English farmland values have fallen by 3% in the first quarter of 2015 as the possibility of a Brexit creates uncertainty in the market.
The drop to below £8,000 per acre was the largest quarterly decline since the 5% slide that occurred during the final three months of 2008, according to the Knight Frank Farmland Index.
In addition to uncertainty around the EU referendum, agricultural commodity prices remain low with little prospect for a strong rebound in the short term, Knight Frank said.
Andrew Shirley, Knight Frank’s head of rural research, said: “Predicting where values will head in 2016 and beyond is almost impossible until we know the results of the EU referendum in June.”
However, the average value of farmland was still only £18 per acre lower than it was at the end of 2014, and remains almost 180% higher than it was 10 years ago.
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