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What the buyer chart says
The January 2026 Successful Farming article reports Farm Credit figures for Iowa farmland purchases in 2025. Its text identifies three categories:
| Buyer category | Reported share |
|---|---|
| Farmers or ranchers | 79% in 2025, compared with 84% in 2024 |
| Local investors | 4% in 2025 |
| “Other” | 10% in 2025 |
These are the categories and figures reported in the article, not a complete, independently verified breakdown of all Iowa farmland transactions. Farm Credit’s senior vice president of lending, Jim Knuth, said that online auctions can make buyer identity harder to establish: “Suddenly more and more auctions are online. The auctioneer does not disclose the buyer.” Knuth said some buyers recorded as “other” could later be identified as farmers or local investors. Successful Farming’s report does not provide enough detail to assign every purchase to a buyer group.
A separate recap of the Land Investment Expo reports that out-of-area investors accounted for 6% of transactions. That figure appears in a different account; the available reporting does not establish how its categories align with the Farm Credit figures or reconcile the full distribution. Do not add it to the figures above as though both sources describe an identical, complete chart. American Farmland Owner’s recap is a separate report, not a substitute for the missing categories.
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Why Iowa State reports different buyer shares
Iowa State University’s 2025 Land Value Survey offers another view, but it uses a different survey and buyer classification. It is based on reports from agricultural professionals familiar with land markets, including appraisers, farm managers, agricultural lenders, and sales. The survey reported these shares:
| Category in Iowa State’s survey | Share of sales |
|---|---|
| Existing farmers | 68% |
| Investors | 26% |
| New farmers | 4% |
| Uncategorized buyers | 2% |
The Iowa State results should not be treated as a correction to, or direct contradiction of, Farm Credit’s figures. The sources differ in collection method, reference period and category definitions: for example, Farm Credit’s reported categories distinguish farmers or ranchers and local investors, while Iowa State separates existing farmers, new farmers, investors and uncategorized buyers. Iowa State published its results in December 2025; its 2025 Iowa Land Value Survey explains its survey and estimates.
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What the figures say about farmland values
Farm Credit data reported by Successful Farming says Iowa farmland values declined less than 2% in 2025 and were just below all-time highs as 2026 began. The same report puts the 2025 average at $168 per CSR2 point, compared with a reported peak of $179 in 2023 and $145 at the 2012 ethanol-boom peak. These are Farm Credit figures as reported in that article, not Iowa State’s per-acre estimate.
Iowa State’s separate survey estimated the statewide average at $11,549 per acre in November 2025, a nominal increase of 0.7% from November 2024. Its inflation-adjusted estimate was $8,475 per acre in 2015 dollars. The nominal increase is not the same as an increase in inflation-adjusted value. Iowa State identifies limited land supply, strong yields and steady demand as supports, while lower commodity prices, higher input costs and elevated interest rates put pressure on values. See the university’s 2025 Survey results for the survey and inflation-adjusted context.
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CSR2 is a productivity rating, not a sale price
CSR2 stands for Corn Suitability Rating 2, an Iowa index of a farm’s potential productivity: higher ratings indicate more productive soils. Iowa State’s 2025 survey gives statewide average CSR2 estimates of 83 for high-quality land, 70 for medium-quality land and 55 for low-quality land. The rating describes land quality; it is not, by itself, a market valuation. The $168-per-point figure is a separate statistic reported from Farm Credit data, not a universal conversion that determines what any parcel should sell for.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What farmland equity can—and cannot—do
Knuth also cautioned that an increase in land value does not automatically improve a farm’s operating cash flow. “Real estate equity is good. It is real. And there’s a ‘but’,” he said. “From a financial perspective, it’s not cash. It does not solve cashflow issues. It doesn’t repay loans.” Equity may be accessed by borrowing against land or selling it, but either choice involves a separate financial decision; the reported market figures are not individual financial advice. His comments and the buyer data appear in the Successful Farming article.
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