Farmland Bubble or not? - 02/23/11 10:48 AM
So is farmland going to have a bubble or not? The jury is still out.
Here is an expert from recent Wall Street Journal post :A Full Frontal View of the World's Uneven Monetary Policy that sums it up.
.... "Kansas City Fed President Thomas Hoenig-who has for some time now been the chief internal critic of central-bank policy-warned the U.S. Senate Thursday that "history has taught us that it is nearly impossible to determine how much of the farmland boom may be an unsustainable bubble driven by financial markets and how much results from fundamental changes in demand-and-supply conditions."Added Hoenig: "My nagging … (0 comments)

Marketing Kansas Land for Sale - 02/21/11 09:47 AM
If you have Kansas land that you are thinking of selling such as farmland, vacant land or lots, rural, hunting, recreational or pasture land then give us a call at 800-557-9151 for more information.
When you list your land with Kansas Land Brokers we market it speficially to the land buying market and target places where land buyers look for land for sale.  Here is just a sampling of the many websites that your listing will be placed when listing with us.

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Federal Reserve Reports Rapid Rise in Land Values and Farm Income - 02/17/11 09:53 AM
They report that prices had risen substantially from the previous year.  The year-over-year rise for non-irrigated land for Kansas was 19.5%.  Take note that this is a survey of select bankers across the region and is not an indication of the entire market. Bankers have knowledge of sales that have loans and many transactions are cash and are never reported.  Typically a higher priced sale is going to need a loan as well.
This report is always substantially higher on values than what K-State reports on their annual reports which is probably closer to true values.  A few select auction sales … (0 comments)

Farmland in the News - 02/16/11 02:06 PM
Another week of land making the news headlines. 
Move Over Ted Turner - there is a new big time landowner in the United States.  The Land Report on Fox Business Newsfeatured Eric O'Keefe of The Land Report discussing John Malone's (Liberty Media CEO) purchase of 1 million acres of timberland in Maine. He bought the largest ranch on the market last year, The Bell Ranch in New Mexico.  He started off his land purchases in Colorado in the Rocky Mountains but this last purchase has vaulted him well past Ted Turner for number of acres owned in the USA.
5 Reasons … (0 comments)

Start an Agribusiness and use your land for additional income - 02/11/11 09:32 AM
Can your land help promote tourism in your state?
As land professionals we wear many hats when promoting properties and one of my favorite hats to wear is Rural America Promoter.  Agritourism is showing up more and more these days as people find new creative ways for the usefulness of their land. Guest or dude ranches have long been known as rural businesses but what exactly is agritourism? Agritourism uses the agriculture basis of the land to promote the area or a product to help bring in visitors.  For example, corn mazes are well known form of agritourism. 
So how could … (0 comments)

Agriculture Secretary announces funding for Rural Economy - Kansas to benefit - 02/09/11 10:49 AM
Kansas is mostly a rural state with about 80,000 square miles of mostly farms and rural areas.  So today when Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced the selection of 16 projects in 10 states for funding to create jobs and provide new economic opportunities it was worth taking a further look and Kansas did receive some funding.
The projects are being funded through the Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant Program (REDLG), which is administered by USDA Rural Development. On the list it shows the following projects for Kansas.
Blue Valley Tele-Communications, Inc. - $740,000 loan to build and equip a new … (0 comments)

Kansas Agricultural Prices - 02/06/11 07:04 PM
KANSAS Agricultural Prices and Indexes from the USDA and Kansas Dept. of Agriculture

Kansas Agricultural Prices report for the month of February 2011
The All Crops Index in January, at 254 percent of the 1990-92 base, is up 23 points from December and up 92 points from 2010.
Wheat prices in mid-January, at $7.55 per bushel, are up 64 cents from December and $2.95 above last January.
Corn prices in mid-January, at $5.75 per bushel, are up 57 cents from December and $2.16 above last January.


Soybean prices, at $13.30 per bushel in mid-January, are up $1.10 from … (0 comments)

Kansas receives grants to help wildlife - 02/06/11 06:54 PM
From the Kansas Department of Parks and Wildlife it is announced that Kansas will benefit from a grant of $800,000 from PLJV Conoco-Phillips as they support wildlife efforts in Oklahoma, Colorado and Kansas.  The two area projects in Kansas that will receive funding are as follows (information from the KDPW)
Wetland Enhancement & Water Conservation in Quivira National Wildlife RefugeOne of the funded projects in Kansas will restore and enhance wetland habitat at Quivira National Wildlife Refuge (QNWR) that benefits many birds currently considered PLJV priority species, such as the northern pintail, mallard, greater white-fronted goose, snowy plover, American avocet, long-billed dowitcher, whooping … (0 comments)

Farm Service Agency Announces a CRP General Signup Period - 02/06/11 04:43 PM
FROM the USDA:
FSA Announces a CRP General Signup Period
Manhattan, Kansas, February 4, 2011 - Adrian J. Polansky, State Executive Director of USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) in Kansas, announced a Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) signup March 14, 2011 through April 15, 2011. This is the second consecutive year that USDA has offered a general CRP signup.
"Financial incentive available through CRP affords farmers and ranchers a low risk opportunity to implement a variety of conservation practices that will benefit the environment in a number of ways," said Polansky. "Over the past 25 years, CRP practices have improved water and … (0 comments)

Farmland Values in the News - 02/06/11 02:40 PM
Top stories this week from publications regarding land values, factors affecting farmland prices, pasture rents and the land market ingeneral.
Healthy farm prices produce rising farmland prices from Omaha.com  - Basically says the same thing that has been hitting the news wires over last few weeks, high demand for farmland, low supply of listings.  The claim is that farmers have tons of cash sitting around and they are the buyers but they don't want to sell. 
Farmland Prices Have Risen; Total Returns close to 9% from AgWeb.com - We don't know about you but we are really getting tired of the … (0 comments)

Farmland in the News - 02/03/11 10:34 AM
The top links for farmland, land, cropland news and values for the week. 
Project Pasture Land Rental Rates from K-State - Check the outlook for your pasture land
Prices for ag land hold steady, established orchards attracting investors.  - more news about ag land being a solid investment
Agricultural 2011 Outlook - university study about farm markets and farming for the year
Media moguls - Malone & Turner - Acres by the Millions - who is going to own the most land after Malone purchases thousands of timberland in Maine this month?  Turner or Malone - buddies, media company owners, and both share a quest for … (0 comments)