What is a fair price per acre for land?

Hi!  First time poster here. We just bought and moved to a nice size farm in MI. We hope to raise our own animals next year, however, the Amish neighbors are currently "leasing" 30 acres of pasture.  I have 6 kids and an empty freezer and would like to barter but I'm not sure what's reasonable to ask for.  They've been using it for next to nothing (some sweet rolls and milk every now and then to the single older man who used to own it). It took us a month and a half to get into the place but it's been ours for that long.  No offers from them aside from wanting to use more land...

Advice please.
Thanks!

For the state of Michigan, the average land rent price according to these surveys was $127 per acre in 2019.

https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/farmland_rent_past_present_and_future

So based on those figures for your state you could charge them. $130*30 = $3,900.
Lets say you want to be nice and only charge them $3,000.
Cows tend to go for a price of $1 per pound. https://www.napoleontack.com/marketrpt.htm
So you should be getting 3 cows per year, but that might be too much beef. And you would have to kill and package the cow yourself. But I do recommend that you price out your what they have to offer based on those metrics. Maybe you need some laborer to help build fences. Or you want some bee hives. Or just a consultation.

They do understand that you are a new owner and will probably ask for more money to lease the pasture. So its okay to ask for more. You can ask the previous owner how much was traded for that 30acres. Maybe they can help you put in a fish pond, that will give you all the fish you need for decades. Or maybe they have some locally adapted cultivars of vegetables and fruiting shrubs/vines/trees that you would like to get from them.

Hi Marta,

Welcome to Permies! Congratulations on your new farm. So exciting.

I honestly don't have a specific answer for you, but I would suggest that since these folks are your neighbors, that you reach out to them as a neighbor. Keeping on good terms with neighbors is vitally important, in my opinion, especially since one never knows what's coming down the road.

It sounds like you might be using the acreage yourself next year or soon after. Is that correct? If so, they need to know that, so they have time to make other arrangements for their needs. In that case, maybe as a gesture of good will, keep the current lease similar to what they're used to, or at least something simple.

If you think you might lease it for longer, perhaps there is someone else in the area who leases to Amish folk? They might be a good resource to ask. You're ultimately dealing with a community, not just individuals, so consider everything you do as an investment in establishing lifelong relationships there.

Short and sweet - In my research in the last couple years in Florida which is a hot spot for the country moving to, is ranging about $10,000 per acre - and that is lots to homes on land (averaged for land value - excluding home conditions).

There are two types of ground in southern Michigan: Rocky glacial till which is usually forested, and clay soils which are "driftless regions" inbetween the woodlots. The glacial till makes for great recreation land, and the flat outwash plains make good farm ground. Prices can range from $5,000 per acre and up, with more expensive tracts having streams or lakes, or river bottom soil. It is more and more likely that inflation will intensify, so, unless you are selling a house to buy land, I would use the cash now to get the land. I did so in 2010 and did not regeret it.