Nebraska cropland nears $10,000 an acre; Pasture values surge 8%, USDA says

August 4, 2026 by Stephanie Fahrenbruch

August 3rd, 2026 | RRN Staff | Original Article

Nebraska cropland continued its steady climb in value during the past year, mirroring a national trend that pushed U.S. agricultural land values to new highs despite softer commodity prices and tighter farm margins.

According to the latest USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service Land Values Summary, Nebraska’s average farm real estate value, which includes land and buildings, increased 4.4% from a year ago to $6,690 per acre. The state remains among the nation’s highest-valued agricultural land markets, trailing neighboring Iowa but well ahead of most of the country.

Cropland values also continued higher. Nebraska’s average cropland value rose 4.2% to $9,560 per acre, while pastureland climbed 8.1% to $4,680 per acre, one of the strongest pasture gains reported nationally.

Irrigated land remains a major driver of Nebraska’s land market. USDA estimated irrigated cropland averaged $12,400 per acre, while non-irrigated cropland averaged $9,000 per acre.

Neighboring states also posted gains.

Iowa, which continues to have the highest average farm real estate value among major Corn Belt states, increased 4% to $22,500 per acre. Iowa cropland averaged $32,900 per acre, while pastureland reached $6,050 per acre.

Kansas farm real estate values climbed 4.9% to $3,200 per acre, with cropland averaging $4,220 per acre and pastureland increasing to $1,560 per acre.

Nationally, the average value of all farmland and buildings reached $4,350 per acre, up 4.3% from 2024. Average cropland increased to $5,830 per acre, while pastureland rose to $1,920 per acre, continuing a multi-year upward trend in agricultural real estate values.

The report is based on USDA surveys conducted this spring and reflects average agricultural land values across the United States.

AgWest Land Brokers conducted a land auction for The Minden Exchange Bank & Trust Co., Trustee for the Jennie Palmblade Testamentary Trust. The Axtell land auction was well advertised and a good crowd with a lot of interest was in attendance. Joel Grams, Farm and Ranch Specialist, did a very professional job representing the Jennie Palmblade Testamentary Trust real estate. There were no questions or clarification addressed during the auction. AgWest Land Brokers were well prepared for the closing, which took place twenty-one days ahead of the closing date.

Minden Exchange Bank & Trust Co., Trustee for Jennie Palmblade Testamentary TrustNebraska

Well over a century ago, my great-grandfather purchased land-locked, undevelopable, prone to flooding, wooded land in Kansas to divide up into parcels for each of his many children. After ownership was passed through multiple generations, the land is still growing trees, providing refuge for wildlife, and most is still owned by descendants of my great-grandfather. My small family branch inherited two small pieces of land.

I first spoke with AgWest Land Brokers over two years ago. Since I live in California, I needed a reliable, trustworthy, knowledgeable, patient, boots-on-the-ground kind of agent who could help us learn more about these properties and potentially help us navigate a sale from afar. AgWest Land Brokers were always accessible, responded immediately, never said a question was silly, and always treated us with the utmost respect. If they did not know the answer immediately, they would always find out and promptly reply. Their followthrough was impeccable.

It is safe to say, these two small parcels of land are not particularly valuable and would not build an agent’s resume. However, from our very first conversation, AgWest Land Brokers impressed me with their positive attitude, knowledge of the area, their creativity, openness to explore, and their honest willingness to learn all about these two land parcels. This was not going to be an easy sell. At every turn in the road, they personally uncovered old county records, maps, easements, and steered us to trusted legal advisors, escrow, and title officers. AgWest Land Brokers was always willing to make the “hard” phone calls and constantly negotiated in our best interest.

Recently, the two parcels sold. AgWest Land Brokers worked to complete these sales for over two years and never once made us feel that the size of the properties was not worth their time. I cannot give enough praise and thanks to them for the tireless efforts resulting in happy and very appreciative clients.

Elizabeth SaltzmanCalifornia

As a recently retired Real Estate agent in Colorado, I was chosen by our family to select the company to sell three farms in central Nebraska. I took my selection seriously and proceeded to review the different options. After communicating with Jeff Moon at AgWest Land Brokers and getting every question answered, I made my recommendation to proceed with Jeff. His patience, understanding, and ability to answer every question I presented to him were a testament to his skill and ability. If you happen to require help with a farm sale, you could not find someone who has better communication skills and the patience to answer every question I threw at him. My highest recommendation!

Gregory PetersonColorado

I have looked at numerous properties with Clayton Esslinger. The first one we closed on happened to be one we came across while looking at one of Clayton’s listings. He was very helpful in getting that deal done, which was the first of several as it would turn out. Clayton is very pleasant to work with and is plainly honest. His intimate knowledge of the properties and owners in the Norton and Graham county area has been of great help. Once he understood my goals, we zero’d in on some great parcels, and to date have closed on five with the sixth in the works.

Brian Postle

We decided AgWest Land Brokers were the best fit to market our 98 acres. They were always available by phone, text, email and personal visits to assure us in our decision and to answer any and all questions. In our case, we had three co-owners, so they were fielded questions from all of us in a prompt and considerate manner.

In addition to our agent, we were extremely impressed with the marketing of our land. My top marketing favorite was the online drone video of the land. The video really captured the uniqueness of our property we had always appreciated.

I would not hesitate to list with AgWest Land Brokers again. Honestly, I don’t know how our land sale could have been promoted any better.

Marvin NethNebraska

I had a great experience selling a section of grass using AgWest as my realtor! Jeff Moon and Clayton Esslinger were my listing agents, and they really went to work and did a great job selling the property! I gave them a price I wanted to obtain for the section, and they advertised it well and even used a drone to make a video to promote the land. They generated a lot of interest in the property and within ten days, we received an acceptable offer. I was totally satisfied with the effort and would use AgWest services again.

Dennie & Joyce LofgreenKansas

We recently sold a family farm that was in a partnership. Jeff Moon and AgWest came highly recommended by the other partner of the farm.

Not being a farmer and living 200 plus miles from the land, Jeff made everything easy for me. The details he put into the brochure, video and advertising were unbelievable. No details were left untouched.

Jeff maintained constant contact with me and took care of all the details during this process, from the beginning thru the closing.

We were able to attend the auction to where I met Jeff personally. Once again I was blown away with all the details involved of selling a farm. Jeff puts his heart and soul into his job representing his clients. I would highly recommend him.

Sally Hammond, PR of John Dier EstateNebraska