Farmland Atlas · county record

Benzie County, Michigan

Benzie County, MI: non-irrigated cash rent $81 an acre (2026); land and buildings $6,283 an acre in the 2022 census; median corn yield 117.5 bu/ac. County averages from public records, not an appraisal of any farm. FIPS 26019. Figures as of 2026-09-20.

Open on the map Compare Printable sheet

Land value in the 2022 census was $6,283 per acre, up 58.6 percent from 2017, 9.7 percent a year. July nightly lows averaged 59.5 F over 2017-2026, up from the 1991-2020 normal of 57.7 F, warming at 0.83 F per decade since 1976. Solar and wind operating capacity are both 0 MW.

Cash rent, non-irrigated
$81/ac
2026 county average
MI median $100 · 27th lowest of 70
Land and buildings
$6,283/ac
2022: what operators guessed land and buildings were worth
MI median $5,270 · 22nd highest of 76
Rent as % of land value
—
not shown: NASS published no non-irrigated cash rent for this county in 2022
Corn yield, 2008–2023 median
117.5 bu/ac
recent level 2019–2023: 130.6 · irrigated and dryland combined
Claims paid per $100 of coverage
$6.78
2016–2025, closed crop years
MI median $5.92 · 29th highest of 62
Farmland rented
20%
2022 census, rented from others
MI median 34% · 12th lowest of 78

Cash rent

Non-irrigated, 2026$81/ac

Land value

Land and buildings, 2022$6,283/acoperators' own estimate, not a sale price
Census 2012$4,169/ac
Census 2017$3,961/ac
Change 2017 to 2022+58.6%+9.7% a year, nominal
Dry rent ÷ census value— NASS published no non-irrigated cash rent for this county in 2022

Corn yield

2008201020122014201620182020202279.0120.076.7105.0118.3113.6116.7126.991.7139.8155.1121.4median 117.5

Bushels per acre, USDA NASS county yields, all practices. The dashed line is the median of the published years.

Median, 2008–2023117.5 bu/ac12 published years, irrigated and dryland combined
Recent level, 2019–2023130.6 bu/ac4 published years, high and low dropped
Lowest published year2011: 76.7 bu/ac65% of median
Trend, 2008–2023+3.2 bu/ac a year±2.7 (95% interval)

Crop insurance record

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$6.78
Loss ratio, 2016–20250.45claims ÷ total premium
Loss ratio, 1989–20250.71$4.5 million paid
Largest causes of loss, 1989–2025freeze 82% · heat and drought 8% · price decline (revenue policies) 7%share of dollars paid

Drought and weather

200020052010201520202025044

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, 2000–202515 of 1,357 weeks1% of weeks
Year with the most D2+ weeks20254 weeks
Last five years, 2021–202511 weeks
July average of daily lows, 2017–202659.5 °F1991–2020 normal 57.7 °F
Trend in July lows since 1976+0.83 °F a decadewarming
Rain, April to September19.0 in1991–2020 normal; last ten years 98% of it
Days with hail 1 inch or larger0.1 a yearreports, 2010–2025; a zero is no report, not proof of no hail

Land, water and programs

Harvested cropland irrigated, 202211%
Drained by tile, 2022under 1% of cropland11 ac
Farmed no-till, 20228% of cropland629 ac
Cover crops, 20228% of cropland645 ac
19861991199620012006201120162021103219

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

CRP enrolled, 202519 ac
CRP expiring FY2026–202819 ac
Irrigation wells on record96Michigan EGLE Wellogic water well records
Median well depth149 ft
Cattle and calves, 2022593−47.8% since 2017
Farmland rented from others, 202220%census tenure, owned plus rented acres in farms

Next door

CountyDry rentIrr. rentLand valueCorn yieldClaims per $100
Benzie County$81—$6,283—$6.78
Grand Traverse County$65—$9,197113.2$11.29
Leelanau County$75$252$10,28695.8$16.96
Manistee County$35$78$4,308—$13.52
Median next door$65$165 2 co.$9,197104.5 2 co.$13.52

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. Benzie County, Michigan. 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/michigan/benzie-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.