Landwatch

Katie Dehlinger, DTN Farm Business Editor and Victoria G. Myers, Progressive Farmer Senior Editor

This is the most recent roundup of farmland sales from the Progressive Farmer magazine.

Prices reported in Landwatch come from a variety of sources, including private treaty and public auction sales. While each sale only speaks to that one farm, and should not be used as a comparison, the numbers looked at over the long term reflect the overall trends for land prices seen across much of the country.

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SPOTLIGHT SALE: NEBRASKA, DUMBBELL RANCH.

Interest rates may be rising, but that didn't slow the spring sale of the 15,568-acre Dumbbell Ranch, in the Nebraska Sandhills.

Located in Hyannis, the ranch sits on one of the deepest parts of the Ogallala Aquifer. It is reported to produce about 1,800 tons of hay from sub-irrigated meadows and carries a 900-head cow herd.

The Nebraska Examiner reported the ranch sold to a ranching family from Colorado in a deal set to be finalized this summer. Details of the sale weren't released, but the ranch's list price was $16.7 million, or $1,073 per acre. It was on the market for less than a month.

At its prime, Dumbbell Ranch was composed of 52,000 acres. In 1937, the ranch split into three sections, known as the Pitchfork, the 3 Circles and the Dumbbell, according to Hall and Hall, the real estate firm overseeing the sale.

"The historic Dumbbell Ranch is multigenerational with a long-storied past. It is one of the earliest and foundational ranches of the Sandhills," said Mark Johnson, a partner at Hall and Hall, who also ranches near Valentine, Nebraska.

"The ranch provides a very well-balanced combination of native rolling hills, sub-irrigated meadows, excellent winter protection and water. Ranches of this stature and quality rarely come to market."

The Dumbbell had been in Anne Anderson Bennett's family since 1913. Her brother has a separate career, and neither of her children wanted to return to the ranch, Bennett told the Nebraska Examiner.

"It is bittersweet," she said in the report. "But, I am so excited that a family is going to be able to continue the tradition. I think they will be a fabulous asset for the community."

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OTHER RECENT SALES:

-- IOWA, Plymouth County. A mixed-use farm with tillable and pastureland totaling 156.4 acres sold at a timed, online auction for $1.22 million, or an average price of $7,800 per acre. Total tillable acres were set at 80.09. The farm had easy access at multiple locations and included a river and mature timber. Contact: Jason Smith, Dream Dirt Farm Real Estate and Auction; jason@dreamdirt.com; 515-537-6633; https://www.dreamdirt.com/…

-- KANSAS, Rawlins County. Cropland, grass and a farmstead totaling 1,370 acres sold at auction for $2.96 million. The property sold in five tracts, with average per-acre prices ranging from $1,200 to $2,900. Average per-acre price across the whole property was $2,161. Closing where applicable was scheduled for after the 2023 wheat crop was harvested, or Aug. 1, 2023, with seller retaining 100% of the crop. The property held base acres in wheat, corn and grain sorghum. Contact: Donald Hazlett, Farm and Ranch Realty Inc.; frr@frrmail.com; 800-247-7863; https://www.farmandranchrealty.com/…

-- KENTUCKY, Webster County. A single tract of farmland totaling 207 acres sold at absolute auction for $1.2 million, or about $5,797 per acre. The land was described as flat to gently rolling cropland, with 35 acres of wooded land with frontage on Deer Creek. Deer and turkey hunting are excellent, and there is frontage on a state highway. Soils are silty clay and silt loam. Contact: Clay Taylor, Kurtz Auction and Realty Co.; clay@kurtzauction.com; 800-264-1204; https://www.kurtzauction.com/…

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These sales figures are provided by the sources and may not be exact because of rounding. Submit recent land sales to landwatch@dtn.com. Find current listings at https://about.dtnpf.com/….

Katie Dehlinger can be reached at katie.dehlinger@dtn.com

Follow her on Twitter @KatieD_DTN

Victoria Myers can be reached at vicki.myers@dtn.com

Follow her on Twitter @myersPF

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