The average price paid for farm land in Ireland fell by almost €1,000 per acre last year, according to a new report from the Irish Farmers Journal.

The land price report shows average land values fell by 9.9 per cent from €9,890 per acre in 2014 to €8,914 per acre last year.

This is the sixth year in a row that the national average failed to break the €10,000 per acre mark. Land prices were in the region of €20,200 per acre in 2007, but have failed to breach the €10,000 per acre mark since values collapsed in 2009.

The report shows land values were most expensive in Kildare at €13,886 per acre, followed by Dublin at €13,736 per acre and Meath at €11,861 per acre.

On the other end of the spectrum, Leitrim had the lowest average at €4,869 per acre, followed by Clare at €5,391 per acre and Mayo at €5,699 per acre.

Almost 75,000 acres were offered for sale in 2015, down 13.6 per cent from the 86,408 acres in 2014. A total of 1,654 farms/land parcels were offered for sale nationally down from 1,840 in 2014.

Cork topped the table with the most land offered for sale at 7,458 acres, followed by Tipperary at 5,869 acres.

Louth had the least amount of agricultural land for sale at 424 acres, followed by Dublin at 786 acres.

The average land price of €8,914 per acre was based on 846 competed sales, sold by private treaty and public auction. The report found the average land price increased in 12 counties, with the biggest increase recorded in Sligo at 22.1 per cent, followed by Leitrim at 20.3 per cent.

The price difference between residential and non-residential farms severely narrowed in 2015. The average price for residential farms was €9,591 per acre and the average price for non-residential farms was €8,649 per acre.