WEST DES MOINES, Iowa –  Officials with Iowa REALTORS report the State’s housing market showed continued resilience in October, capitalizing on a surging September. With a noticeable influx in new listings and steady sales activity, all signs point to an active and strong winter market to come. According to Iowa REALTORS organization President Travis Bushaw, “[the] Iowa real estate market is an exception to the most the country through October, and we are confident our state’s affordability will continue to drive more sales.” Bushaw says “There is strong optimism as we wrap up the last quarter of 2025. Our single family residence appreciation is well ahead of the the nationwide median, and we are multiple percentage points ahead of the rest of the US when it comes to closed sales. With the potential for another interest rate cut, this could be a busy holiday season as buyers see significant inventory still coming to the market.”

New listings continued to provide a bright spot for the fall market, jumping 14.3% to 4,497 new listings in October from the 3,936 of one year ago. Monthly, the jump remained sizable, increasing 6.5% from 4,222 new listings joining the market in September.  Active inventory advanced to nearly 10,000 homes on the market in October. In total, active inventory reached 9,968 single-family properties, a 15.2% increase from the 8,654 properties listed in October 2024, and a 6.5% increase from the 9,426 listings of a month ago. Closed sales saw positive gains in both yearly and monthly measurements. The 3,111 closed sales of single-family homes in October represent a 2.1% increase from the 3,049 homes sold in October 2024. The increase in sales was slightly higher monthly, increasing 3% from the 3,022 sales recorded in September.

Median sales price increased across the board to $250,000; jumping 6.4% from the $235,000 of a year ago, and 2.5% from the $244,000 of September. Following suit, days on the market increased 10.5% to 21 days from the 19 recorded in October 2024, and 5% from the 20 days last month. Continued momentum in the market could bode well for both buyers and sellers as we enter the typically slower winter housing market season, said Les Sulgrove, Iowa REALTORS® statewide housing analyst. “As we head into the winter months, we typically see a seasonal slowdown, but the current momentum suggests activity may stay stronger than usual,” Sulgrove said. “With more inventory available and buyer confidence holding steady, we could see continued movement even in what’s traditionally a quieter market.”

Condo & Townhomes
The condo and townhome market continued to grow in mid-fall, increasing inventory and seeing a stable sales period. New listings grew 2.6% to 591 listings in October from the 576 new listings joining the market a year ago. The metric saw a 5% increase when compared to the 563 new listings of the prior month. Active inventory saw substantial growth year-over-year, increasing 17.9% to 1,963 condo and townhome properties listed in October from the 1,165 active listings of October 2024. Monthly, the increase was more subtle – a 4.2% jump – from the 1,884 active listings of September. Closed sales remained mostly stable both yearly and monthly, decreasing 0.2% in both measures to 417 closed sales for October from the 418 recorded previously.  Median days on market increased to 28 days in October, a 16.7% increase from the 24 day median days of the prior year. Days on market dropped 22.2% from the high of 36 days last month. Median sales price decreased 0.6% to $243,995 year-over-year, and increased 6.1% monthly from the $230,000 median sales price of September.

A deeper look at statewide metrics showed that sales were recorded in every county in the state, a measure that can be seen on the Iowa REALTORS® all-county market statistics map. While metro areas of the state led the way in number of sold homes, smaller counties still claimed at least one sale in October. “We’re seeing median sales price outpacing figures from a year ago, which means that prices aren’t rising dramatically, but at a normal, healthy increase,” Sulgrove said. ” It’s good to see that we’re on track where we were last year. Almost exactly on track.”