Less traditional cash rent leases in 2026: survey

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Lease agreements shifted toward more traditional crop-share agreements in 2026.

The Illinois Society of Professional Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers released survey results of lease arrangements as part of its annual farmland values report.

Authors of the findings were Gary Schnitkey, professor in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois, and Juo-Han Tsay, assistant director of the TIAA Center for Farmland Research at the U of I.

The survey of lease arrangements used by farm managers found 27% use a traditional crop-share agreement, compared to 21% in 2025.

Traditional cash rents represented 35% of the agreements, down from 41% last year.

Farm managers surveyed reported 27% of the arrangements with landowners are variable cash rent, 1% lower than in 2025.

Custom farming lease agreements increased by 1% year over year to 6%.

Crop share with supplemental rents accounted for 4% of all leases, 1% lower than in 2025.

Crop share with other modifications were 2% lower from last year at 2%.

“A traditional crop-share lease has a straightforward revenue and direct expense-sharing arrangement, with a typical split in northern and central Illinois being 50%,” according to the report.

In a crop share with supplemental rent arrangement, both landowner and tenant share in revenues and direct expenses, and the tenant makes an additional cash payment to the landowner. This cash payment is commonly referred to as supplemental rent.

According to survey respondents, the supplemental rent is expected to average $27 per acre in 2026.

The share rent with other modifications arrangement alters the payment structure between the landowner and tenant. One common modification is that the tenant assumes chemical costs.

Under a traditional lease, the landowner and tenant negotiate a fixed amount of cash rents, typically at the start of the crop year.

In contrast, a variable lease’s cash payment amount depends on revenue. A typical variable lease includes a fixed base payment alongside a bonus payment. The bonus is a percentage of gross revenue exceeding a specific threshold.

“Farm managers usually opt for short lease terms in cash rental agreements. Among cash rents, 83% of the leases were one year in duration, and 30% had a different rental rate in 2026 compared to 2025,” the report stated.

Custom farming is an arrangement in which the landowner pays the farmer to perform machinery-related operations on the farmland. The landowner then receives all revenue and pays all direct expenses from the farm.

Solar, Wind

The survey also asked farm managers what they foresee in renewable energy and data centers.

According to respondents, 93% have a managed farm with a wind or solar project.

In the future, 92% of the managers expect solar projects to grow in Illinois, 41% expect wind projects to increase.

Of those surveyed, 10% have been involved with a data center project.