Farmland Atlas · county record

Accomack County, Virginia

Accomack County, VA: non-irrigated cash rent $112 an acre (2026); land and buildings $5,045 an acre in the 2022 census; median corn yield 156.9 bu/ac. County averages from public records, not an appraisal of any farm. FIPS 51001. Figures as of 2026-09-20.

Open on the map Compare Printable sheet

Non-irrigated cash rent in Accomack County runs $112 per acre in 2026, up 33.3 percent from 2016. Irrigated land carries a higher rent, $115 per acre in 2021, though the irrigated premium has no clear direction, running 1.36 in 2021 against 1.83 in 2010. Only 7 percent of harvested cropland is irrigated, and 10 percent of irrigation water comes from groundwater. Heat and drought drove 54 percent of crop insurance indemnities across all closed years, with the share at 65 percent in 1989-1999, 40 percent in 2000-2009, 62 percent in 2010-2019, and 54 percent in 2020-2025. July nights have warmed from a 70.1 F normal to a 71.5 F average over 2017-2026, consistent with a warming trend since 1976.

Cash rent, non-irrigated
$112/ac
2026 county average
VA median $47 · highest of 84
Cash rent, irrigated
$115/ac
2021 county average
too few 2021 county surveys in the state to compare
Land and buildings
$5,045/ac
2022: what operators guessed land and buildings were worth
VA median $4,596 · 37th highest of 86
Corn yield, 2008–2025 median
156.9 bu/ac
recent level 2021–2025: 168.7
VA median 145.9 · 2nd highest of 25
Claims paid per $100 of coverage
$10.21
2016–2025, closed crop years
VA median $8.45 · 30th highest of 67
Farmland rented
61%
2022 census, rented from others
VA median 33% · 4th highest of 90

Cash rent

$0$20$40$60$80$100$1202010201520202025$60$112 dry$109$115 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$112/ac
Change 2016 to 2026+33.3%nominal, $84 to $112
Irrigated, 2021$115/ac
Dry rent per bushel of corn$0.66$112 ÷ 168.7 bu, county yield 2021–2025

Land value

Land and buildings, 2022$5,045/acoperators' own estimate, not a sale price
Census 2012$3,665/ac
Census 2017$4,268/ac
Change 2017 to 2022+18.2%+3.4% a year, nominal
Dry cropland rent ÷ census value, 20221.79%$91 ÷ $5,045; cropland 74% of land in farms

Corn yield

200820102012201420162018202020222024133.0177.6175.5median 156.9

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

Median, 2008–2025156.9 bu/ac17 published years
Recent level, 2021–2025168.7 bu/ac4 published years, high and low dropped
Lowest published year2010: 66.3 bu/ac42% of median
Trend, 2008–2025+2.7 bu/ac a year±2.6 (95% interval)

Crop insurance record

1998200320082013201820231.032.251.181.00: 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$10.21
Loss ratio, 2016–20250.80claims ÷ total premium
Loss ratio, 1989–20250.80$73.3 million paid
Years claims exceeded premium8 of 28
Worst year2010ratio 2.25
Largest causes of loss, 1992–2025heat and drought 54% · excess moisture 20% · freeze 13%share of dollars paid

Drought and weather

2000200520102015202020250304

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, 2000–202580 of 1,357 weeks6% of weeks
Year with the most D2+ weeks200230 weeks
Last five years, 2021–202519 weeks
July average of daily lows, 2017–202671.5 °F1991–2020 normal 70.1 °F
Trend in July lows since 1976+0.73 °F a decadewarming
Rain, April to September24.1 in1991–2020 normal; last ten years 102% of it
Days with hail 1 inch or larger0.8 a yearreports, 2010–2025; a zero is no report, not proof of no hail

Land, water and programs

Harvested cropland irrigated, 20227%
Drained by tile, 20222% of cropland1,324 ac
Farmed no-till, 202279% of cropland47,142 ac
Cover crops, 202231% of cropland18,451 ac
1986199119962001200620112016202119935436

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

CRP enrolled, 2025436 ac0.8% of harvested cropland + CRP
CRP expiring FY2026–2028151 ac35% of enrolled acres
CRP average rental payment, FY2025$96/acall contracts in force, old ones included; not today's offer
Solar and wind operating, 202584.3 MW solar · 0 MW windnameplate, EIA Form 860
Cattle and calves, 2022214−74.2% since 2017
Farmland rented from others, 202261%census tenure, owned plus rented acres in farms

Next door

CountyDry rentIrr. rentLand valueCorn yieldClaims per $100
Accomack County$112—$5,045156.9$10.21
Somerset County, MD$102—$7,951147.2$3.65
Worcester County, MD$118—$8,232151.1$3.15
Northampton County$88$145$4,745159.6$7.99
Median next door$102$145 1 co.$7,951151.1$3.65

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. Accomack County, Virginia. 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/virginia/accomack-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.