IPAV Agricultural Land Farming Report 2023

2 minute read – IPAV Agricultural Land Farming Report 2023

Key takeaways for the Kerry land market from the IPAV Agricultural Land Farming Report 2023 are:

 Agricultural land values are still increasing.
 Dairy farmers are the key purchasers in the south, with investors / business people very
active in the Leinster region.
 Agricultural land still seen as a good asset to hold despite the change in taxation rules for
new purchasers.

The view of the 2023 land market as per the IPAV Agricultural Land Farming Report 2023 from the
perspective of Munster auctioneers was particularly sunny, with some selling agents achieving
between €11,000 to €18,000 per acre for good quality agricultural land. Forestry land averaged
between €4,500 per acre and €7,500 per acre. On the renting front, grazing ground was fetching an
average of €280 per acre to €350 per acre and tillage land was making from €280 to €450 per acre.

Dairy buying-power strong in Kerry

Dairy farmers are still the main agricultural type of buyer in the south of the country, evident from
the farm sales transacted in Kerry last year. The dairy farmer was the predominant purchaser of
good-quality land that was well serviced with farm buildings, roadways or near the home farm. The
continuing fallout from the nitrates directive was having a direct effect on land values in both sales
and rentals.

Forestry, is it a lost cause?

The IPAV Agricultural Land Farming Report 2023 had a good vibe for forestry, but we were finding it
more challenging on the ground. The new forestry programme is having a detrimental effect on
forestry land sales in the Kerry region, with the market pretty much stagnant due to its onerous
conditions and investors very reluctant to enter the market.

Land rental market

Very strong again in ’23, with high dairy farmer demand for silage-type ground in close proximity to
their home farm. Lands across Kerry’s strong dairy heartlands – from Scartaglen, Castleisland,
Currow, Tralee, Ardfert, Abbeydorney, Causeway, Ballyheigue to Firies – were all in top demand.
Most of the land was wanted ‘naked’, as in with no entitlements; the new BISS, Criss and
environmental payments diminished the financial value of the units to the holder, which came as a
shock to a lot of armchair farmers.

Still a good asset

The IPAV Agricultural Land Farming Report 2023 highlighted that land is still seen as a safe place to
hedge money despite the change in tax policy affecting new investor purchasers. As the saying goes,
‘they ain’t making any more of it’, so when good quality land enters the market there is always a
flurry of demand from farmers and investors.

Do you have agricultural lands for sale or rent in Kerry? Contact Brendan who will guide you on your
journey.

Want to read the full report?, click here IPAV Farming Report 2023