Trust your farm sale to Bell Ingram
By Rob Whitson, Highland Partner and Head of Farm & Estate Sales at Bell Ingram.
With over 100 years of experience working in the countryside, Bell Ingram has the expertise to help you navigate the complex process of selling your farm.
Our farm and estates sales team can ensure you have the right advice from the outset with many of our agents coming from rural backgrounds and operating their own farming businesses.
If you are considering selling your farm there’s no time like the present, and our agents are here to help you maximise your assets and take advantage of robust rural land values.
Farmland prices rose sharply in 2021 and Bell Ingram expects this period of growth to continue throughout 2022 with strong demand coupled with a shortage of properties for sale resulting in excellent outcomes for those sellers taking the plunge.
While farmers continue to be the main investors in farmland in Scotland and the North of England, I predict that newer players emerging in the sector such as Forestry, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investors, and lifestyle buyers will spark competition in a market where demand already outstrips supply.
Volumes remain tight both north and south of the border, although we are expecting more land to come to market this year than in 2021. This means that what does come on the market moves quickly to a closing date and we are seeing some properties sell for well over their guide price.
If you are thinking of selling, the following steps will help you get the best price:
- Get the timing right
The current demand for farms is such that you could sell at any time. However, farms are best marketed during spring and early summer, when they are in the best condition and look most productive. Make sure you plan far enough in advance to allow time to consider crop rotations, sale of livestock and also preparation of marketing materials.
- Make a good first impression
It might sound obvious but it’s important to keep your property looking as appealing as possible to potential purchasers. This means keeping on top of repairs to farm buildings fencing and gates, cleaning out guttering, and filling potholes.
- Divide and conquer?
Whether to sell your property as a whole or divide into lots depends on the size and type of farm and what will be included the sale. If there is a mix of agricultural land and residential properties, dividing a farm into lots increases the range of potential purchasers, therefore creating an opportunity for increased competition. This can help to maximise sale price. Hill ground can also be lotted separately if it has planting potential for trees.
- Marketing your property
Quality marketing material is vital when your property is being prepared for sale. As well as producing farm plans, farm building plans and floor plans, Bell Ingram will arrange for one of our professional photographers, using drone images, to showcase your farm at its best. As well as producing a high-quality brochure we offer the latest digital and print platforms to allow your property to be viewed by the right buyers.
- Find the best team
Selling farms is a highly specialised area of the land and property market which requires first-hand experience of the rural sector. Bell Ingram’s farm sales team has a trusted reputation in this sphere and our close contact with buyers and sellers across the UK enables us to complete many deals both on the market and privately.
To request a free valuation of your farm or estate call Rob Whitson on 01463 717799.
Our people
Rob Whitson
Partner, MRICS
Rural Land Management
Tel: 01463 717 799
About: Rob is Bell Ingram’s partner in charge of the Beauly office. He specialises in the management of rural properties for a range of private clients across the Highlands. This has included a number of significant and high profile sporting estates. For Land Management clients, Rob has worked on the negotiation of purchase/sale, servitude rights and renewable energy developments. He provides specialist management advice over a wide range of sporting estates particularly in relation to red deer stalking and salmon fisheries. Rob has enjoyed a long involvement with a number of district salmon fishery boards across the Highlands, and is a trustee of the Cromarty Firth Fishery Trust. He is Chair of the Highland Region for Scottish Land & Estates and also leads on valuations of commercial and rural property throughout Scotland in accordance with the RICS appraisal and valuation standards. Interests: Private Estate Management, Rural Land Management, Sporting Management, Valuations.