REAL ESTATE

A McGrath rural agent says well set-up mixed farms in the NSW Central West sell for A$10,000 an acre or more as post-COVID growth cools.

Rata Downs, a 260ha South Waikato farm with more than 2km of lake frontage, a private boat ramp and duck shooting, is going to auction.

A West Coast dairy farmer says buyers paying top prices for farms are the ones most likely to bring risk back into the industry.

The founder says an equity manager will buy shares in the farm over time and can buy out the fund within about 10 years.

An 80ha dairy farm at Turua on the Hauraki Plains is pitched as a first-farm option.

Canterbury Country manager for Bayleys Rob McConachy says it is above the district’s usual range for blue-chip irrigated land.

Flat and bare land is in strong demand across the Wairarapa, setting the region up for a busy spring.

Bayleys' Raymond Mountfort says median prices are holding, up 1.3% year on year for mid-2026, while more expensive properties are up 11%.

Every part of the Bay of Plenty rural sector is performing at once, with dairy, kiwifruit and lifestyle properties flooding the market.

Bayleys Country salesperson Shay Moseby says dairy drove the lift as 50 dairy farms changed hands last year.