Extension Communications |
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6/17/03 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contacts: Modest Gains for Cash Rental Rates of Iowa Farm Land Ames, Iowa -- Average cash rental rates in Iowa increased modestly over the last year, according to results from an annual survey by Iowa State University (ISU) Extension. Forty percent of Iowa's cropland is rented under cash rent lease agreements. Profits and losses are highly variable from year to year, and expectations of future returns ultimately are bid back into land rents as well as land selling prices. A year ago both landowners and tenants were anticipating a surge in cash rents resulting from larger government payments under the 2003 farm bill, said William Edwards, co-author of the survey and professor, Iowa State University. "In the end, however, yields and prices have probably had more impact on rental rates for this year than the new USDA program." Survey Results "It is difficult to tell how much impact the new farm bill had on cash rents for 2003," said Edwards. "Expectations of higher USDA payment levels have largely evaporated, as grain prices have remained above loan rates most of the year. Not only will farmers not collect loan deficiency payments, it looks unlikely that any counter cyclical payments will be made for the 2002 crop, either. That leaves only the direct payments to supplement income from the marketplace." "On the positive side, however, new records were set for state average yields in 2002," and many farms harvested their best crops ever," said Edwards. "While prices are not at high levels, they have increased enough to more than offset the loss of loan deficiency payments in most counties. Moreover, strong competition for rented land has kept rates at historically high levels in many communities." Rents Vary by Productivity The full summary of the survey is contained in ISU Extension publication FM-1851, "Cash Rental Rates for Iowa," which is available through ISU Extension county offices, from the ISU Extension Distribution Center at (515) 294-5247, or on the Web at https://www.extension.iastate.edu/Publications/FM1851.pdf. -30- ml: isufarm |
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