SWstock unit value dwindles
SWstock unit value dwindles
FURTHER falls in livestock farm values in the south-west are predicted for those units lacking any residential or amenity angle which is so often drawing the non-farmer into the farmland market at the moment.
Giles Allen, Strutt & Parker said: "We have already seen a more dramatic fall in values in the south-west than in most other regions, the north-west of Scotland being an exception, mainly due to the strong dependency many of the regions farming businesses have on livestock enterprises for the bulk of their income".
This is particularly likely if supply remains at present levels. Figures from Strutt & Parker suggest one-third of all farms available in England are in Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Dorset.
In the south-west so far this year the number of farms marketed with a livestock element is 75% of the total compared with 38% in 1998.
However on a UK basis the figure for 1998 of 23% compared with 42% to date in 1999 reflects a longer period of resilience in the north west, the other major livestock region. A higher rainfall in the region protected these farmers from the reduced income levels of the livestock sector for longer, by 1999 the picture is more uniform. (see table)
The Strutt & Parker farmland database records all farms openly marketed of at least 200 acres.
Number of farms available
1998 1999
All farm types
UK 159 255
South-west 68 60
North-west 51 30
Dairy/stock/mixed
UK 31 106
South-west 27 45
North-west 6 16
Source: Strutt & Parker