XENIA, Ohio — Good bargains in rural houses and rental property can still be found in southwestern Ohio, but if you’re looking to purchase farmland anytime soon it’s best to have some deep pockets.

For the second time during the month of June, a record land price was reached at a farmland sale in northwestern Greene County. The land auction of 247 acres took place June 26, located between West Enon Road and Armstrong Road near Fairborn. It was sold in four tracts.

The record price at this auction was on the 77-acre tillable tract. The final sale price was $650,000, or $8,454 per acre. This record price per acre exceeded the price of $8,031 per acre for a similar property, reached at a June 5, 74-acre land auction of property located on Long Road east of Xenia.

“The location and size of the farm was definitely a contributing factor in the success of this sale,” said Matt Sheridan, one of Sheridan & Associates’ auction managers.

During the period from 2003-11, this farmland averaged 166 bushels per acre of corn.

The other tracts consisted of 160 acres featuring approximately 90 tillable acres and nearly 70 wooded hillside acres, and two 5-acre building lots.

Once bidding was complete, the farm sold to four buyers for a total price of $1.44 million.

“During our marketing campaign, we heard from prospective buyers from Arizona, Kansas, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and all areas of Ohio,” Sheridan said. “We also tracked more than 5,000 hits to our Internet auction listing for this property, which assured us that interest was high.

“The lack of available land combined with sustained increases in crop yields and low interest rates are continuing to preserve strong land prices. If interest rates increase as expected, it will be interesting to see how land prices are impacted.”

The June 26 auction, conducted at the Greene County Fairgrounds in Xenia, was attended by 150 people with nearly 30 registered on-site and phone bidders.

The farm was owned by the Wilkerson family, who had the farm for three generations spanning more than 100 years.

Charles Pogue Wilkerson originally purchased the farm after selling a Warren County farm he had inherited. Active bidders during the auction consisted mostly of a mix of area farmland owners and investors.