Real estate · County · Iowa
Real estate agents and brokers in Des Moines County, IA
How Des Moines County, IA compares with other counties and the U.S. for real estate agents and brokers: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 38 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,679 of 2,176 scored counties
#46 of 66 scored counties in Iowa
- Listings
- 29
- 1 chain location (3%)
- Official establishments
- 10
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $222.6M
- On rent and homeowner costs · $12,956 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 141
- 41% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 16.9
- 45% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 38,077
- −2.0% since 2020
See the real estate agents and brokers around any address in Des Moines County
The site report maps the real estate agents and brokers on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Des Moines County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
For real estate agents and brokers, Des Moines County has a Groundwork market score of 38 (lower middle): #1,679 of 2,176 scored counties and #46 of 66 scored counties in Iowa. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Households in Des Moines County spend about $222.6M a year on rent and homeowner costs, or $12,956 per household, 22% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 41% above the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate agents and brokers take in.
There are 29 real estate agents and brokers on map listings in Des Moines County as of September 2026. One of them (3%) is a chain location, against 4% across the U.S. That is 16.9 per 10,000 households, 45% below the U.S. rate of 30.6.
In 2023, official counts showed 10 businesses with payroll in Des Moines County classed as offices of real estate agents and brokers. That is one for every 1,718 households, against one for every 788 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in Des Moines County from 2020 to 2025 at −2.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Des Moines County compares
The same measures for Iowa and the whole U.S. Housing spending per listing divides all rent and homeowner costs by the listings counted: a measure of housing demand for each business, not money any of them take in, so it is shown against the U.S. (100) only. Households per establishment divides households by the official count.
| Measure | Des Moines County | Iowa | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 16.9 | 20.3 | 30.6 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 141 | 127 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 1,718 | 1,101 | 788 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +20.8% | +20.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.0% | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $12,956 | $14,016 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $62,928 | $75,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 38 | 54 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 7 → 10
- Employees, 2023
- 16
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $599K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 291 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 41The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as offices of real estate agents and brokers in Des Moines County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in Des Moines County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 38,077−2.0% since 2020
- Households
- 17,178
- Median age
- 42.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 416 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 92
- Median household income
- $62,928+22.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $80,523
- Median home value
- $136,500
- Jobs located here
- 19,578
- Daytime population
- 39,488Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Des Moines County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the real estate agents and brokers on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Des Moines County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal estate agents and brokers across Iowa
Every Iowa market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Iowa for real estate agents and brokers, numbered among those based in Iowa, with Des Moines County marked.
Top counties in Iowa
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Benton County, IA | 75 | 8 | 7.8 | 339 | +1.8% | #80 of 2,176 |
| 2Warren County, IA | 67 | 22 | 10.6 | 260 | +9.0% | #296 of 2,176 |
| 3Buchanan County, IA | 63 | 9 | 10.9 | 231 | +1.3% | #415 of 2,176 |
| 4Cedar County, IA | 62 | 6 | 7.9 | 328 | −0.7% | #451 of 2,176 |
| 5Jasper County, IA | 62 | 21 | 14.0 | 180 | +0.9% | #476 of 2,176 |
| 6Jackson County, IA | 61 | 5 | 6.1 | 414 | −0.8% | #500 of 2,176 |
| 7Hamilton County, IA | 61 | 5 | 7.8 | 325 | −0.5% | #501 of 2,176 |
| 8Lee County, IA | 59 | 12 | 8.4 | 282 | −3.6% | #578 of 2,176 |
| 9Wapello County, IA | 59 | 14 | 10.0 | 238 | −0.3% | #586 of 2,176 |
| 10Shelby County, IA | 58 | 6 | 12.3 | 211 | −0.2% | #640 of 2,176 |
| 46Des Moines County, IA | 38 | 29 | 16.9 | 141 | −2.0% | #1,679 of 2,176 |
Other business types in Des Moines County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
- Real estate34
- Real estate agents and brokers38
- Property management
- Mortgage brokers and lenders
- Home inspectors
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate agents and brokers are in Des Moines County, IA?
As of September 2026, map listings count 29 real estate agents and brokers in Des Moines County. One of them (3%) is a chain location. The listings count real estate agents and brokerages, commercial brokers included. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as offices of real estate agents and brokers in 2023.
How much do households in Des Moines County, IA spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $222.6M a year, or $12,956 per household. That is 22% below the U.S. average (an index of 78, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 29 real estate agents and brokers on map listings, housing spending per office is 41% above the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money real estate agents and brokers take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 17,178 households in Des Moines County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Des Moines County, IA compare with the U.S. for real estate agents and brokers?
Des Moines County has 16.9 real estate agents and brokers per 10,000 households, 45% below the U.S. rate of 30.6. The index of housing spending per office is 141, where 100 is the U.S. At the U.S. ratio of real estate agents and brokers to household spending, Des Moines County would have about 41, against 29 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,718 households, against one for every 788 across the U.S.
How fast is Des Moines County, IA growing?
Population estimates put Des Moines County at 38,077 people in 2025, down 2.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 17,178 households. Median household income in Des Moines County is $62,928, 22% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.8%, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Des Moines County scores 38 for real estate agents and brokers (lower middle), #1,679 of 2,176 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Des Moines County. It maps the real estate agents and brokers on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for real estate agents and brokers · All 56 business types in Des Moines County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Des Moines County?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of Des Moines County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.