Price hikes in Quebec outpacing national average

Brenda O’Farrell
The Advocate

Despite higher interest rates, the price of farmland in Canada continued to rise in the first half of 2023, with prices in Quebec outpacing the national average.

In fact, the value of agricultural land in Quebec outpaced all areas of the country except Saskatechewan, according to figures released by Farm Credit Canada in early October.

Prices in Quebec increased by 10.6 per cent from January to June this year, while they jumped 11.4 per cent in Saskatchewan, FCC figures show.

The national average was 7.7 per cent.

Increases were lower in Ontario and Manitoba, where values jumped by 6.9 and 6.4 per cent, respectively.

Limited availability of land is said to be the main factor that continued to push prices higher, according to the FCC, even in a higher interest rate environment.

These latest increase continues the trend of ever-increasing farmland prices across the country. Last year, farmland values in Quebec jumped 11 per cent, slightly below the national average hike of 12.8 per cent.

The value of agricultural land has seen consistent year-over-year increases for the last 37 years, with the most pronounced hikes were recorded from 2011 to 2015.

Larger farmers more likely to buy

A survey of Canadian farmers conducted by RealAgristudies in July showed that 17 per cent of farmers in the country said they had or were intending to buy land in the current year. Some 59 per cent they had no intention of buying land, while 25 per cent said they were undecided.

The survey results also found that younger farmers or those who operated larger farms were the ones more likely to purchase land. According to the results, 44 per cent of the largest farms expressed an intent to buy land, while only 6 per cent of the smallest farm operators said purchases were likely.

RealAgristudies, however, did not disclose how many farmers participated in the survey.