Can you tell me if Central Iowa farmland sales have fallen recently and is that price generally trending up or down?

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Question: 

Can you tell me a price range (per acre) that Central Iowa farmland sales have fallen within the last 6 months or so and is that price generally trending up or down? I am specifically interested in Webster County.

Answer: 

Thank you for your question. Yes, we have recently developed a new Iowa Land Value web-portal which allows you to visualize the trends in Iowa land values at the county, district and state level. It is available at www.card.iastate.edu/farmland, and check out the trends and interactive county maps tabs. The 2015 Iowa Land Value Survey reported a 6.4% decline in weighted-average land values in Central district from November 2014 to November 2015, and the Webster County land values decreased to $8,843 per acre in November 2015, a 6% drop from a year ago. The land prices are projected to continue to go down because of stagnant commodity prices and declining farm income. The land values do vary depending on the land quality (CSR, corn suitability ratings), so although you could infer general market trends, you may need to check out recent sales of similar-quality/size/soil parcels in surrounding areas from the county's courthouse records.