Yellen to Lucas: Farm land overvalued
February 13, 2014 | 04:08 PM
Janet Yellen
In response to a question from House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas, R-Okla., at a House Financial Services Committee hearing Tuesday, new Federal Reserve Bank Chairman Janet Yellen said that she believes land prices have become inflated.
“I have tried to look carefully at whether or not broad classes of asset prices suggest bubble-like activity. I’ve not seen that in stocks, generally speaking. Land prices I would say suggest a greater degree of overvaluation,” Yellen said, according to an unofficial transcript of the hearing.
When Lucas asked how much the Fed’s quantitative easing had led to the increase in land prices, Yellen declined to comment, saying that she is not an expert on land prices.
Yellen's comments came amidst press reports that land prices have declined in some areas and are likely to decline further.
