Farmland leasing meetings to address setting fair cash rents

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach is conducting eleven in-person farmland lease meetings in Central Iowa in late July and early August. Meeting sites include Adel, Altoona, Ames, Boone, Grinnell, Indianola, Knoxville, Newton, Marshalltown, Oskaloosa, Traer and Winterset. Participants will also receive a 100-page Farmland Leasing Arrangements booklet.

The discussion will focus on various methods to determine a fair 2024 cash rental rate and the importance of good landlord/tenant communications. According to the May 2023 Annual Cash Rental Rates for Iowa Survey, File C2—10, the cash rental rates for Iowa farmland, rates increased, on average 9 percent in 2023 to $279 per acre. This is a substantial increase in cash rents since 2013.

The Newton in-person meeting will be Thursday, August 3rd, beginning at 6:30 p.m. This meeting will be at The Newton DMACC Campus, 600 N. Second Ave. W. in Newton. Patrick Hatting, farm management specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, will facilitate the two-hour meeting. Participants of the in-person meetings will receive a 100-page Farmland Leasing Arrangements booklet and meeting handouts designed to assist landowners, tenants and other agri-business professionals with issues related to farmland ownership, management, and leasing arrangements.

Pre-registration is required at least two days before the in-person meeting. Contact the ISU Jasper County Extension at 641-792-6433 to pre-register on or before noon July 31. The $20 per individual fee with one book is payable at the door.

For a list of meetings statewide, check the ISU Extension calendar for a meeting time for the county you want to attend at www.extension.iastate.edu/agdm/info/meetings.html.