What is the median home value in Des Moines, IA?

Name: Home values in Des Moines, IA, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

The median value of owner-occupied homes in Des Moines, IA is $194,700 (±$3,372), as owners estimated it in the Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

In Des Moines, the median home value went from $133,200 in 2015–2019 to $194,700 in 2020–2024 (+46.2%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years, so it rose faster than prices: a measurable increase after inflation.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median home value: $194,700 (±$3,372)
Owner-occupied homes: 54,506 (±1,188)
Most common range: $200,000 to $299,999

Home values in Des Moines

Owner-occupied homes by value, 2020–2024
Value	Des Moines	Polk County	Iowa	United States
Less than $50,000	5.0% (±0.8 points)	3.5%	6.6%	5.3%
$50,000 to $99,999	7.8% (±0.8 points)	4.0%	11.2%	6.1%
$100,000 to $149,999	14.3% (±1.0 points)	7.8%	13.8%	6.8%
$150,000 to $199,999	25.3% (±1.3 points)	14.8%	16.2%	9.0%
$200,000 to $299,999	30.3% (±1.6 points)	30.0%	23.1%	17.8%
$300,000 to $499,999	13.5% (±1.0 points)	30.6%	21.3%	26.9%
$500,000 to $999,999	3.1% (±0.4 points)	8.2%	6.8%	20.9%
$1,000,000 or more	0.8% (±0.3 points)	1.1%	1.1%	7.1%

The most common range is $200,000 to $299,999, 30.3% of owned homes.

Value is the owner’s own estimate of what the home and lot would sell for, not a sale price or an assessment.

Des Moines against Polk County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Des Moines	Polk County	Iowa	United States
Median home value	$194,700 (±$3,372)	$262,100 (±$3,486)	$208,000 (±$1,141)	$332,700
Owner-occupied homes	54,506 (±1,188)	138,309 (±1,741)	943,396 (±5,414)	84,210,142

In Des Moines, the median home value is lower than in Polk County ($262,100).

It is also lower than in Iowa ($208,000).

It is lower than the national figure ($332,700).

In Polk County, Des Moines ranks 17 of 17 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median home value.

Statewide, it ranks 149 of 909.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How home values in Des Moines have changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Median home value	$133,200 (±$1,968)	$194,700 (±$3,372)	+46.2%	Up after inflation
Median owner cost with a mortgage	$1,232 (±$14)	$1,485 (±$23)	+20.5%	No measurable change after inflation
Median real estate taxes	$2,840 (±$45)	$3,496 (±$57)	+23.1%	No measurable change after inflation

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Median home value in places near Des Moines

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Des Moines
Place	Distance	Median home value	Compared with this place
Des Moines	—	$194,700 (±$3,372)	—
Pleasant Hill	5.7 mi	$295,100 (±$22,434)	Higher
Windsor Heights	5.7 mi	$267,900 (±$16,505)	Higher
Carlisle	7.1 mi	$234,300 (±$11,615)	Higher
Saylorville	7.5 mi	$314,300 (±$58,717)	Higher
Norwalk	7.6 mi	$303,100 (±$27,916)	Higher
Altoona	8.6 mi	$274,600 (±$10,844)	Higher
West Des Moines	9.0 mi	$309,000 (±$10,613)	Higher
Urbandale	9.8 mi	$335,500 (±$10,820)	Higher

Nearby places with a measurably higher figure: Pleasant Hill, IA ($295,100), Windsor Heights, IA ($267,900), Carlisle, IA ($234,300).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Median home value across Polk County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median home value
11	Pleasant Hill	$295,100 (±$22,434)
12	Altoona	$274,600 (±$10,844)
13	Windsor Heights	$267,900 (±$16,505)
14	Elkhart	$253,900 (±$19,001)
15	Runnells	$231,600 (±$22,678)
16	Mitchellville	$206,600 (±$20,273)
17	Des Moines	$194,700 (±$3,372)

Showing 7 of 17 places in Polk County, ranked from highest to lowest.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

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Questions about Des Moines

What is the average home value in Des Moines, IA?

The Census Bureau publishes the median: $194,700 (±$3,372) for owner-occupied homes in Des Moines (2020–2024 American Community Survey).

Have home values in Des Moines gone up?

In Des Moines, the median home value went from $133,200 in 2015–2019 to $194,700 in 2020–2024 (+46.2%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years, so it rose faster than prices: a measurable increase after inflation.

Is this what homes in Des Moines sell for?

No: it is the value owners reported, which tends to lag the market; recent sale prices and an appraisal answer that question.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Des Moines city, Iowa (place:21000, in state:19).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B25077_001E, B25077_001M, B25088_002E, B25088_002M, B25103_001E, B25103_001M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0089E, DP04_0089M, DP04_0046E, DP04_0046M, DP04_0081PE, DP04_0081PM, DP04_0082PE, DP04_0082PM, DP04_0083PE, DP04_0083PM, DP04_0084PE, DP04_0084PM, DP04_0085PE, DP04_0085PM, DP04_0086PE, DP04_0086PM, DP04_0087PE, DP04_0087PM, DP04_0088PE, DP04_0088PM

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.