Latest evidence shows strength of the land market

Latest evidence of the strength of the land market comes from Knight Frank, whose figures show English farmland values rising by 6.9% in the second quarter of 2010.

At £5769/acre, the average is now almost 20% higher than a year ago, says head of rural land research Andrew Shirley.

“English farmland values continue to increase as demand outstrips supply, and we are predicting further growth of at least 10% over the next year.”

Claire Glover, head of farm sales said: “Prior to the credit crunch people with wealth to spare were snapping up pretty residential farms. Now bare land is what they seem to be looking for.

“We are currently seeing huge demand from a wide range of buyers, but in particular from private non-farming individuals, including a significant number of overseas buyers looking for a safe long-term investment.”