Land sold back to farmers at knockdown prices

Land in Ireland once earmarked for homes and offices is being sold at knockdown prices to farmers, sometimes the same farmers who made fortunes selling it in the boom years, as swathes of the country return to its agricultural roots.

Irish lenders and Nama are cranking up the sale of land to farmers as they accept some locations are dead to developers, even at bargain prices.

Land zoned for housing that sold for €1m per acre before the 2008 crash now fetches about €10,000 as farmland, or €50,000 as development land, according to Chris Smith, regional manager for rural properties at Gunne auctioneers.