Lincolnshire ‘farmer’s farm’ set to create a stir

A large Lincolnshire arable unit is about to be put on the market by local agent Perkins George Mawer & Co.

The firm’s Nick Sharp is handling the sale of the 986-acre Kexby Estate at Kexby, seven miles from Gainsborough, and he said it was a fantastic opportunity for people looking for a big block of cereal-producing land.

Because such large blocks of land are rare, Mr Sharp has decided to offer it as a whole. It includes 3000t of grain storage and two bungalows. “There’s not a lot of land like this for sale in Lincolnshire,” he said.

Local farmers and those from Ireland and Denmark would be interested, he added.

Binding bids

Mr Sharp, who is looking for offers over £3.5m, is selling the farm by formal tender and has set a closing date of 15 June. This means any bids, which must include a 10% deposit and a completed contract, will be binding on the purchaser if accepted.

“The object of the exercise is to sell,” said Mr Sharp. “We want people to put their money where their mouths are. I’ve seen sales fall by the wayside for no good reason.”

Kexby is being sold by the Whitton family, which has farmed the land since 1942. It is selling now so Herbert Whitton can retire.

Also in Lincolnshire, James O’Brien of Brown & Co has just launched Hurn Bridge Farm, a 450-acre Grade 2 arable unit with a three-bed house at Hawthorne Hill, near Coningsby, priced at £1.5m.

Healthy demand

Mr O’Brien said he was expecting a healthy demand as the market for commercial arable land was lively at present.

Both Mr Price and Mr O’Brien should be in luck if the interest in Far Marsh Farm at Ottingham, near Hull, East Yorkshire, is anything to go by.

The 860-acre arable business was put on the market with a guide of £3.5-£4m by Frank Hill & Son and Strutt & Parker in March. James Laing, of Strutt & Parker, said the interest had been phenomenal.

“We had more offers than I could have ever imagined. At the end of the day we found a buyer from six strong bids over the guide,” he said. The bids came from England and three European countries, added Mr Laing.