Woodbury County Iowa Farmland Market — 2025 Year in Review

Woodbury County, anchored by Sioux City and stretching across the Missouri River bluffs and loess hills of West Central Iowa, recorded 47 courthouse-verified farmland sales in 2025 averaging $9,890 per acre — a modest +4.7% gain from 2024's $9,446 average. That steady appreciation, while unspectacular compared to the dramatic swings seen in some Iowa counties, reflects the durability of Woodbury's farmland market. Values have climbed from $8,743 per acre in 2021 to $9,890 in 2025 — a 13% gain over four years — without the volatility that characterized markets in Central and Northwest Iowa during the same period.

Woodbury's market is shaped by its diverse landscape: productive loess-soil cropland in the county's interior competes with Missouri River bottomland, rolling pasture, and urban-fringe ground near Sioux City. The 2025 median of $9,750 per acre closely tracks the mean, suggesting a relatively uniform market without extreme outliers. The price range of $4,007 to $18,250 per acre reflects the full spectrum of land types in the county, from lower-productivity upland parcels to exceptional river-bottom and high-CSR2 cropland.

Year-by-Year Price Summary

2025 Market Analysis

The 47 sales recorded in Woodbury County during 2025 reflect a well-balanced market across quality tiers. Prime ground (CSR2 75+) led with 13 sales averaging $11,788 per acre, while good-quality ground (CSR2 55–74) — the county's most common tier with 22 sales — averaged $10,057 per acre. Fair-ground parcels (CSR2 below 55) averaged $7,527 per acre across 12 sales, reflecting the lower-productivity loess hills and pasture ground that makes up a meaningful portion of the county's land base. The premium for prime over fair ground — approximately $4,260 per acre — is consistent with West Central Iowa market norms.

The Arlington township transactions stand out as the year's most notable events. Two January sales in Arlington — a 39.4-acre parcel and a 61.0-acre parcel, both at $18,250 per acre — set the county's high-water mark for 2025 and reflect the exceptional productivity of the county's best ground. The Rutland and Floyd townships also produced strong results, with averages above $12,000 per acre. These high-performing townships are concentrated in the county's eastern and central areas, where the loess soils are deepest and most productive.

CSR2 Tier Breakdown — 2025

Top Transactions — 2025

Township Analysis

Arlington township led Woodbury County in 2025 with three sales averaging $15,708 per acre, anchored by the two January transactions at $18,250 per acre. The 98.6 CSR2 score on the first Arlington parcel is among the highest recorded in the county's history and explains the exceptional price. Rutland and Floyd townships followed, each averaging above $12,000 per acre, while the county's western townships near Sioux City produced a mix of agricultural and urban-fringe transactions. The geographic concentration of high-value sales in the eastern and central townships reflects the county's soil quality gradient from the productive interior to the more challenging western bluffs.

Market Outlook

Woodbury County's farmland market is in a constructive position heading into 2026. The +4.7% gain in 2025, following a modest -4.7% dip in 2024, suggests a market that is finding stable footing in the $9,500–$10,500 per acre range for typical quality ground. The county's proximity to Sioux City's agricultural processing and export infrastructure, combined with its diverse land base, supports continued demand from both agricultural operators and investors. Prime ground in the Arlington, Rutland, and Floyd township areas should continue to command significant premiums over the county average.