The 10 Best Places To Buy A House In Iowa For 2024


The best places to buy a house in Iowa are Polk City and Cherokee for 2024 based on Saturday Night Science.

Editor’s Note: This is not investment advice, and we are not financial advisers.

Suppose real estate is the most significant investment a majority of people make in their lifetime. In that case, it’s best to understand the places in Iowa with best potential return on investment.

After working in real estate adjacent roles for over a decade, I had the hypothesis that the best place to buy for a return on investment would be up-and-coming cities. Smaller cities where crime might be high now, but people still move to.

To test my hypothesis, we are going to look at places in Iowa that are growing faster than average, but where home prices are below average, and crime rates are higher than average.

In everyday terms, these might be “deals”. The best deal in Iowa at the moment according to Saturday Night Science? That would be Polk City.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


Best Places To Buy A House In Iowa Map

The methodology that wen’t into this can be a bit complicated, so we’ll break it down for you in as much detail as we can below.

For more Iowa reading:

The 10 Best Cities To Buy A House In Iowa For 2024

Source: Public Domain
Overall SnackAbility

9.5
/10

Population: 5,604
Median Home Price: $399,341
Population Change: 4.0%
Home Price Change: 2.3%
More on Polk City: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Cherokee, IA

Source: Wikipedia User Magicpiano | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 5,154
Median Home Price: $136,850
Population Change: 0.3%
Home Price Change: 1.3%
More on Cherokee: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Windsor Heights, IA

Source: Wikipedia User Mikjones24 | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 5,200
Median Home Price: $264,202
Population Change: -0.2%
Home Price Change: 4.8%
More on Windsor Heights: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Sergeant Bluff, IA

Source: Wikipedia User Jared Winkler | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

9
/10

Population: 5,007
Median Home Price: $331,417
Population Change: 1.8%
Home Price Change: 3.7%
More on Sergeant Bluff: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Adel, IA

Source: Wikipedia User Joe Mabel | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 6,090
Median Home Price: $389,668
Population Change: 3.8%
Home Price Change: 1.3%
More on Adel: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Manchester, IA

Source: Wikipedia User Kevin Schuchmann | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 5,112
Median Home Price: $160,728
Population Change: 0.7%
Home Price Change: 3.6%
More on Manchester: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Iowa Falls, IA

Source: Wikipedia User Billwhittaker at English Wikipedia | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 5,095
Median Home Price: $122,764
Population Change: -1.1%
Home Price Change: 0.4%
More on Iowa Falls: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Spirit Lake, IA

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 5,409
Median Home Price: $306,042
Population Change: 2.0%
Home Price Change: 3.6%
More on Spirit Lake: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Osceola, IA

Source: Wikipedia User en:User:Cburnett | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 5,455
Median Home Price: $163,656
Population Change: 0.8%
Home Price Change: 4.4%
More on Osceola: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 5,417
Median Home Price: $187,712
Population Change: -1.1%
Home Price Change: 1.8%
More on Sheldon: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Methodology: How do you determine the best places to buy a home in Iowa for 2024?

We were in real estate for almost five years and have worked on this site for another 9. Suffice it to say we’ve put a lot of thought into finding an excellent place to buy a home.

So all that thinking has come to this moment where we get to spell out how we’d approach finding an up-and-coming place to live in Iowa. Put differently, the analysis will try to find places in Iowa with undervalued homes relative to pent-up demand using Saturday Night Science.

To do that, we looked at the most recent American Community Survey Census data for 2018-2022 and compared it to the previous vintage. Specifically, we used the following criteria:

  • Y-o-Y Change In Population (People want to live here)
  • Y-o-Y Change In Median Home Prices (People are willing to pay for it)
  • Home Prices Relative To The State Average (It’s still kinda cheap)

We want places that are growing, have seen home prices increase in recent years, and are still “cheap” for Iowa with the following caveats:

So of the 0 cities and towns in Iowa, only 84 places made it through our initial filters to even be considered.

We then ranked each place from 1 to 84 for the above criteria, with 1 being the best. We averaged the rankings to create a “best place to buy” index, with the place having the lowest index being the best.

Turns out that Polk City is the best potential gem in the not-so-rough in the Hawkeye State.

Summary: The Best Places To Purchase A House In Iowa for 2024

There’s our analysis of the best places to buy a house in Iowa. And, to be clear, we aren’t necessarily saying these places are the best places to live, just that it looks like they might be in a couple of years based on the data.

In fact, every place in the following table meets our criteria, so even though it may not look super long, remember we started off with all 0 places in the state.

The best cities to buy a house in Iowa are Polk City, Cherokee, Windsor Heights, Sergeant Bluff, Adel, Manchester, Iowa Falls, Spirit Lake, Osceola, and Sheldon.

So if we’d could rent or buy in these cities, we’d definitely buy.

For more Iowa reading, check out:

Best Places To Buy A Home In Iowa

Rank City Population Median Home Price Population Change Home Price Increase
1 Polk City 5,604 $399,341 4.0% 2.3%
2 Cherokee 5,154 $136,850 0.3% 1.3%
3 Windsor Heights 5,200 $264,202 -0.2% 4.8%
4 Sergeant Bluff 5,007 $331,417 1.8% 3.7%
5 Adel 6,090 $389,668 3.8% 1.3%
6 Manchester 5,112 $160,728 0.7% 3.6%
7 Iowa Falls 5,095 $122,764 -1.1% 0.4%
8 Spirit Lake 5,409 $306,042 2.0% 3.6%
9 Osceola 5,455 $163,656 0.8% 4.4%
10 Sheldon 5,417 $187,712 -1.1% 1.8%
11 Winterset 5,366 $258,592 1.1% 2.1%
12 Red Oak 5,563 $106,242 -0.2% 1.7%
13 Glenwood 5,128 $288,271 -1.8% 0.0%
14 Clarinda 5,371 $116,188 -2.3% 4.6%
15 Algona 5,443 $166,950 0.7% -1.0%
16 Centerville 5,393 $73,340 0.7% -2.5%
17 Anamosa 5,493 $220,620 3.0% 2.4%
18 Estherville 5,881 $105,579 -0.4% -2.9%
19 Oelwein 5,934 $97,930 -0.5% 7.6%
20 Asbury 5,890 $333,805 1.6% 1.4%
21 Maquoketa 6,123 $177,483 0.0% -0.4%
22 Independence 6,106 $192,496 0.3% 1.9%
23 Orange City 6,278 $270,941 1.0% 2.3%
24 Bondurant 7,617 $319,817 6.3% -0.2%
25 Atlantic 6,770 $138,713 -0.4% 1.7%
26 Eldridge 6,693 $307,856 0.9% 2.7%
27 Nevada 6,933 $224,887 -1.2% 6.9%
28 Knoxville 7,523 $180,777 -0.2% 0.5%
29 Washington 7,329 $169,496 0.2% 4.0%
30 Charles City 7,364 $128,017 -0.5% -1.7%
31 Hiawatha 7,179 $234,116 -0.1% 5.2%
32 Sioux Center 8,227 $306,984 1.7% 1.6%
33 Clear Lake 7,642 $314,635 -0.4% 1.0%
34 Decorah 7,611 $277,060 -2.0% 3.0%
35 Perry 7,875 $141,243 0.5% 3.0%
36 Webster City 7,787 $139,256 -0.5% 4.1%
37 Creston 7,519 $127,665 -1.0% -0.9%
38 Denison 8,316 $162,813 -0.1% -0.3%
39 Mount Pleasant 9,214 $176,987 2.4% 1.6%
40 Grinnell 9,511 $198,148 0.3% 0.8%
41 Carroll 10,270 $184,709 0.1% 0.4%
42 Pleasant Hill 10,456 $289,143 2.5% 2.6%
43 Le Mars 10,549 $223,605 0.8% 3.0%
44 Waverly 10,399 $246,782 1.2% 4.3%
45 Keokuk 9,868 $77,849 -1.1% -2.6%
46 Pella 10,556 $313,636 1.4% 2.8%
47 Fairfield 9,474 $147,059 -1.9% -3.2%
48 Fort Madison 10,293 $102,359 -0.5% -0.8%
49 Storm Lake 11,194 $170,758 0.3% 2.8%
50 Spencer 11,351 $172,012 0.5% 2.3%
51 Norwalk 13,057 $318,235 3.7% 0.2%
52 Oskaloosa 11,492 $162,462 -0.5% 2.7%
53 Boone 12,482 $166,057 -0.2% 2.8%
54 Grimes 15,402 $330,335 3.8% 2.0%
55 Newton 15,692 $161,059 0.0% 0.6%
56 Indianola 15,845 $279,064 1.9% 2.0%
57 Clive 18,576 $397,338 1.4% 2.8%
58 Altoona 20,017 $300,143 3.5% 2.2%
59 North Liberty 20,393 $286,151 2.1% 4.1%
60 Coralville 22,494 $234,792 1.2% 4.7%
61 Johnston 23,856 $374,570 1.9% 2.9%
62 Waukee 25,045 $337,040 6.8% 0.5%
63 Muscatine 23,671 $171,138 -0.4% 1.3%
64 Fort Dodge 24,850 $126,549 0.1% -3.5%
65 Ottumwa 25,359 $108,733 -0.1% 3.5%
66 Burlington 23,976 $115,784 -0.8% 1.0%
67 Clinton 24,524 $118,088 -0.5% 1.2%
68 Marshalltown 27,511 $148,067 -0.2% 2.6%
69 Mason City 27,271 $144,252 -0.4% 1.2%
70 Bettendorf 38,997 $294,879 0.9% 3.1%
71 Marion 41,401 $249,715 0.9% 3.3%
72 Cedar Falls 40,686 $233,285 0.5% 7.0%
73 Urbandale 45,591 $326,786 1.2% 3.2%
74 Dubuque 59,315 $216,138 -0.1% 3.0%
75 Council Bluffs 62,670 $196,527 0.1% 7.7%
76 Ankeny 68,392 $323,344 3.1% 1.6%
77 Ames 66,265 $242,576 1.1% 1.5%
78 West Des Moines 68,744 $294,330 1.6% 3.9%
79 Waterloo 67,256 $135,521 -0.6% 4.6%
80 Iowa City 74,878 $279,401 0.9% 4.6%
81 Sioux City 85,469 $179,943 0.5% 5.0%
82 Davenport 101,448 $166,729 -0.3% 2.2%
83 Cedar Rapids 136,929 $183,682 0.3% 4.4%
84 Des Moines 213,164 $194,392 -0.2% 4.6%
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.