Dairy farmers are racing to buy land as prices skyrocket and real estate agents struggle to meet demand.
Real Estate Institute figures show two dairying properties are changing hands every three days.
Thirty-four dairy properties sold last month, 20 of them in the Waikato, even though prices have increased an average $100,000 from this time last year.
For good land, farmers are paying at least $25,000 a hectare.
Waikato Chamber of Commerce president Steve Saunders said that last season's record payout and confirmation of the newly named Fonterra had boosted farmers' confidence, but could also send them for a fall.
"It's highly likely a bit of farm fever has caught on and some of the prices being paid may not reflect the real value," he said.
Rural real estate agent Ross Dingle said farmers had gone crazy.
"We have close to 60 buyers for dairy farms and it's only early in the season. The prices have gone mad.
"You couldn't buy a dairy farm for under $1 million today."
And farmers struggling to find land to buy in the Waikato were moving north in their quest, said Kaikohe real estate agent Bill King.
Tony Bradley, of WestpacTrust, said farmers had started to buy a least one month earlier and more of them were borrowing money.
"The value of land is driven by supply and demand. Farmers have a lot of cash at the moment and are able to pay more for land.
"They know the situation they are in and they are happy to go after it earlier and harder."
The cash is also flying at the top level at dairy giant Fonterra.
Papers released to farmers show that chief executive Craig Norgate is paid a $1.12 million salary, a big jump from the $870,000 he earned in his old job running Kiwi Co-operative Dairies.
He is now one of New Zealand's biggest earners.
And his earning power is expected to increase as Fonterra embarks on an aggressive expansion strategy in Australia and Latin America.
- NZPA
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