Puget Sound Business Journal | August 10, 2001 Orchard values in North Central Washington are collapsing because of the beating that apple growers are getting in the marketplace. Some land used for apple orchards has lost half its value, county assessors say, driving down prices to the lowest levels in 20 years. In the Okanogan River Valley, between Tonasket and Oroville, apple-orchard land that once fetched between $3,000 and $4,000 an acre is now selling for between $1,500 and $2,000 an acre, said Scott Furman, Okanogan County assessor. "We're seeing values back to where they were in the 1980s," Furman said. Washington experienced its last recession in 1981-82. At one time, land used for growing apples cost between $3,000 and $6,000 an acre in neighboring Chelan County But Chelan County Assessor Russ Griffith recently saw 47 acres, including 29 acres of apple trees, auctioned off for $ 40,700. "Pat's a typical sale right now," said Griffith, himself an apple grower. "When everybody's orchard is on the block, and there are no buyers - that's tough." Apple trees are now in such disfavor in North Central Washington, the self-proclaimed apple capital of the world, that some sellers must discount their land if it has apple trees on it. The reason: Buyers have to spend between $300 and $500 an acre removing the trees. "With some of these older (apple) varieties, the land is worth less with trees in the ground than with the trees out of the ground," Furman said. Washington apple growers have lost money since 1997, when the Asian financial crisis dried up exports into Pacific Rim markets. Since then, the industry has suffered from a strong U.S. dollar, a flood of apples from China and changing consumer tastes. Indeed, orchard properties now tend to fetch higher prices if buyers can use the land for something else, such as recreational properties. As a result, buyers are paying premiums for orchards with views and waterfronts, but shunning properties without those amenities.Puget Sound Business Journal:
