Real estate · Small-town market · Iowa
Real estate businesses in the Fort Madison, IA area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for real estate businesses in the Fort Madison, IA area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 54 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #204 of 536 scored small-town markets
#7 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa
- Listings
- 17
- 1 chain location (6%)
- Official establishments
- 9
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $184.4M
- On rent and homeowner costs · $12,873 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 250
- 2.5 times the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.9
- 69% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 32,306
- −3.6% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in the Fort Madison area
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 the Fort Madison area. 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 17 real estate businesses in the Fort Madison area. One of them (6%) is a chain location, against 6% across the U.S. That is 11.9 per 10,000 households, 69% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.
Household spending on rent and homeowner costs in the Fort Madison area comes to about $184.4M a year: $12,873 per household, 23% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 2.5 times 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.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in the Fort Madison area was 9 in 2023. That is one for every 1,591 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Another 77 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates put the population change in the Fort Madison area from 2020 to 2025 at −3.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For real estate businesses, the Fort Madison area has a Groundwork market score of 54 (upper middle): #204 of 536 scored small-town markets and #7 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa.
How the Fort Madison area 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 | Fort Madison area | Iowa | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 11.9 | 24.9 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 250 | 130 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 1,591 | 648 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +13.9% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −3.6% | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $12,873 | $14,016 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $62,382 | $75,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 54 | 60 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 9
- Employees, 2023
- 11
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $633K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 77Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 171 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 43The 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 real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in the Fort Madison area, 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 the Fort Madison area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 32,306−3.6% since 2020
- Households
- 14,323
- Median age
- 42.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 76%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 518 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 64
- Median household income
- $62,382
- Average household income
- $79,169
- Median home value
- $141,400
- Jobs located here
- 13,626
- Daytime population
- 31,700Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Fort Madison area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 the Fort Madison area. 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 small-town markets in Iowa for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Iowa, with the Fort Madison area marked.
Top small-town markets in Iowa
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Le Mars, IA | 66 | 15 | 14.5 | 227 | 0.0% | #77 of 536 |
| 2Storm Lake, IA | 65 | 12 | 15.9 | 200 | −1.7% | #88 of 536 |
| 3Ottumwa, IA | 63 | 19 | 13.6 | 221 | −0.3% | #101 of 536 |
| 4Marshalltown, IA | 63 | 24 | 15.5 | 200 | −0.5% | #102 of 536 |
| 5Oskaloosa, IA | 60 | 14 | 16.0 | 192 | −1.2% | #133 of 536 |
| 6Pella, IA | 57 | 25 | 18.8 | 174 | +2.3% | #166 of 536 |
| 7Fort Madison, IA | 54 | 17 | 11.9 | 250 | −3.6% | #204 of 536 |
| 8Clinton, IA | 49 | 33 | 16.9 | 183 | −0.9% | #276 of 536 |
| 9Mason City, IA | 43 | 43 | 18.9 | 165 | −1.5% | #346 of 536 |
| 10Carroll, IA | 42 | 18 | 20.5 | 155 | −2.0% | #361 of 536 |
Other business types in the Fort Madison area
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 the Fort Madison, IA area?
There are 17 real estate businesses on map listings in the Fort Madison area as of September 2026. One of them (6%) is a chain location. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 9 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts list 77 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Fort Madison, IA area spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $184.4M a year, or $12,873 per household. That is 23% below the U.S. average (an index of 77, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 17 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 2.5 times 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 14,323 households in the Fort Madison area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Fort Madison, IA area compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
The Fort Madison area has 11.9 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 69% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 250, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, the Fort Madison area would have about 43, against 17 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,591 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.
How fast is the Fort Madison, IA area growing?
Population estimates put the Fort Madison area at 32,306 people in 2025, down 3.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 14,323 households. The median household income in the Fort Madison area is $62,382 a year, 23% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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. The Fort Madison area scores 54 for real estate businesses (upper middle), #204 of 536 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Fort Madison area. 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 the Fort Madison area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Fort Madison area?
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 the Fort Madison area. 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.