Farmland in your area 2024: South East England

Sales of farmland were up by almost a quarter in the south-east of England in 2024, with a significant number of off-market deals.

There seems to be no real trend dictating why vendors favoured private sales. A key factor was the level of competition for a property from potential buyers.

Agents report that many of the farms and land offered for sale were in areas that had a good “microclimate” of interest from neighbouring farmers.

See also: Farmland in your area 2024: East of England

For properties that took longer to shift, a gulf between the price expectations of sellers and buyers is cited as a principal reason.

Liza Howden, Strutt & Parker

Late spring and early summer are usually peak times for farmland sales, and while supply in the south-east of England in 2024 was up on the five-year average, demand was somewhat dampened when the election was announced for early July, several months sooner than expected.

We then saw further disruption in the run-up to the Budget in late October.

However, despite these challenges, the South East remains one of the most competitive areas in the country, with bare blocks of land selling particularly well.

The region’s strong transport links and economic opportunities attract a diverse pool of buyers, including those looking to invest in land for environmental or lifestyle purposes.

Smaller parcels of bare land, especially those bordering existing holdings, have also been highly sought after by neighbouring farmers.

The full impact on the land market of the Budget’s inheritance tax (IHT) changes is yet to be seen, but in the short term we are encouraged by the appetite from some buyers which meant we were able to agree three sales in the weeks following the Budget.

Looking ahead, we already have instructions for the sale of some good farms and land parcels in the South East which will be launched in 2025.

With sensible guide prices, we expect these to sell well.

Will Matthews, Knight Frank

The south-east of England can be characterised as having a turgid year for sales of farms and estates, as in the rest of the UK.

The timing of the election lurched into the summer holidays and the autumn Budget into the run-up to Christmas. The uncertainty these events brought resulted in a fairly stagnant market.

That said, there is a backdrop of wealth in the market, so there were a handful of private deals in Hampshire and Sussex – bare land with some buildings – that happened at good price levels where competition was created.

Buyers thrive on competition, and quality stock will always create it.

Those deals that did happen maintained the price per acre at levels achieved in previous years.

Generally, however, following the Budget there has been little to encourage buyers to move forward.

We have to hope that 2025 will see more buyers wanting to move on with purchases.

It seems that the divide between buyers’ and sellers’ expectations is at a continued high, however.

I do not see land prices dropping significantly, as there remains significant pressure on land availability in the South East.

As ever, quality opportunities will always gain significant interest.

What sold well in 2024

Perry Wood © Strutt & Parker

An 88-acre parcel of arable and pasture land at Perry Wood, Selling, near Canterbury, recently went under offer for more than its £950,000 guide. Launched by Strutt & Parker, some of the Grade 2 land has viticulture potential because of its south-facing aspect with lime-rich soil over chalk.

On the market

Church Farm © Strutt & Parker

A 170-acre block of grazing marsh on the edge of the Pevensey Levels at Church Farm, Herstmonceux, in East Sussex, is for sale through Strutt & Parker at offers above £850,000. The Grade 3 permanent pasture land is currently in a Higher Level Stewardship scheme and has good environmental interest.