Nearly 7,500 Acres of Nebraska Farmland Head to Auction in October 2026
By Amanda Miller Updated on October 10, 2026
More than 7,491 acres of farmland are scheduled to be auctioned in Nebraska during October 2026. Listings span 20 counties and range from 33 to 2,242 acres. Here’s a closer look at several notable sales.
Cheyenne & Garden Counties
In Cheyenne and Garden counties, 2,244 acres will be auctioned on Oct. 15 at 1:30 p.m., offering seven tracts of non-irrigated farmland.
Kraupie’s Real Estate & Auctioneers is handling the sale on behalf of Bondegard Farms Inc.
The seven tracts range from approximately 160-639 acres and are located near Lodgepole. Six are in Cheyenne County, while the seventh is in neighboring Garden County. The farms generally follow a winter wheat-summer fallow rotation, with several tracts already seeded for the 2027 wheat crop.
Tract 1 is the largest at approximately 639 acres and consists of a full section of non-irrigated farmland. Approximately 306.3 acres are seeded for the 2027 wheat crop, with the remaining 360.37 acres in fallow.
The remaining Cheyenne County offerings include two approximately 160-acre tracts and three parcels ranging from 316-322 acres. Several include significant Class I acreage and a combination of ground seeded to wheat and summer fallow. Tract 7, the lone Garden County property, includes approximately 326 acres with 174.75 acres seeded for 2027 wheat and 158.56 acres in summer fallow.
Darrell Kraupie of Kraupie’s Real Estate & Auctioneers said the property has been held by the Bondegard family as part of a multigenerational family farming operation. He described the offering as quality farmland in an excellent wheat-producing area, with large parcels well suited to the region’s traditional summer fallow and wheat rotation.
“It’s great land and great parcels,” Kraupie said.
Interest ahead of the auction has come from both local farmers and investors, Kraupie said. He noted that absentee landowners are also part of the land market south of Lodgepole, adding another potential buyer group as the seven tracts head to auction.
Holt County
In Holt County, 1,830.1 acres of pasture and hay meadow will be offered in four tracts via a hybrid auction on Oct. 16. The live auction is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at the Atkinson Community Center and online bidding beginning Oct. 12.
Farmers National Company is handling the sale on behalf of H Bar D Ranch LLC.
Located in central Holt County along the eastern edge of the Nebraska Sandhills, the four tracts range from approximately 146-883 acres. The offering combines pasture and hay meadow with livestock water, shelter, and ranch improvements, and all four tracts have road access. Full possession will be available for the 2027 production year.
Tract 1 includes approximately 146.65 acres of pasture southwest of Atkinson. Dry Creek runs through the property, providing year-round live water for livestock, and newer fencing has been installed along two sides.
The approximately 480-acre Tract 2 is designed as a summer grazing unit and includes two windmills, a solar well, and several dugouts for livestock water. Established tree belts provide additional livestock protection, while an ongoing cedar management program has been used to maintain pasture productivity. The tract’s layout also provides an opportunity for additional cross-fencing and rotational grazing.
Tract 3 consists of approximately 320 acres of productive hay meadow. Mature cottonwood and cedar shelterbelts provide protection from winter weather, while improvements include several older cattle loafing sheds, a windmill, a flowing well with a rubber tire tank, and an additional livestock well.
At approximately 883.54 acres, Tract 4 is the largest property in the offering and serves as the H Bar D Ranch headquarters. It combines approximately 160 acres of hay meadow with Sandhills pasture, along with multiple windmills, dugouts, and natural water holes. Improvements include a 30-by-50-foot Butler shop, a 24-by-50-foot cattle loafing shed, an 18-by-36-foot livestock building, an older barn, and additional ranch buildings. Mature shelterbelts and strategically located livestock protection areas add shelter throughout the property.
Together, the four tracts provide a mix of summer grazing, hay production, livestock water, and winter protection, with the headquarters tract adding infrastructure that could support a larger cattle operation.
Dave Hickey, real estate agent with Farmers National Company, said current cattle prices could help generate interest in the offering, particularly among existing cattle producers looking to expand.
“With cattle prices looking good, that may help,” Hickey said. “It’s what I like to call a bolt-on property for existing cattle producers.
Hickey said he also expects Tracts 3 and 4 to attract interest from some of the same buyers due to their proximity and complementary uses.
“If someone is interested in Tracts 3 and 4, they’re typically interested in both of them because of the convenience,” Hickey said. “Together, it’s big enough to provide both hay production and summer pasture grazing opportunities.”
Saline County
In Saline County, 515.82 acres of farmland will be offered in three tracts at an Oct. 8 simulcast auction. The live auction is scheduled for 10 a.m. at The 1206 in Crete. Online bidding opens Oct. 5 and will continue simultaneously with the live auction.
Farmers National Company is handling the sale on behalf of Niemeyer Land & Farming Partnership.
Located south of Crete, the offering combines irrigated and dryland production across three separate farms. The tracts range from approximately 118-242 acres and collectively include nearly 484 acres of cropland. Irrigation equipment will be conveyed with Tracts 1 and 3.
Tract 1 includes approximately 118.14 acres, of which 117.4 acres are classified as cropland. A seven-tower center pivot irrigates approximately three-quarters of a circle.
The approximately 155.74-acre Tract 2 is the lone property without irrigation equipment. It includes 133.44 cropland acres, along with approximately 18.36 non-crop acres and 2.06 acres associated with a creek. Its FSA crop bases include wheat, grain sorghum, and soybeans.
At approximately 241.94 acres, Tract 3 is the largest of the three farms and includes 233.08 cropland acres. A nine-tower center pivot irrigates a full circle, and its associated well pumps 800 gallons per minute. The pump was installed in 2024.
The combination of productive dryland and irrigated acres, established irrigation infrastructure, and multiple tract sizes could appeal to area producers looking to add acres to an existing operation.
What is the NCCPI?
The National Commodity Crop Productivity Index (NCCPI) is a USDA-developed rating that estimates a soil’s potential to produce commodity crops on a scale of 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating greater productivity.
While NCCPI values vary across Nebraska because of differences in soil type, precipitation, growing conditions and irrigation availability, farms with scores in the upper 70s, 80s and 90s are generally considered highly productive and can represent some of the state’s more desirable cropland.
Other Farmland Sales
At least 7 additional farmland auctions are expected across the state. Other Nebraska farmland sales scheduled for September are spread across the state, highlighting the diversity of the state’s agricultural land market.Auction formats vary, giving buyers several ways to participate. The Cass County offering will sell through a sealed-bid process, while the Kearney County property is being marketed through an online-only auction. Other properties are being offered through traditional and online auction platforms.
Beyond the featured properties, 21 Nebraska farmland sales are scheduled for October across 20 counties. The offerings are geographically diverse, with sales spread across the state but notable concentrations in western, central, and eastern Nebraska.
A combination of live and online bidding is the most common auction method, accounting for 12 of the 21 sales. Another eight are scheduled as online-only auctions, while a 70.43-acre York County farm will be offered by sealed bid. The month’s offerings range considerably in size, from 33 acres in Howard County to the 2,242-acre Bondegard Farms offering in Cheyenne and Garden counties. Other large properties include 1,830.1 acres in Holt County, 640.43 acres in Greeley County, and 515.82 acres in Saline County.
The October lineup also reflects Nebraska’s varied agricultural landscape. Western offerings include dryland wheat ground as well as irrigated farms, including a 160.69-acre Keith County pivot-irrigated property. Farther east, buyers will find smaller cropland offerings in counties including Dixon, Lancaster, Thurston, Wayne, and York.
Pasture is another notable component of the month’s inventory, including the 640.43-acre Greeley County offering and the Holt County sale, which combines Sandhills pasture and hay meadow with livestock water, shelter, and ranch improvements.
Overall, October’s listings show a broad mix of irrigated and dryland cropland, pasture and hay ground, with both smaller individual farms and large multi-tract offerings available to buyers across the state.
Geographically, the September lineup stretches from the Panhandle and western Nebraska to the central, northeastern, and southeastern portions of the state. The mix of dryland farms and properties in areas where irrigation is an important component of agricultural production also reflects the varied land uses and growing conditions found across Nebraska.
Overall, September’s sales show a geographically broad market with both smaller tracts and several offerings approaching or exceeding 200 acres.
Economic Analysis
Nebraska agricultural land values remain relatively stable heading into the second half of 2026, although buyers are becoming more selective as tighter margins and higher borrowing costs influence purchasing decisions, according to Jim Jansen, agricultural economist with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Nebraska’s agricultural land market remains relatively steady heading further into the fall selling season, although buyers are becoming more selective as tight crop margins continue to pressure cropland values.
Jim Jansen, agricultural economist with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, said the overall outlook has changed little over the past month, but property quality is becoming increasingly important in determining what buyers are willing to pay.
“As we move further into the fall selling season, I expect the quality of the property to have a larger influence on the sale price,” Jansen said. “Good irrigated farms with dependable water and productive soils should continue to attract interest.”
Average-quality dryland cropland, however, may face more resistance from buyers, he said. Grazing land remains one of the stronger segments of Nebraska’s market, supported by cattle prices and improved returns for livestock producers.
The amount of agricultural land coming to market also appears relatively typical for the fall season. Jansen said he is seeing a mix of irrigated, dryland, and grazing properties scheduled for sale through the remainder of the year, without a significant increase in inventory that would add additional pressure to land values.
Overall, Jansen said recent activity reinforces his outlook from September: a relatively steady market in which buyers are increasingly selective and land quality, water availability, and property type could play a larger role in sale results as the year winds down.
While demand remains, market conditions vary by land type. Grazing land continues to show strength, supported by strong cattle prices. Cropland, however, has softened in some areas, with performance varying depending on land quality and location.
“Strong cattle markets remain a key factor in sustaining current grazing land values,” Jansen said. “Meanwhile, narrower crop margins and higher interest rates have made cropland buyers more cautious.”
Limited availability is also helping support Nebraska’s agricultural land market. Jansen said there has not been a significant increase in the number of properties coming to market compared with earlier this year.
As harvest approaches and farmland auction activity typically picks up, Jansen expects values to remain steady to slightly lower through the end of 2026. However, high-quality properties could continue to generate competition among buyers at fall auctions.
Farmers, landowners and prospective buyers should continue monitoring commodity prices, input costs, interest rates, cattle prices and overall farm income this fall. Jansen said those economic factors will play an important role in shaping buyer demand and Nebraska agricultural land values through the remainder of the year.
