17 Nov 2008

Farm property prices up but sale numbers down

9:14 am on 17 November 2008

Farm property prices are above what they were one year ago, but the credit squeeze has had a dampening effect on the number of sales.

The latest figures from the Real Estate Institute show 390 farms were sold in the past three months, well down on the 582 sold in the same period last year.

The institute says there's still plenty of interest in good farming properties, but the availability of finance is the limiting factor and a shortage of borrowing funds is holding up some sales.

However, the median sale price for farms in the past three months, at $1.5 million, is almost $200,000 up on the price a year ago.