Land prices in Cavan remain steady

Prices for land in Co Cavan held steady last year, remaining largely unchanged and averaging €9,974 per acre, according to the latest Irish Farmers Journal Land Price Report.

Prices have remained “relatively stable” across the county for the past five years ranging from €8,000 per acre to €10,000 an acre, the report states. This year’s average is just €26 an acre on the previous year though the report notes that the supply of farmland for sale was up last year in the Breffni county.

The survey conducted for the Land Price Report 2024 looked at 102 farms that were offered on the market in County Cavan totalling 2,684 acres. Selling prices varied from a minimum of €4,274 per acre to a maximum of €20,946 an acre. Farms under 40 acres made €10,209 per acre on average; while larger farms achieved an average of €8,000 an acre.

The report also found that prices varied around the county, depending on land quality as well as other factors. In west Cavan, for example, good grassland holdings made €8,000-€9,000 per acre; while in the south and east of the county, good holdings fetched €9,000-€12,000 an acre. Meanwhile, prices achieved for the best quality parcels of land moved towards €15,000 an acre. The report affirms that Cavan and the surrounding counties are also benefiting from the buoyant land market in Northern Ireland where prices increased again in 2024.

Elsewhere, Co Monaghan saw few farms for sale in 2024 but good demand and firm prices were to the fore. It’s the general picture of the local farmland market for the last five or six years, according to the report which also found that land prices in the Farney county rose by 18% to average €12,495/ac. It’s now nearly level with the national average of €12,515/ac.

In Co Meath, huge prices were paid for big farms last year. The Land Price Report 2024 describes the market there as “being on fire”. Land prices in the county rose to average €17,669/ac; while a 139 acre, non-residential holding outside Ratoath sold for €3.7M or €26,870/ac. Demand for land remains strong across Co Meath with prices best in the south and near the bigger towns. Over in Co Leitrim, the report indicates that land prices continue to “bob up and down” within the range of €6,000/ac to €7,000/ac. In 2024 prices averaged €6,419ac - down six per cent on the previous year. Prices for forestry planting land in the county are rising and run from €4,000/ac up to €7,000/ac. “A large block with no overhead electricity wires and no adjacent houses could approach €8,000/ac,” states the report.