Farmland and its buildings in Lake County averaged $6,473 an acre in the 2022 Census of Agriculture: the 60th cheapest of the 66 counties in South Dakota, 150% above the South Dakota average in the same census ($2,592).
In the 2017 census it was $5,121 an acre, so the average has risen 26% in five years.
| Farmland and buildings, an acre, 2022 | $6,473 |
|---|---|
| The same, 2017 | $5,121 +26% |
| Farms counted, 2022 | 428 (463 in 2017) |
| Average farm | 499 acres |
| Share of the county that is farmland | 59.3% |
| Median value of an owner-occupied home | $247,600 ± $21,400 |
The farm figure is land and buildings together, averaged over every farm in the county, from the largest ranch to the smallest holding. It is for comparing one county with another, not a price for any parcel: a few acres with road frontage usually costs more an acre than the average, not less.
Source: USDA, 2022 Census of Agriculture, South Dakota county data, Table 8; Census Bureau, ACS 2020–2024, table B25077
Next door
The counties that share a border with Lake County, cheapest farmland first.
| county | Farmland an acre | Median home |
|---|---|---|
| Miner County | $4,428 | $142,600 |
| Kingsbury County | $5,005 | $169,500 |
| Brookings County | $6,212 | $264,600 |
| McCook County | $6,395 | $230,100 |
| Minnehaha County | $8,346 | $287,600 |
| Moody County | $8,691 | $226,500 |
Buying land here: the South Dakota rules
Counties keep their own tax certificates, and since 2024 must auction tax-deed land within a year.
Each links to the South Dakota guide, where every fact cites the statute or agency page it came from.