Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

In Sweden the market for forest land as well as arable land has had an intense
growth since the middle of the 1990’s. The purpose of this study is to
substantially look upon the trends regarding growth in prices for the types of
land mentioned. Over and above this study also compare the growth in land
prices with the growth in prices of products harvested. As a complement and
explanation to the development the inquiry “Minienkäten”, published by the
Ordnance Survey in Sweden, has also been looked upon. This inquiry is published
twice a year and reflects the opinions from persons involved in the business
(realtors, banks, forestry companies et cetera).
Statistics from the Ordnance Survey in Sweden has been used as the primary
source for land prices. Products harvested that has been used for comparison in
the study are the net income for harvested wood and wheat prices. The source
for harvested wood is the Swedish Forest Board and for wheat the Swedish
Board of Agriculture as well as the French commodity exchange, MATIF.
To be able to utilize the information handed by the Ordnance Survey in Sweden
the initial part of the study is to look upon the structure of the Swedish property
system. As a complement the system for wheat trade and the system for sorting
out the net income of harvested wood in Sweden are also looked upon.
The study covers the years 2001 to 2012 and compares 46 000 real estate
purchases. The conclusion is that property formations are more intense than the
jurisprudent purchases when it comes to growth in prices. The connection
between land prices and prices for products harvested is getting weaker, land
prices are constantly growing while prices for products harvested are more
volatile.
The main conclusion from the study is that there are more to a property purchase
then the net income from products harvested!