Alternative Outlook

Gold has long been seen as “real money”. It is seen as a stable store of value, and today, it is seen a “must have” alternative investment for any diversified portfolio. Indeed, gold’s popularity is demonstrated by the fact that the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) has already gathered approximately US$75 billion of assets.

We believe, however, that those looking for “hard asset” alternative investments are making a mistake by limiting themselves to gold alone, and would be well served by also considering such assets as agricultural land and for…

Alex Lawson Director of Savills land and farms comments, “There continues to be a real thirst for good quality blocks of arable land from a wide range of buyers and the biggest issue is the lack of supply.

For other land types buyers are increasingly discerning and we are often finding separately lotting the house with a few acres away from the bare land is the most successful route to maximising a sale”.

Across Great Britain prime arable land values rose by 3.2% during Q3 to average just under £7,200 per acre. This …

Unlike many other assets farm land in the UK has continued rising in value throughout this year, a trend analysts expect to continue into 2013 and beyond.

One of the key factors helping to support values is the dwindling supply of farmland available to buy, according to the latest research from Savills.

‘There continues to be a real thirst for good quality blocks of arable land from a wide range of buyers and the biggest issue is the lack of supply. For other land types buyers are increasingly discerning and we are often findin…

English farmland has outperformed the majority of other mainstream asset classes over the past 10 years, including prime property in London.

According to property firm Knight Frank farm land has seen capital growth of almost 200%. This compares with 57% for the FTSE 100 equities index shares, 48% for average UK house prices and 100% for top end London real estate.

But the figures show that farmland market did experience a slight lull this summer with average prices across England dipping by 1% to £6,220/acre.

‘Given that farmers hav…

The average value of English farmland rose to £9000 per acre between 1 July and 15 August.

This now means that farmland values have risen 3% since the start of the year and have broken through the £9000 barrier for the first time.

There is still signficant variations in performance between bare and equipped land.

A second record has also been broken in the last few months with only 10,900 acres publicly marketed during the same period which, according to Smiths Gore’s research, is the lowest recorded amount of land for sale.

Farme…

Demand for commercial farmland continued to surge ahead as prices reached record levels for the fourth consecutive period, says the latest RICS Rural Land Market Survey, H1 2012.

The average price per acre – which has now almost trebled since 2003 – increased to £6,628* during the first half of the year, as demand outstripped fresh supply.

This dramatic jump in demand was met with a sizable downturn in land availability. Surveyors continue to report that the ongoing shortage of available land is a key factor in driving up prices….

Growing demand for agricultural land means investors are increasingly drawn to countryside properties. Ian Cowie investigates the opportunities and pitfalls associated with buying farmland.

Farm land and, to a lesser extent, agricultural buildings such as barns can prove attractive investments.

While it might be morally wrong to benefit from a crisis, demand for agricultural assets is likely to continue to exceed supply. This comes as the worst drought in America for 50 years pushes the price of commodities, such…

It is known as “gold with a coupon”. English farmland has trebled in value over the past decade and now averages more than £6,000 an acre. While farmers still make up at least half of all buyers, estate agents have seen an influx of City bankers as well as buyers from overseas – crisis-stricken Greece and Italy, along with India and China. In the next five years it is expected to rise in value by more than two-thirds.

The appeal of farmland is that it is a safe-haven asset, like gold, but also gives annual returns of 2-3%. On t…

Average farmland values in England are likely to break £9,000/acre by the year end, according to Smiths Gore’s latest forecast.

The uplift is being driven by an increasing shortfall in the amount of land for sale, says the firm. Asking prices for equipped farms (those with land and buildings) rose 1% to £9,600 in the second quarter of 2012, and bare land by 5% to £6,300/acre. Overall land values now average £8,900, a 2% rise on the first quarter of 2012.

The second quarter of the year is usually when most land is marketed, said Dr Jas…

An growing trend of buying up farmland to avoid tax is pricing out locals in rural areas and could potentially drive the government to lift the IHT exemption on farms, advisers have warned.

Karl Hartey, managing director for Cheshire-based Applewood Wealth Management, said the rise in farmland purchases by wealthy city investors was “another example of tax avoidance” and could lead HM Revenue and Customs to scrap the inheritance tax exemption on farmland and farmhouses.

He said: “We have plenty of farming clients so there is a …