consisted of 107 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 89.8, and equaled $173 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

WEST CENTRAL

Crawford County:

Located northeast of Vail, 232 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $11,600 per acre. The farm consisted of 222 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 68.0, and equaled $178 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.

CENTRAL

Webster County:

Located northeast of Badger, 114 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $13,500 per acre. The farm consisted of 114 +/- cropland acres with a CSR2 of 83.7, and equaled $161 per CSR2 point on the cropland acres.

EAST CENTRAL

Cedar County:

Located northeast of Tipton, 80 +/- acres recently sold for $17,000 per acre. The farm consisted of 80 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 93.9, and equaled $181 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres. Note: This farm only had access via a ¼-mile easement.

SOUTHWEST

Montgomery County:

Located north of Shenandoah, 116 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $10,800 per acre. The farm consisted of 108 +/- tillable acres with an average CSR2 of 76.3, and equaled $152 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres. Note: This farm included an older machine shed and older grain bins.

SOUTH CENTRAL

Decatur County:

Located south of Van Wert, 75 +/- acres recently sold for $11,100 per acre. The farm consisted of 71 +/- tillable acres with an average CSR2 of 67.1, and equaled $175 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres.  

SOUTHEAST

Jefferson County:

Located south of Fairfield, 74 +/- acres recently sold at public auction for $11,400 per acre. The farm consisted of 73 +/- tillable acres with a CSR2 of 65.1, and equaled $177 per CSR2 point on the tillable acres. 

Doug Hensley is President of Hertz Real Estate Services at Hertz Farm Management, a leading farmland brokerage and management firm serving landowners across the Midwest. The company specializes in farmland sales, farm management, and agricultural appraisals. Call us at 800-593-5263  or visit hertz.ag.

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