Whether it is a sign of the times or coincidence, at least three Southland properties, farmed by the same families for over 100 years, are up for sale.
Some of the owners told the Otago Daily Times it was bittersweet to let their family traditions go after not finding the right successor.
David and Elizabeth Smith’s Wendon Valley farm in Waikaka, which Mr Smith’s ancestors farmed since 1885, went on the market at the end of September.
Then, Bill and Pam McCall’s Viewfield Farm in Waikoikoi was up for sale after 113 years in the family.
A week later, "for sale" signs for Allan and Noeline Smith’s Bracken Hill, five minutes northeast of Gore, were up, in its 150th year in Mr Smith’s family name.
Noeline Smith told the ODT after farming the property for 60 years, she and her husband, both in their 80s, were selling the farm.
"We don’t have a family member that’s ideally suited to take it over and that is a very sad thing for us," she said.
Farming was not as easy as it once was, and she had been advised, during one of her many visits to farming conferences, against passing it on, she said.
"The advice we’d been given ... is, if you haven’t got somebody within the family that’s ideally suited for it, do not leave it or encourage them to take it on," she said.
"And that’s our situation."
It was her fault they had no successor, after pushing her three children to get high qualifications, which meant they could make good money around the world, Mrs Smith said.
Her husband offered the troubled sheep industry as a reason their children were not interested in farming.
"We all love sheep, but you still have to have money, don’t you, to run a farm?" he said.
Elizabeth Smith, of Waikaka, no relation, said not that it mattered, but she and her husband had had five daughters.
"Even if we did have a son, he may not have wanted to go farming either," she said.
In their 60s, she and her husband wanted to enjoy their retirement, travel and visit their grandchildren.
It would be hard for them to say goodbye to their 299ha property, especially for her husband, who had bought it off his parents in 1988.
"But we can’t stay there forever," she said.
She was not sure if it was just a coincidence or a trend that a few farms over 100 years old were up for sale in the area.
Peter Gardyne, who leased Bracken Hill after Allan Smith had a heart attack nearly five years ago, said the market was better than a couple of years ago and it was a good time to sell.
