After some years of flatlining, land prices have jumped in county Longford. Average price for last year was €11,877. This was a 41% or €3,453/ac increase from the previous year.

There was no overabundance of land for sale in the county.

We examined 900 acres that were put on the market, in 28 farms, this a small increase on 2022.

Only 11 of these holdings were sold by year end and we did our calculations on them.

As normal two thirds of these farms were under 40 acres, one third over.

Average price

Holdings under 40 acres averaged €13,191/ac on sale, those over €8,810/ac. Size made a difference to price and it was these smaller properties which drove on average price in the county last year.

There were a number of auction sales.

REA Thomas Potterton sold a 44.5ac farm of nice land beside Granard, with a bungalow in need of modernisation, for €450,000 or €10,112/ac.

Padraig Davis Auctioneers sold a small 12ac, non-residential holding, with a nice yard, at Caltramore, Newtowncashel for €237,000 or €19,750/ac.

James L Murtagh held one of the notable auctions last year. It was for 100ac on the edge of Longford Town, part zoned for development, which sold for €4m or €40,000/ac.

We excluded this from our calculations. Our average covers a range of farm types. The going rate for average land in the county is now €8,000/ac to €9,000/ac but exceptional parcels are making up to €15,000/ac.