Illinois farmland values rose sharply from 2020 to 2023, then held steady or eased slightly through 2025, even as farmer returns fell and turned negative on many cash‑rented acres. Excellent‑productivity farmland climbed 57 percent during the upswing, then declined only 5 percent from its 2023 peak.
Cash rents followed a similar pattern, rising quickly during strong return years, then barely adjusting downward when returns weakened.
Federal programs, including crop insurance, ARC and PLC, and recent ad hoc assistance, continue to buffer income and slow cost‑structure adjustments across Illinois agriculture.
These dynamics explain why farmland prices have not retreated meaningfully and why rent negotiations remain tight heading into 2026 for our Midwest reporting state of Illinois.
Read more from FarmDoc Daily: https://farmdocdaily.illinois.edu/2026/07/farmland-prices-and-government-programs.html
Download their report (PDF): https://farmdocdaily.illinois.edu/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/fdd070726.pdf
