Data released by the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand shows there were 121 more farm sales for the three months ended August 2020 than for the three months ended August 2019.

In the Bay of Plenty area, there were solid sales of predominantly smaller avocado orchards.

While there were no farm sales in Rotorua, there was a deer unit in the wider Tauranga area with good prices paid for an arable and a finishing unit in the Whakatane district/

Overall, there were 386 farm sales in the three months ended August 2020, compared to 341 farm sales for the three months ended July 2020 (+13.2 per cent), and 265 farm sales for the three months ended August 2019.

REINZ says the median price per hectare for all farms sold in the three months to August 2020 was $25,657 compared to $25,346 recorded for three months ended August 2019 (+1.2 per cent).

Twelve of the 14 regions recorded an increase in the number of farm sales for the three months ended August 2020 compared to the three months ended August 2019, with the most notable being Canterbury (+24) and Manawatu/Wanganui (+21).

Bay of Plenty recorded the most substantial decline in sales (-3) followed by Nelson (-1). Compared to the three months ended July 2020, 10 regions recorded an increase in sales with the biggest increases being in Otago (+12) and Canterbury (+11).

"Sales data for the 3-month period ending August 2020 is positive with total farms sold (386) being at the strongest level since the equivalent period in 2016 (393),” says REINZ rural spokesman Brian Peacocke.

'Seasonal issues such as weather, feed, water, compliance, product prices, availability of finance, interest rates and the health status of the nation remain constant in the rural market, while resilience remains the dominant factor.”