Kansas City, Mo. ? While urban land prices are stifled by the housing slowdown, values for rural land across Kansas and Missouri are booming.

A recent survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City found that the price of nonirrigated and irrigated cropland in Kansas was up 20.4 percent and 18.8 percent, respectively, during the fourth quarter of last year, compared with the same period a year ago.

Values in western Missouri were up 24 percent and 13 percent, respectively, during the period. The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, which covers eastern Missouri, hasn’t released figures for that area.

By contrast to the rising levels, real estate prices in cities have largely stayed flat or declined.

“They are in opposite directions on the chart,” said Larry Kueser, a Miami County, Kan., real estate agent who specializes in rural land. “It’s a very interesting dynamic.”

Buyers have long valued rural property as an investment or for recreational uses. But experts said the most recent surge is being driven by skyrocketing crop prices, especially for materials used in biofuels.

“In 2007 and probably continuing into 2008, agriculture is back in the driver’s seat,” said Rodney Jones, a farm management economist at Kansas State University.

According to the Federal Reserve’s survey, cropland prices have more than doubled in western Missouri since 2001 to $2,325 an acre. In Kansas, they have almost doubled during that time to $1,178 an acre.

The values are even higher in eastern Kansas, closer to Kansas City, with rural land in southern Johnson County fetching between $15,000 and $50,000 an acre and $10,000 to $12,000 in northern Miami County, Kueser said.

He said when 80 acres of Miami County pasture land went on sale last month, potential buyers submitted eight bids in two hours. The land eventually sold for $200,000.

Real estate experts said the rising prices partly reflect a smaller supply of rural land compared with housing, which is plentiful. In addition, land has regained some of its traditional investment value in the wake of high-profile stock slumps.

“Enron showed the world that when you bought stock, you can walk away with nothing,” said Bruce Witt, a Cameron, Mo., real estate agent. “But when land prices go down, you still have the land.”

Experts don’t expect crop land to lose its luster soon. Jones said corn and soybean prices have doubled in the past two years while wheat prices have tripled. Foreign markets have also improved from a combination of a greater demand for U.S. farm products and a weak dollar.

He added that pasture land is also growing in value as farmers search for alternatives to expensive livestock feed and grain.

Even if crop prices do drop, real estate experts said demand for rural land as an investment or for hunting and other outdoor recreation should remain strong.

Another driver of demand are what Dan Duffy, chairman and chief executive officer of Kansas City-based United Country Real Estate, calls “idyllic lifestyle seekers,” such as baby boomers searching for a retirement home.

Ron and Roberta Honeycutt bought 60 acres near Cameron four years ago and have built a log cabin on the site. Ron Honeycutt, who is retired and grows hay on 50 acres, said they bought the land for $96,000 and could likely sell it for twice that before factoring in the value of the house.

Honeycutt, 61, said he and his wife moved to the property from Raytown and that he doesn’t miss the Kansas City traffic and noise.

“In the spring I can sit here and see deer and turkey on my own property,” he said. “It’s great to be out of the city. It’s what I always wanted.”