Sales of farmland have slowed due to a lack of supply and persistent political uncertainty, say land agents Kinght Frank.
The feeling of treading water that settled over the market in 2025 has shown few signs of dissipating this year – largely due to continued political and economic uncertainty, exacerbated by the ongoing Middle East conflict,
Spiralling input costs – including for fuel and fertiliser – combined with poor weather at the start of the year, have meant that few new farms, blocks of land or estates were put up for sale during the traditional spring selling season.
By the end of March, the acreage of publicly marketed farmland was down 54% on the same period in 2025, itself a period of relative scarcity. Just 5,600 acres were advertised across England and Wales.
“It’s a frustrating time to be selling farms and estates because there is so little good stock coming on to the market,” says Knight Frank head of farms Will Matthews, “A significant number of the properties we are seeing are executor’s sales.
Unless they have to sell, potential vendors don’t think it’s worth putting anything up for sale because of all the negative sentiment about politics and the economy in general. Obviously, what is happening in the Middle East won’t have helped the mood either.”
Despite a perception by vendors that now is not a good time to sell, demand remains firm from a range of buyers. As a result, average values have remained largely unchanged, says Mr Matthews.
According to the latest results from the Index, which tracks the value of all types of bare agricultural land in England and Wales, prices dropped by just 0.9% to £8,622/acre in the first quarter of 2026. Over a 12-month period, average values are down only 5%.