Farmland Atlas · county record

Hampden County, Massachusetts

Hampden County, MA: non-irrigated cash rent $130 an acre (2026); land and buildings $13,611 an acre in the 2022 census. County averages from public records, not an appraisal of any farm. FIPS 25013. Figures as of 2026-09-20.

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Non-irrigated cash rent for 2026 averages $130 per acre. Land value in the 2022 census stood at $13,611 per acre, up 31.6 percent from 2017, 5.6 percent a year. July nights have warmed from a 59.9 F normal to 61.8 F over 2017-2026, part of a 0.87 F per decade warming trend since 1976, though no July since 1900 has averaged a low at or above 70 F. Drought has stayed limited, with severe drought or worse in only 77 of 1357 weeks from 2000-2025, 20 of those weeks falling in 2021-2025; crop insurance losses in the county have run mostly to excess moisture and flood, at 45 percent of $34.9 million paid out since 1991.

Cash rent, non-irrigated
$130/ac
2026 county average
MA median $82 · 2nd highest of 9
Cash rent, irrigated
$265/ac
2023 county average
too few 2023 county surveys in the state to compare
Land and buildings
$13,611/ac
2022: what operators guessed land and buildings were worth
MA median $14,377 · 4th lowest of 9
Corn yield, median
—
fewer than 8 published county corn yields
Claims paid per $100 of coverage
$27.28
2016–2025, closed crop years
MA median $12.15 · highest of 7
Farmland rented
15%
2022 census, rented from others
MA median 15% · 5th lowest of 9

Cash rent

$0$50$100$150$200$250202120222023202420252026$102$130 dry$207$265 irrigated

Dollars per acre, USDA NASS county survey. A break in a line is a year with no published survey; nothing is drawn across it.

Non-irrigated, 2026$130/ac
Irrigated, 2023$265/ac

Land value

Land and buildings, 2022$13,611/acoperators' own estimate, not a sale price
Census 2012$7,343/ac
Census 2017$10,343/ac
Change 2017 to 2022+31.6%+5.6% a year, nominal
Dry rent ÷ census value— NASS published no non-irrigated cash rent for this county in 2022

Corn yield

County corn yield— fewer than 8 published county corn yields

Crop insurance record

2016202120250.450.610.240.160.333.040.173.250.481.371.00: claims equal premium

Claims paid divided by total premium (the farmer share plus the federal subsidy), each closed crop year since 1989. Above the dashed line, the county's insurance book paid out more than it took in. 2026, still open, is left out.

Claims paid per $100 of coverage, 2016–2025$27.28
Loss ratio, 2016–20251.12claims ÷ total premium
Loss ratio, 1989–20251.33$34.9 million paid
Years claims exceeded premium3 of 10
Worst year2023ratio 3.25
Largest causes of loss, 1991–2025excess moisture 45% · other 36% · hail 8%share of dollars paid

Drought and weather

2000200520102015202020250229

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, 2000–202577 of 1,357 weeks6% of weeks
Year with the most D2+ weeks201622 weeks
Last five years, 2021–202520 weeks
July average of daily lows, 2017–202661.8 °F1991–2020 normal 59.9 °F
Trend in July lows since 1976+0.87 °F a decadewarming
Rain, April to September25.6 in1991–2020 normal; last ten years 103% of it
Days with hail 1 inch or larger1.4 a yearreports, 2010–2025; a zero is no report, not proof of no hail

Land, water and programs

Harvested cropland irrigated, 202217%
Drained by tile, 20222% of cropland190 ac
Farmed no-till, 20226% of cropland693 ac
Cover crops, 202211% of cropland1,196 ac

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

CRP enrolled, 20250 ac
Solar and wind operating, 2025185.2 MW solar · 5 MW windnameplate, EIA Form 860
Cattle and calves, 20221,490−38.1% since 2017
Farmland rented from others, 202215%census tenure, owned plus rented acres in farms

Next door

CountyDry rentIrr. rentLand valueClaims per $100
Hampden County$130$265 2023$13,611$27.28
Hartford County, CT$152—$15,160$21.93
Litchfield County, CT$47 2025—$14,512$11.66
Tolland County, CT$90—$13,021$11.73
Berkshire County$58$114$8,606$9.05
Hampshire County$129$268$10,568$19.22
Worcester County$61$320 2025$15,447$12.15
Median next door$90$191 2 co.$13,767$11.94

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. Hampden County, Massachusetts. 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/massachusetts/hampden-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.