People who fret about farmland prices getting too high tend to be overlooking the very low amount of debt owed by American farmers. The average U.S. farmer currently owes $9 for each $100 worth of assets. In the early 1980s, the average farmer owed $22 on every $100 worth of assets.
In terms of actual debt on land, some statistics from Mike Duffy and his research team at Iowa State University are helpful. In 1982, 62% of the farms in the state of Iowa had no note or mortgage associated with the land. In 2008, 75% of the farms in the state of Iowa had no mortgage.