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Southern Illinois farmland sale brings $25k per acre; realtors say not typical

The husband-and-wife realtor team that recently sold southern Illinois farmland for over $25,000 per acre says the auction results weren’t typical.

Brenda Chandler, managing broker of the couple’s Property Peddler, Inc., says they expected the 176-acre farm’s location on the edge of Waterloo, Illinois, would make it desirable.

“But there is a subdivision nearby that’s a higher end subdivision.”  She says, “Just the road frontage, and all of that.  What we got on those prices that were the higher ones, it didn’t surprise us that much on that piece.”

Brad Chandler tells Brownfield the fact four different buyers, including a private school, ended up winning the six tracts was a bit unexpected.

“A lot of times a bigger buyer will just come in and say, ‘OK. I’m just going to take it all.’”  He says, “Whenever it actually finished up, the one that was looking at it as far as like the most valued for development did not even end up with a piece of it.”

He says the $1.19 million paid for the 86-acre tract that’s expected to remain farmland was actually a good deal.

“It came out just under $14,000 an acre.”  He says, “As far as farm ground in our local area, that’s on the low end of just farm ground prices.”

The Chandlers say the century farm sale totaled $3.1 million, which averaged a little over $18,000 per acre. 

AUDIO: Brenda & Brad Chandler – Property Peddler, Inc.

Photo courtesy of Property Peddler, Inc.