A shortage of land for sale and persistent political uncertainty are keeping the farmland market in a holding pattern, although underlying demand remains resilient and values have proved largely stable.
The sense of “treading water” that characterised the market throughout 2025 has shown little sign of easing so far this year, according to the latest Knight Frank Farmland Index.
A combination of economic and political uncertainty - compounded by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, which has pushed up input costs such as fuel and fertiliser - along with poor weather at the start of the year, has curtailed the traditional spring selling season. As a result, few new farms, estates or blocks of land have come forward.
By the end of March, the acreage of publicly marketed farmland had fallen by 54% compared with the same period in 2025 -itself already a year of limited supply. Just 5,600 acres were advertised across England and Wales.
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English land values hold firm despite subdued activity and tight supply
“It’s a frustrating time to be selling farms and estates because there is so little good stock coming on to the market,” says Will Matthews, head of farms and estate sales at Knight Frank. “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 bringing anything to the market because of all the negative sentiment around politics and the economy. Events in the Middle East have only added to that uncertainty.”
Despite this reluctance among vendors, buyer demand remains robust across a range of sectors. While changes to agricultural and business property relief announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves have prompted concern, the ability to pass on up to £5 million of assets free from inheritance tax — with a reduced 20% rate applied above that threshold - continues to incentivise some purchasers.
Consequently, average farmland values have held relatively steady. The Knight Frank index, which tracks bare agricultural land across England and Wales, recorded a modest decline of 0.9% in the first quarter of 2026, bringing the average price to £8,622/acre. On an annual basis, values are down by around 5%.
Prime arable land continues to command strong prices, with Knight Frank reporting sales of £10,000/acre and above. In areas west of London, this figure remains the baseline for good-quality land, and a recently marketed block in the south of England has already attracted significant interest from high-net-worth buyers.
“In reality, there is still a considerable amount of capital in the system,” Matthews adds.
“The right property - whether it’s a traditional country estate or a large block of productive farmland - will always find a buyer.”
With transaction volumes still low, however, the key question is when the market will gather enough momentum to move beyond its current inertia. While more properties are expected to come forward in late April and May, there is little indication that supply will increase sufficiently to exert downward or upward pressure on prices.
“The poor weather earlier in the year has delayed several launches,” says Matthews.
“It will probably be the end of May before we have a clearer picture of how the market will perform in 2026.”
For now, the farmland sector appears set for another year defined by caution, as both buyers and vendors adopt a wait-and-see approach.
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