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Monday, June 17, 2013 Western Daily Press Top-quality farmland could be costing £20,000 an acre within the next seven years, according to a leading consultant. But while James Brooke, a partner in land agents Bidwells, was referring to top-grade arable land, the rich pastures of the West Country, famous for all-year-round grass, might not be far behind. ​ James Brooke said the ongoing rise in land values, particularly for Grade One land, would continue, and could hit £20,000 by the year 2020 Mr Brooke was speaking at the major national arable event, Cereals 2013, in Lincolnshire. He said the ongoing rise in land values, particularly for Grade One land, would continue, and could hit £20,000 by the year 2020. The current average price is just under £7,000. Demand for land was being driven by an ever-increasing world population that needed to be fed, he said. That demand for good agricultural land would continue to grow. “There is no indicator as to why the current trajectory of land-price travel should fall. I see no reason as to why £20,000 per acre should not be achievable.” He urged farmers to work within reasonable budgets and not over-extend their borrowings. Farmers seeking to expand would want to purchase more land before prices increased much higher, but he said they should be inventive when drawing up plans for future expansion. Mr Brooke said land that was adaptable to produce different crops and also to withstand climate change would be particularly sought after in the future. “There is a need for good quality land in good areas with good irrigation and drainage. We need to be able to grow crops which can adapt to climate change,” he stressed. British farmland was attractive to overseas buyers, Mr Brooke added. “So long as we have a fairly benign tax regime, we shall be seen as attractive to investors.” But in the short term, the market was being stretched by a lack of owners wishing to sell – possibly because of land being handed down from generation to generation without attracting Inheritance Tax, he said. Currently the West Country is the most active region for farm sales, according to estate agents Smiths Gore. Its Taunton office reports over 50 per cent more land was marketed nationally this spring compared with 2012, in what is traditionally the busiest period for farmland market activity. But as 2012 had the least land marketed on record, the amount for sale remains very low and will not satisfy demand, explained specialist agent Simon Derby. “Although the land marketed was a considerable increase compared with last year, we do not expect there to be much more land sold over the whole year compared with last,” he said. Smiths Gore’s analysis shows that up to a quarter of all the land marketed throughout the year was advertised in April and the first half of May. Read more: http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/Good-quality-UK-farmland-growing-value/story-19307832- detail/story.html#ixzz2Wx2541J7 Continue reading →