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Top prices being paid for the best farm land in the UK

The firm’s farm land indices for the second quarter of 2013 shows a 4.4% increase in prime arable land values in England to an average of £8,138 per acre but only a 0.9% increase in grade three livestock land values to an average of £5,531 per acre.

For the year to date prime arable values have increased by 6.4% against the firm’s 12 month forecast of 8.8%.

‘It is increasingly clear that buyers are further defining their requirements in terms of land type, acreage and location,’ said Alex Lawson, director of Savills farms and estates.

‘For the right opportunity top prices continue to be paid, particularly where this involves adding a block of land onto an existing holding as well as for the best all round packages to new tax driven investors, but the range of values and levels of interest can vary quite significantly,’ he explained.

‘The high prices often achieved for blocks of prime arable land make mixed holdings, where the residential market is still fairly subdued price wise look good value,’ he added.

In Scotland, where the farm land market has started late this year, values remain unchanged for the past six month with prime arable land averaging £7,449 per acre and grade three livestock at £2,733 per acre. As in England there are examples of land making in excess of these figures.

In terms of supply, after a slow start the acreage publicly marketed at the half year point was just 1% down on the same period of last year at 58007 acres in England, but is substantially less than the five year average for 1998 to 2005 of 76,916 acres.
In Scotland however, the half-year difference between 2013 and 2012 is down by 4,844 acres a drop of 21%.

‘As the supply of land marketed shows our market has really struggled to get underway this year with the weather pushing sales back,’ said Charles Dudgeon, director of Savills farm and estates in Scotland.

‘Where good quality farms have been launched it is clear there is still a good appetite amongst buyers, especially for commercial units and we expect an active second half,’ he added.

An analysis of buyers registered with Savills shows that just 5% are from outside Great Britain and 30% of those looking to buy a farm or estate are focused on Scotland.

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