Three parcels of farm land in the midlands, totalling 339ac, sold for €1.68 million at an auction last Friday, July 14.
A total of four lots were originally placed on the market near Moate in Co. Westmeath. However, the fourth lot – consisting of 28.09ac – was not offered on the day.
The auction, which was being managed by estate agents Murtagh Bros, took place in the Greville Arms Hotel in Mullingar, Co. Westmeath.
Three lots went under the hammer on the day of the auction; the first lot consisted of 104.87ac and a four-bed residence based in Kilnahinch in Co. Westmeath.
Image source: Murtagh Bros
Adjacent to this was a 99.07ac block of land, which made up the second lot on offer. The remaining lot was located in Kilcurley in Co. Offaly – just a few kilometers away from Kilnahinch.
The third lot consisted of 135.03ac; approximately 32.74ac of this is covered in forestry – with premiums payable over the next year.
It was advertised as having good road frontage to country roads; a guide price of between €4,500 and €5,000/ac was placed on the land, by Dillion Murtagh, of Murtagh Bros.
Good attendance
Prior to the auction, Murtagh told AgriLand that the sheer size of the farm had generated a significant amount of interest around the sale.
On the day, between 60 and 70 people were in the auction room; there was plenty of action from bidders, Murtagh said.
A total of 339ac were on offer. There was a very good attendance at the auction and we were happy to see a good crowd of people.
Both the first and second lot were sold together, Murtagh told AgriLand today. Consisting of almost 204ac, the bidding opened at €800,000.
Image source: Murtagh Bros
The land was put on the market when bidding reached €900,000, eventually selling for €925,000; this averaged at around €4,535/ac.
Meanwhile, bidding for the third lot opened at €500,000. It was placed on the market at €640,000, before surging upwards to its sale price of €755,000. Consisting of almost 135ac, the third lot averaged €5,591/ac.
The combined average price of the land equalled just below €5,000/ac; proving that Murtagh Bros’ guide price was accurate.