New farmland sales on hold
Until recently, sellers had been ready to commit to the farmland market following the clear general election result, and buyers who had previously been frustrated by the lack of stock were eagerly anticipating new farms and estates coming to the market.
Sales which had already been agreed have completed as scheduled over the last few weeks. We are still receiving interest in properties already on the market and agreeing sales where viewings had already taken place.
We are continuing to prepare those farms that are earmarked to come to the market for sale. The extremely wet weather delayed many launches until mid-May, so we are doing all the necessary due diligence and preparing the marketing material as normal.
We can take a decision at the last minute as to whether or not to delay a launch and it’s worth remembering that these days it takes no more than 24 hours to get a property live on our website and the property portals. There is also the technology to create virtual tours of dwellings and drone footage of land to share with potential buyers.
The dramatic fall in the stock market may encourage some of those with funds to invest in land and property so we may see investors competing for farmland.
Richard Goodwin is associate director in the farm agency team at Savills
