Farmland Atlas · county record

Hancock County, Maine

Hancock County, ME: non-irrigated cash rent $125 an acre (2022); land and buildings $4,058 an acre in the 2022 census. County averages from public records, not an appraisal of any farm. FIPS 23009. Figures as of 2026-09-20.

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Land value rose 45.2 percent from 2017-2022, 7.7 percent a year. July nights average 58.5 F for 2017-2026 against a 1991-2020 normal of 57.4 F, part of a 0.6 F per decade warming trend since 1976; no July since 1900 has averaged 70 F or above at night.

Cash rent, non-irrigated

$125/ac

2022 county average
too few 2022 county surveys in the state to compare

Land and buildings

$4,058/ac

2022: what operators guessed land and buildings were worth
ME median $4,123 · 8th lowest of 16

Rent as % of land value

—

not shown: cropland is 19% of land in farms (2022 census), so the census value is mostly pasture, woods and buildings, not cropland

Corn yield, median

—

fewer than 8 published county corn yields

Claims paid per $100 of coverage

—

under the premium floor for a figure

Farmland rented

13%

2022 census, rented from others
ME median 13% · 8th lowest of 16

Cash rent

Non-irrigated, 2022$125/ac

Land value

Land and buildings, 2022$4,058/acoperators' own estimate, not a sale price

Census 2012$3,369/ac

Census 2017$2,794/ac

Change 2017 to 2022+45.2%+7.7% a year, nominal

Dry rent ÷ census value— cropland is 19% of land in farms (2022 census), so the census value is mostly pasture, woods and buildings, not cropland

Corn yield

County corn yield— fewer than 8 published county corn yields

Crop insurance record

Claims paid divided by total premium (the farmer share plus the federal subsidy), each closed crop year since 1997. Above the dashed line, the county's insurance book paid out more than it took in. 2026, still open, is left out.

Loss ratio, 1997–20251.11$1.9 million paid

Largest causes of loss, 1997–2025freeze 34% · area plans 33% · heat and drought 27%share of dollars paid

Drought and weather

Weeks per year, U.S. Drought Monitor, with half the county or more in D2 (severe) drought or worse.

D2 or worse for half the county, 2000–202556 of 1,357 weeks4% of weeks

Year with the most D2+ weeks202520 weeks

Last five years, 2021–202520 weeks

July average of daily lows, 2017–202658.5 °F1991–2020 normal 57.4 °F

Trend in July lows since 1976+0.60 °F a decadewarming

Rain, April to September22.4 in1991–2020 normal; last ten years 101% of it

Days with hail 1 inch or larger0.4 a yearreports, 2010–2025; a zero is no report, not proof of no hail

Land, water and programs

Harvested cropland irrigated, 20224%

Drained by tile, 20221% of cropland126 ac

Farmed no-till, 20225% of cropland522 ac

Cover crops, 20222% of cropland178 ac

Acres enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program, USDA FSA, by fiscal year.

CRP enrolled, 20250 ac

Solar and wind operating, 202533.8 MW solar · 158.1 MW windnameplate, EIA Form 860

Cattle and calves, 2022270−27.0% since 2017

Farmland rented from others, 202213%census tenure, owned plus rented acres in farms

Next door

County	Dry rent	Land value	Claims per $100
Hancock County	—	$4,058	—
Penobscot County	$53	$3,836	$2.03
Waldo County	$28	$4,188	—
Washington County	—	$2,136	$16.10
Median next door	$40 2 co.	$3,836	$9.07 2 co.

Counties that share a stretch of boundary. An older rent carries its year and stays out of the median.

Cite this page

AGSIST Farmland Atlas. Hancock County, Maine. Figures as of 2026-09-20, from USDA NASS, USDA RMA, USDA FSA, the U.S. Drought Monitor and NOAA. https://agsist.com/farmland-atlas/maine/hancock-county

Every figure is a county average from the sources named below. Ranks count counties with 10,000 acres or more in farms, in the same survey year for rent, within the state. Methods: how each figure is built. Downloads: all counties, CSV.

Sources, dates and arithmetic

"Figures as of" is the date this page's numbers last changed; it moves only when a figure on the page does. Source files and their retrieval dates are listed on the data page.

Rent: USDA NASS Cash Rents Survey, county. Land value: Census of Agriculture, operators' estimate of land and buildings. Yield: NASS county corn yields, trend fitted here over every published year since 2008. Loss ratio: claims (indemnity) divided by total premium, USDA RMA Summary of Business, 1989 on, open crop year left out. Drought: U.S. Drought Monitor, weeks with half the county or more in D2 or worse. July lows: NOAA nClimDiv county monthly minimum temperature. A dash means the record does not carry the figure or the source withheld it; the reason is printed beside it.

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