Farm real estate sales consistent in 2020

Dec 09, 2020

Low interest rates were one factor that kept business moving this year

Staff Writer

Farms.com

While many things changed in the farm real estate industry in how business was conducted this year due to COVID-19 restrictions, prices and property sold continued to move forward in normal fashion.

“It was a very positive year actually for buyers and sellers,” said Sheldon Froese. He is a realtor with Royal LePage Riverbend Realty Farm Division based in Steinbach, Man.

Froese is a relator in Saskatchewan and Manitoba and saw some increase in demand for dairy farms in Manitoba and an increase in prices for in demand land.

“There were still some pieces that sold what we would consider fairly high and that's from pressure from two or three different buyers,” driving up the price, he told Farms.com.

Low interest rates were another factor in keeping business moving, said Froese.

“Interest rates are very low and continue to be that way. So, that definitely triggered some people to buy maybe smaller pieces because (they) see a good opportunity to buy it at a pretty cheap rate,” he said.

Staff at Royal LePage Riverbend Realty Farm Division also kept sales moving by adapting to communication challenges and will continue to do so into 2021.

“Some clients were very comfortable with us being in person, social distancing and (wearing) masks, but a lot of clients just prefer to do Zoom calls. It was a different world… But in the end, there's always a way to make things work,” said Froese.

Allexxandar/iStock/Getty Images Plus photo

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