ILLINOIS FARMLAND doesn't seem to ever drop in value. A land price survey by the Illinios Society of Professional Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers showed that this year Illinois real estate averages $3,800/acre, the best year on record. This value is 14.1% higher than the 2005 average of $3,300/acre. Illinois' farmland price has increased every year since 1988.

Driving Illinois land prices up are the large number of 1031 buyers, a limited supply of land, and low interest rates, according to Dale Lattz of the University of Illinois.