Des Moines Market Inventory Sees Another Welcome Boost

August 11, 2023

The Des Moines housing market appears to be bucking some of the national trends when it comes to housing market inventory. The month of July saw more active listings, thanks, in part, to more new construction hitting the market. 

“Buyers are seeing more options in the Des Moines metro market than they have in recent months, a welcome shift for all involved in the search for a new home,” Kim Bakey, DMAAR president, said. “REALTORS are ready to help homebuyers on their hunt and prepare sellers to jump into the growing metro market through the end of summer.” 

Buyers are closely watching the interest environment while appreciating the expanding inventory levels. Home sales in the Des Moines metro area decreased  16.5%  when , compared to the 1,464 homes sold in the prior month. Year-over-year comparisons were similar, representing a 15.8% decrease from the 1,452 homes sold in July 2022. 

Pending sales followed suit with a decline for both monthly and yearly stats. With 1,266 pending sales in July, the drop was 6.2% for monthly metrics and 2.6% for yearly figures. 

While closed sales lagged a bit  in July, the number of active listings grew for the third month in a row. With 2,880 homes on the market in July, the metro experienced an increase of 3.6% compared to the 2,781 properties on the market in June. The listings represent a nearly 10.9% increase from July 2022.  

May’s median sale price of $286,300 represents a slight decrease from last month’s price of $291,700. Year-over-year the price is on the rise, with an increase of 4.9% compared to the $272,990 median price in July 2022. Last month, homes averaged 42 days on the market, the same as June, but a significant increase from the 25 days of July 2022.

Of the properties sold in June, 844 or 69%, were financed conventionally. Cash purchases amounted to 15% of the sold properties and nearly 10% were financed with an FHA Loan.

Additional statistics and information about the Des Moines area housing market are available at the DMAAR Housing Stats web page.

The Des Moines Area Association of REALTORS® is a professional association that represents more than 2,700 REALTOR® members. The association consists of REALTORS®  from the larger metro area, including but not limited to communities such as: Adel, Perry, Polk City, Newton, Knoxville, Indianola, Pella, Winterset. The mission of DMAAR is to be the voice of real estate in the Des Moines area.

The term REALTOR® is a registered trademark, which identifies real estate professionals who adhere to a strict Code of Ethics as members of the National Association of REALTORS®.