Westmeath residential farm exceeds €18,500/ac at auction

Mullingar-based auctioneers Murtagh Bros conducted a pair of successful online auctions last week, which resulted in two farmers adding to their existing holdings.

First up on Thursday 31 October was a 44ac residential farm at Pass of Kilbride, Milltownpass, Co Westmeath.

Containing a spacious two-storey house with four bedrooms, along with a well-maintained yard nearby, it attracted significant interest before the auction.

The land to the rear of the house is all in pasture and is suited to any farming enterprise.

It's location, on the outskirts of the village of Milltownpass, a short distance from the Kinnegad M4/M6 junction, also appealed to potential buyers.

The pre-sale interest translated into solid bids when the auction got under way, before the hammer fell at €820,000. That price put it over €18,600/ac (€18636/ac).

Auctioneer Dillon Murtagh reported that the successful purchaser was a farmer. The underbidder, while not engaged in farming, had strong agricultural interests.

Farmer's farm

The following day's auction on Friday 1 November was an all-farming affair, as a number of farmers bid on a 28ac grassland farm about 1km from Rathconrath village.

Dillon had described it ahead of the sale as a real farmer's farm and reported a very competitive online auction with a number of committed bidders.

Guided ahead of the sale at €275,000, after a keen contest the hammer fell at €296,000. This equates to just over €10,500/ac (€10,571/ac).

The land, all in one block and in grass, also had a three-bay slatted cattle shed sited towards the rear of the holding, which is accessed by a hardcore farm laneway.