Over 1,300 Acres of Minnesota Farmland Will Be Up for Auction in April 2025

According to data compiled by the Successful Farming team, more than 1,300 acres of Minnesota farmland are set to be auctioned in April 2025. Listings range from single tracts of 30 acres to a two-parcel auction of over 650 acres. Here’s a closer look at the farmland expected to change hands across five Minnesota counties.

Minnesota’s Largest April Farmland Auction

Next month’s largest Minnesota farmland auction is set to take place in Norman County where two tracts of land totaling 653.92 acres will be available for sale in-person or online on April 1, 2025. Kevin Pifer, president and CEO of The Pifer Group, said buyers are able to purchase the land either as a single entity or the two tracts will sell separately.

The tracts are nearly equal in size, with one covering 332.68 acres, and the other at 321.24 acres. Both tracts feature a similar estimated number of crop acres at nearly 300 cropland acres each.

“This is a very diverse farm with a strong cropping history,” Pifer said, “which includes corn, soybeans, wheat, and other crops.”

The cropland acres have a history of yielding 36 bushels per acre (bpa) of wheat, and 155 bpa of corn. “This property has very diverse, highly productive soils capable of raising a variety of different crops for improving soil health and harvests high yields,” Pifer said.

The Pifer Group will handle the sale on behalf of Red River Farms Inc. 

Pifer said both farmers and investors have expressed interest in this land sale. 

Renville County

A one-chance sealed bid auction of 147 acres is taking place on April 4, 2025 in Renville County. 

Hertz Farm Management will handle the auction on behalf of the Rev. Harvey Witte Trust.

Terry Dean, a real estate salesperson with Hertz Farm Management, said interest in the property has been mostly local thus far, although a few non-local buyers have contacted him to learn more about the market in Minnesota regarding this property.

Recent sales in the area have been in the $13,000 to $14,000 per tillable acre range, Dean said, and he expects this land to go for a similar rate. Dean said it is likely that the per acre rate will be impacted by the non-tillable acres on the property because this lot does have some woods, wetlands, and pastures, in addition to the cropland.

According to the Farmers Business Network’s AcreVision tool, the value of cropland acres in Renville County were estimated to average $10,225.81 per acre as of Jan. 31, 2025. This is down 11.3% compared to one year ago in the area.

This property features 97.5 cropland acres, with a cropping history of corn, soybeans, and sugarbeets. Corn yields have historically been 138 bpa, and soybean yields have been 30 bpa. The Crop Productivity Index (CPI) rating is 90.90.

There is an open lease for the 2025 crop year.

Dean said the land has “some of the most productive soils” in the area, and the property has some tile and is part of a drainage district. 

In addition to serving as an additional lot for farming, Dean said the property’s easy highway access makes it a good candidate for seed or auction plots. “Its proximity to the railroad, natural gas, and pipelines could influence the sale,” Dean said.

Other Farmland Sales

At least an additional five farmland auctions are expected to be held across the state in April. Method of sale ranges from in-person and online to sealed bids. 

Several auctions boast high CPI ratings, and one features land enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program. 

One land sale also offers a heated shop and a stable with a living quarters attached.

These auctions are primarily in the northwestern part of the state, with a few taking place in the south-central part of Minnesota.