Although wealthy City bankers, fearful of losing their bonuses, have stopped buying weekend county retreats, land remains in demand in Yorkshire.

According to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, demand for residential farmland plummeted in the second half of 2008, as so-called “lifestyle buyers” all but disappeared, but demand for land for farming remained relatively high.

Andrew Fallows, of the RICS in Yorkshire, said: “There was a reduced supply of land across Yorkshire after September last year, which was not surprising given the economic climate.

“The fall in commodity prices experienced would lead one to think that prices should fall although there was no evidence to confirm this. Land continues to be sought after and one could say it appears to be a more secure asset in these troubled economic times.”

The RICS says UK banks have become more willing to lend to the agricultural sector over the past year but anecdotal evidence suggested that both Danish and Irish investors had withdrawn from the market.

The weighted average price for farmland, including residential land, rose from £15,825 per hectare to £16,318.

However, surveyors are expecting prices to fall rather than rise, the most pessimistic outlook since the beginning of 2003.

Meanwhile, the RICS is seeking views and evidence from commercial property professionals in Yorkshire on the impact of Empty Property Rates. The call for evidence follows widespread criticism of the tax on empty commercial property.