While condos, single family homes, and even commercial properties across the country are losing value, farmlands are going the other way.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported that the value of farmland grew 1.4% from last year. The appreciation was fuelled by stronger real estate values in the northern Plains states of Kansas, Nebraska, and the Dakotas, the USDA said.

From $2,110 an acre, farmland value rose to an average of $2,140 an acre as of January 1. The biggest jump was seen in the Northern Plains, which registered 4.9% increase. The Southeast, meanwhile, logged the deepest declines with 3.3%, especially in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina. In the heart of the Corn Belt, Illinois led the increase with a 1.7% appreciation.

As for cropland, the USDA reported a 1.1% increase in values. U.S. cropland is now valued at average $2,700 per acre, up by $30 an acre. The northern Plains and Delta registered the highest increases at 6.9% and 6.1%, respectively. Meanwhile, cropland values in the Southeast and Mountain regions slid by 5% each. The USDA added that pasture land was still at $1,070 an acre.

Apart from increases in values, the USDA also noted a rise in the price of cropland rentals, which rose at a national average of at $102 an acre. “The increase in cropland land rental rates are the result of producers receiving strong commodity prices, while pasture cash rent is affected less by commodity prices and more by land values,” the department added.

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