AgLetter: August 2004
In the second quarter of 2004 there was considerable slowing
in the rate of increase in the value of “good” agricultural
land for the Seventh Federal Reserve District, as key
agricultural prices dropped (especially corn and soybeans).
As of July 1, 2004, the quarterly increase in farmland values
fell to 1 percent, on average, for the District as a whole,
based on a survey of 303 agricultural bankers. For the 12
months ending June 30, the increase was 9 percent, higher
than the year-over-year increase seen for the second quarter
last year but lower than as of the end of the first quarter of
2004. There were also fewer respondents that anticipated
farmland values would rise during the second quarter,
compared with the first quarter.