Real estate · County · Iowa
Real estate businesses in Clay County, IA
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for real estate businesses in Clay County, IA, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 28 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #2,120 of 2,229 scored counties
#65 of 69 scored counties in Iowa
- Listings
- 21
- 1 chain location (5%)
- Official establishments
- 10
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $96.7M
- On rent and homeowner costs · $13,275 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 106
- 6% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 28.8
- 25% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 16,202
- −0.8% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Clay County
The site report maps the real estate businesses 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 Clay 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
The Groundwork market score for real estate businesses in Clay County is 28 (lower middle), #2,120 of 2,229 scored counties and #65 of 69 scored counties in Iowa. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
As of September 2026, map listings count 21 real estate businesses in Clay County. One of them (5%) is a chain location, against 6% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 28.8, 25% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.
Household spending on rent and homeowner costs in Clay County comes to about $96.7M a year: $13,275 per household, 20% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 6% 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 businesses take in.
In 2023, official counts showed 10 businesses with payroll in Clay County classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors. That is one for every 728 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $967K has gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Clay County. Population estimates show Clay County declined 0.8% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Clay 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 | Clay County | Iowa | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 28.8 | 24.9 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 106 | 130 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 728 | 648 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +13.9% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.8% | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $13,275 | $14,016 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $65,428 | $75,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 28 | 60 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 9 → 10
- Employees, 2023
- 96
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 39Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 211 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 22The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $967K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Clay 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 Clay County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 16,202−0.8% since 2020
- Households
- 7,282
- Median age
- 43.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 567 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 29
- Median household income
- $65,428+29.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $83,614
- Median home value
- $178,600
- Jobs located here
- 8,325
- Daytime population
- 16,701Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Clay 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 businesses on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Clay County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal estate across Iowa
Every Iowa market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Iowa for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Iowa, with Clay 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 | 76 | 12 | 11.8 | 285 | +1.8% | #87 of 2,229 |
| 2Warren County, IA | 71 | 23 | 11.1 | 314 | +9.0% | #181 of 2,229 |
| 3Bremer County, IA | 66 | 15 | 15.4 | 215 | +1.1% | #344 of 2,229 |
| 4Guthrie County, IA | 65 | 5 | 10.9 | 302 | +1.6% | #365 of 2,229 |
| 5Jones County, IA | 64 | 12 | 14.6 | 215 | +2.9% | #409 of 2,229 |
| 6Cedar County, IA | 63 | 7 | 9.2 | 354 | −0.7% | #431 of 2,229 |
| 7Crawford County, IA | 63 | 6 | 9.5 | 325 | −1.5% | #434 of 2,229 |
| 8Madison County, IA | 63 | 10 | 14.9 | 228 | +3.8% | #446 of 2,229 |
| 9Plymouth County, IA | 63 | 15 | 14.5 | 227 | 0.0% | #447 of 2,229 |
| 10Mills County, IA | 63 | 9 | 16.7 | 206 | +2.6% | #454 of 2,229 |
| 65Clay County, IA | 28 | 21 | 28.8 | 106 | −0.8% | #2,120 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Clay 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
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate businesses are in Clay County, IA?
Clay County has 21 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. One of them (5%) is a chain location. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts also show 39 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Clay County, IA spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $96.7M a year, or $13,275 per household. That is 20% below the U.S. average (an index of 80, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 21 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 6% above the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate businesses take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 7,282 households in Clay County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Clay County, IA compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Clay County has 28.8 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 106, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Clay County would have about 22, against 21 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 728 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.
How fast is Clay County, IA growing?
Population estimates put Clay County at 16,202 people in 2025, down 0.8% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 7,282 households. The median household income in Clay County is $65,428 a year, 19% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 29.5% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. Clay County scores 28 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #2,120 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Clay County. It maps the real estate businesses 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 businesses · All 56 business types in Clay County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Clay 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 Clay 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.