Farm sales for the three months ending August 2020 were up more than 45 percent compared to the same time last year, marking the strongest level since the same period in 2016, according to the latest data from the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ).
Overall, there were 386 farm sales in the three months ended August 2020, an increase of 121 from the same period a year earlier.
In the year up to August, 1252 farms were sold - 7.2 percent fewer than in the year to August 2019.
The median price per hectare for all farms sold in the three months to August 2020 was $25,657, compared to $25,346 for the same time a year earlier - a rise of 1.2 percent.
Twelve of the 14 regions monitored record an increase in farm sales, with the most notable being Canterbury (+24) and Manawatu/Wanganui (+21).
Only Bay of Plenty (-3) and Nelson (-1) had a drop in sales.
"Sales data for the three-month period ending August 2020 is positive with total farms sold (386) being at the strongest level since the equivalent period in 2016 (393)," said Brian Peacocke, rural spokesperson at REINZ.
"Seasonal issues such as weather, feed, water, compliance, product prices, availability of finance, interest rates and the health status of the nation remain constant in the rural market, while resilience remains the dominant factor," he said on Wednesday.
