Home sales and prices in Iowa rose last year.
Home sales rose by just over 4.4 percent, according to the Iowa Association of Realtors (IAR). There were 42,671 properties sold in 2016 compared to 40,778 in 2015. IAR president Cindy Miller of Burlington says homes are being sold fairly fast as well.
“They are currently taking about 80 days on the market (to sell) and of that, you figure 45-to-60 (days) are just for the lending part of it,” Miller says. The median sale price of home sold in Iowa last year was $146,900, up from $141,000 in 2015.
The median price for a home sold in Iowa has increased, year-over-year, for five consecutive years. Miller says she’d like to see a “gap” filled in the state’s current inventory of homes for sale.
“For the most part, the inventory isn’t too bad. We are seeing a shortage in homes between $100,000 to $150,000. So, some of the first-time home buyers…that area is shorter in the market,” Miller says.