A 635.91-acre farm in Guthrie County, Iowa, sold at auction for about $9.5 million in February 2025, or an average of $14,958 per acre. The land had been in the Chaloupka family since 1882. That average masks a wide spread: the eight tracts sold for between $7,800 and $16,100 per acre.
What sold, and how the price varied
The farm was divided into eight tracts near Yale and Bagley and purchased by five buyers, all described as local farmers who already owned nearby land. About 150 people attended the auction in person, and 60 registered as bidders, according to Successful Farming’s March 7, 2025 report. The report does not give the exact February auction date.
The $14,958 figure is the reported average across the sale, not a price paid for each tract. Individual results ranged from $7,800 to $16,100 per acre. The reported tract details are:
| Tract | Total acres | Tillable acres | CSR2 | Sale price per acre | Reported location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 155.13 | 150.56 | 86.5 | $15,800 | 1.2 miles west of Bagley |
| 2 | 24.37 | 22.85 | 88.5 | $7,800 | 0.9 miles west of Bagley |
| 3 | 79 | 76.7 | 88.5 | $15,800 | 0.8 miles west of Bagley |
| 4 | 70 | 68.05 | 88.6 | $14,200 | 1.2 miles north of Yale |
| 5 | 71.41 | 68.67 | 89 | $16,100 | 1.1 miles north of Yale |
| 6 | 78 | 75.62 | 88.3 | $14,200 | 1.1 miles northwest of Yale |
| 7 | 78 | 75.2 | 88.7 | $14,200 | 0.9 miles northwest of Yale |
| 8 | 80 | 79.5 | 88.9 | $15,800 | 0.5 miles southwest of Yale |
CSR2 is an Iowa soil productivity index used for row-crop land; the report describes 100 as its highest score. The tracts’ ratings ranged from 86.5 to 89. Most fields were described as long and flat. These characteristics offer context, but acreage, tillable share, location, and other tract differences mean the per-acre results are not interchangeable measures of value.
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How the auction compared with the appraisal and statewide values
An appraisal conducted about a year before the auction valued the farm at around $8.9 million, excluding two homes on the land. The auction brought about $600,000 more than that appraisal, but the figures do not cover identical property because the homes were excluded from the appraisal.
For broader context, the Iowa State University Land Value Survey reported that Iowa farmland values fell 3.1%, or $369, to $11,467 per acre in 2024, as reported by Successful Farming. That statewide figure is not a direct comparable for this auction: it is a statewide average, while this sale involved particular tracts with their own soils, locations, and tillable-acre shares. The article also cited year-over-year declines of 5% in a Farm Credit Services of America survey and 8% in a Realtor Land Institute survey; it did not identify the survey titles or link to their original reports.
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The Successful Farming report attributed statewide pressure to lower commodity prices, high interest rates, and elevated input costs. Whitaker Marketing Group owner David Whitaker offered a different, sale-specific explanation, pointing to nearby farmers’ interest, limited supply, and short-term optimism about corn prices. Those are attributed interpretations, not a formula for predicting what another farm will sell for.
A family’s 142-year connection to the land
Joseph Chaloupka bought the first 160 acres in 1882 after following some of his family from Czechoslovakia to Iowa and saving enough to purchase land, according to the report. He bought about 150 more acres in 1890; additional ground was later acquired through purchases or inheritance.
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Two generations farmed the property before Vernon and Frances Chaloupka began farming it in the 1940s. They farmed it and later rented it for nearly 70 years. Vernon died in 2022 and Frances in 2023. Their five daughters inherited the land through the Vernon and Frances Chaloupka Trusts and decided to sell. Their middle daughter, Connie Chaloupka, described the sale as difficult.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What happened to the 2025 rent
The land was rented for the 2025 season, and the buyers were to receive that season’s cash rent. The report does not provide the rent amount, lease terms, or enough information to calculate a rental yield from the sale price.
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