Cortoon farm makes close to a million

By LIAM CORCORAN THERE was said to have been considerable interest in the sale of a 180-acre Cortoon farm earlier this week, which finally sold for close to the guide price of €1m. [private] Handling the sale was Sherry FitzGerald Tuam agent Michael Mannion, who said that the farm was the biggest to be sold in the area in recent times and that it had attracted much attention from local landowners. The farm is situated beside Cortoon Church, four miles from Tuam and it is understood that a local businessman made the purchase. The holding consists of eight fields, 50 acres of which are bog or in need of reclamation. Michael Mannion added that while the housing market seems to continue to stagnate in Co Galway, there is a renewed interest from many prospective buyers in farmland. It is thought that the comparatively strong performance of the agri-food sector throughout the recession is responsible for land holding its value much better than houses. A national survey of house prices in July put the average price of a house in Co Galway at €164,000, nearly half of what it was a the height of the boom. 'House prices are back 50 per cent at the moment,' said Michael Mannion. 'There is great value out there but people are finding it hard to get financed. I have had several expressions of interest in houses in Co Galway from foreign buyers lately and sold a house in the area to a German lady recently who thought that the prices were fantastic value.' [/private]