Major Iowa Land Auction Selling Absolute! The partnership of Peoples Company and Community Insurance Agency are honored to represent the Garst Family in the sale of 1,998.04 total acres m/l located in Coon Rapids, Iowa and in the West Central Iowa counties of Carroll, Greene, Audubon, and Guthrie. The Garst Family name resonates throughout the agricultural community for their involvement in some of history’s more notable advancements to agriculture. The Garst Family also takes pride in the pioneering of several conservation efforts implemented on their farmland including early adoption of no-till farming practices in the 1980’s, cover crops, terraces and erosion control through maintained waterways. Years of consistent application of these practices have improved the soil in terms of better yield productivity, limited erosion, and elevated organic matter allowing crops to thrive and have hardened the landscape for potential erratic weather and climate adjustments. Located just outside of the strong farming community of Coon Rapids, Iowa, these farms would be a great addition to any farm operation or an investment grade purchase for a land investor.
Of the 1,998.04 total acres m/l, there are 1,910.27 FSA Cropland Acres with outstanding average CSR2 values between 88.6 and 70. The primary soil types on these tracts include top producing Clarion loam, Nicollet loam, Webster clay loam, Marshall clay loam and Judson clay loam. The farm leases will be terminated and farming rights for 2022 will be made available to each Buyer. This highly tillable portfolio of farmland offers opportunities for a variety of land buyers with tracts sizes ranging from 51 acres to over 494 acres. These farms have benefitted from years of diligent farm management and record keeping complete with regular soil testing, 20 years of crop yield history, and complete drainage tile maps; allowing a Buyer to be well-informed in the purchase of these farms. Copies of Yield or Fertility Information are available to interested parties. Please contact agent or visit the “Data Room” at the auction website GarstFarmsAuction.com for additional information.
Conservation Easement
As part of this auction, all tracts included in this sale will be covered by a permanent conservation easement specific to each individual tract established by the Seller in an effort to maintain the conservation value on the farms. The conservation easement was prepared by the law firm of Simmons, Perrine, Moyer, Bergman, PLC in collaboration with the Garst family, while consulting with and receiving input from those with farming and conservation backgrounds. Potential bidders are encouraged to review the easements and can be done so via the “Data Room” accompanying the listing page for the property on Peoples Company’s website.
This easement was established to continue the Garst family’s legacy of conservation and safeguard the renewable agriculture values of the farms for generations to come. The easement broadly enhances the sustainability and conservation values of the farms to bolster their continued economic productivity and farm profitability. Specifically, it requires that certain sustainable agriculture practices be used on the farms and that conservation measures and structures currently utilized on the farms be maintained. Practices include, but are not limited to, no-till farming, annual cover crop plantings post-harvest, and maintenance of existing terraces and waterways. The easement also governs the ability of future owners to construct certain structures on the property and guide their placement to preserve the integrity of the socially responsible practices. Overall, the conservation easement draws on the preservation efforts implemented over decades by the Garst family and advances the sustainable values of the property to the environment and public at-large. The conservation easement will be practically enforced by the local land conservation group Whiterock Conservancy, which will provide guidance on the conservation values upheld by the easement as technology and farming practices adjust over time.
The farmland tracts will be offered as 8 individual tracts via a Sealed-Bid Auction with a Live Auction to follow. Sealed-Bid Auction bids are due before 5:00 P.M. on Friday, August 6th. The top 7 individual tract or combination tract bidders will be invited to attend the Live Auction on Tuesday, August 17th at 10:00 AM.
**All preliminary title opinions prepared by Simmons Perrine Moyer Bergman PLC are prepared for the seller’s purposes only and are posted in the data room for informational purposes only.
Bidders should not rely on these title opinions in any manner. Bidders should only rely on the opinion of their own legal counsel as to any title matters related to any of the parcels.
