Longford's good land prices sit at €12,625 per acre

A new Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland / Teagasc agri-land price survey shows the price of an acre of good land in Longford is €12,625 per acre.

SCSI auctioneers and valuers say the outlook for the agricultural land market remains strong for 2025 and are forecasting that the price of agricultural land nationally will increase by 6% on average this year.

This year’s annual SCSI / Teagasc survey, the twelfth in the series, provides a county-by-county breakdown of the prices of good and poor-quality land.

The survey found that on holdings under 50 acres prices in Longford ranged from €6,500 per acre of poor-quality land on holdings less than 50 acres – the lowest for this land type in Leinster - to €12,625 for good land. Although this is up slightly on 2023, it means Longford has the second least expensive land in Leinster.

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The survey found the most expensive land in the country last year was in Waterford with good quality land on holdings between 50 and 100 acres fetching an average sales price of €23,500 per acre. Mayo has the lowest land sales prices in the country at €3,075 for an acre of poor-quality land on holdings over 100 acres.

Waterford, also has the most expensive land on holdings under 50 acres at €23,000 per acre of good quality land, followed by Kildare on €18,680, with Cork in third place at €17,875, just marginally ahead of Tipperary on €17,865. Carlow was next on €17,417, followed by Meath in sixth place.

In Leinster, sales prices for good land in 2024 on holdings of less than 50 acres range from Kildare’s high of €18,680 - up from €16,400 the previous year – to €12,042 in Offaly, while the prices for poor-quality land range from a high of €10,200 in Kildare to €6,500 in Longford.

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Meanwhile the price of an acre of good land in Longford on holdings between 50 to 100 acres last year was €12,875 – up from €11,625 in 2023 - while the price of an acre of good land on holdings over 100 acres was €12,667. The corresponding prices for an acre of poor land were €7,000 and €6,333

In Munster, sales prices for good quality land on holdings under 50 acres range from €23,000 in Waterford to €9,875 in Clare. Prices for poor quality land ranged from an average of €8,750 in Waterford to €6,100 in Kerry.

In Connacht/Ulster, sales prices for good land on holdings under 50 acres ranged from an average of €13,280 per acre in Donegal – down slightly on last year – to €7,625 in Leitrim. Prices for poor quality land ranged from an average of €6,500 in Cavan to €3,792 per acre in Leitrim, the lowest price in the country for holdings under 50 acres.

Land Rental Prices

In Leinster (excluding Dublin), land rental prices for grazing/meadowing/silage, grazing only and potato growing all increased by 9% on average to €295, €271 and €467 per acre respectively. The rental price of land for cereal crops increased by 8% to €317 per acre while rent for land rental prices for other crops such as maize and beans, increased by just 2% to €351 per acre.

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In Munster, there was a mixed trend in year-on-year land rental prices. Average rental prices for grazing and meadowing /silage declined from between 3% and 5% and now stand between €284 per acre and €294 per acre. Conversely, land rental prices for other crops such as maize and beans rose by 8% on average indicating a steady demand for animal feed crop growing.

By contrast Connacht / Ulster saw the highest provincial rental price inflation across grazing/silage and grazing-only lands, 14% and 13% respectively with the average price of the former reaching €208 per acre and the latter reaching €177 per acre.

The survey of 169 auctioneers and valuers from all over the country, took place in February and March 2025. It found the volume of farmland going to market increased marginally during 2024 with probate sales continuing to provide the main source of farmland sales.