VICTORIA'S rural property market is showing signs of recovery heading into the winter selling season.
Buoyed by the sale of Western District grazing and cropping land and modest interest rates, the State's market is slowly starting to shift, according to agents.
Landmark Harcourts' auctions campaign has produced some positive results, with Brian Liston, North East Victoria, selling several mixed farming properties under the hammer at between $600,000 and more than $1 million.
North-west cropping land was "almost fully valued", according to Landmark Harcourts' Mark Clyne, who said he had sold a number of parcels at $1m-$1.5m.
Mr Clyne said he expected grazing land south of the Divide to jump in value over the next few months, given the upturn in lamb prices.
Land around the Balmoral area is currently valued at about $1300 an acre ($3212 a hectare) but could very quickly get up to $1500 ($3706/ha), he said.
Autumn was "when the sheep guys came out of the woodwork", according to Mr Clyne, who said a lot of land in the area was being held back until prices rose.
Dairy land in the State's west has begun to appreciate.
Brian Hancock, Brian Halloran & Co Warrnambool, recently sold 366ha of milking platform at $3000-$5000/acre ($7413-$12,355/ha) – a price he said was indicative of growing confidence in the area.
Senior director of agribusiness CBRE Victoria, Tim McKinnon, said while Victorian property was "stagnant to steady", a number of recent transactions had taken place in the southern Riverina with a view to growing cotton.
Southern Agricultural Resources Limited recently purchased Twynam Group's Gundaline Station for about $25 million, while Tandou was involved in a $33.2m part purchase of Ravensworth Farm near Hay, NSW.
A number of larger irrigation properties in areas south and west of Hay will be auctioned in coming weeks.
Riverina station Warbreccan, Deniliquin, NSW, is expected to make $4m in the collective auction of its homestead and land while Shane Gilligan, the owner of a 769ha parcel at Jerilderie, NSW, says that property should make $500/acre ($1235/ha) at auction.
Elders agent Matt Horne said the southern Riverina wasn't flooded with properties but consumer confidence was up following stable grain and rice prices.
Elders' national sales manager Shane McIntyre said Victorian sales this autumn included grazing land in the Western District, irrigation holdings in the State's north and lifestyle blocks closer to Melbourne.
About 270ha of cropping and grazing land at Antwerp sold to $507,778 in March, while a mixed farming block (259ha) at Noradjuha went for $1,510,942 in February.
"The indicators are that values are consistent with vendor expectations," said Mr McIntyre, who added the majority of Elders' selling activity in Victoria would take place in May-June.
"There's a renewed confidence around the agriculture space which is reflected in an increased level of inquiry from national and international investors," he said.
Ballarat's Lal Lal estate, a 2000ha Merino wool property, is reportedly being sold to Chinese wool-buying company Tianyu, while Blackwood in the Western District was allegedly sold for $14m to East Asian investors in February.
