Groundwork

Real estate · County · Iowa

Real estate businesses in Wapello County, IA

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for real estate businesses in Wapello County, IA, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 59 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #609 of 2,229 scored counties
#17 of 69 scored counties in Iowa

Listings
19
1 chain location (5%)
Official establishments
5
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$181.6M
On rent and homeowner costs · $12,972 a household
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
221
2.2 times the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
13.6
65% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
35,210
−0.3% since 2020

See the real estate businesses around any address in Wapello 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 Wapello County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

As of September 2026, map listings count 19 real estate businesses in Wapello County. One of them (5%) is a chain location, against 6% across the U.S. That is 13.6 per 10,000 households, 65% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.

Household spending on rent and homeowner costs in Wapello County comes to about $181.6M a year: $12,972 per household, 22% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 2.2 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 Wapello County was 5 in 2023. That is one for every 2,799 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Official counts list 49 one-person businesses without payroll.

Population estimates show Wapello County declined 0.3% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. For real estate businesses, Wapello County has a Groundwork market score of 59 (upper middle): #609 of 2,229 scored counties and #17 of 69 scored counties in Iowa.

How Wapello 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.

Real estate in Wapello County, IA compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureWapello CountyIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households13.624.938.5
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)221130100
Households per official establishment2,799648414
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+13.9%+15.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025−0.3%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs$12,972$14,016$16,661
Median household income$64,766$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market score5960

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
5 → 5
Employees, 2023
12
Annual payroll, 2023
$232K
One-person businesses, 2023
49Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
191 chain location
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
42The 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 Wapello 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 Wapello County

Population, 2025 estimate
35,210−0.3% since 2020
Households
13,997
Median age
40.5
Homes lived in by their owners
68%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
432 sq. mi.
People per square mile
82
Median household income
$64,766+40.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$82,469
Median home value
$125,100
Jobs located here
15,175
Daytime population
34,077Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Wapello 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 Wapello County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Real estate across Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Iowa for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Iowa, with Wapello County marked.

Top counties in Iowa

Counties in Iowa ranked for real estate businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsHousing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)Population growthU.S. rank
1Benton County, IA761211.8285+1.8%#87 of 2,229
2Warren County, IA712311.1314+9.0%#181 of 2,229
3Bremer County, IA661515.4215+1.1%#344 of 2,229
4Guthrie County, IA65510.9302+1.6%#365 of 2,229
5Jones County, IA641214.6215+2.9%#409 of 2,229
6Cedar County, IA6379.2354−0.7%#431 of 2,229
7Crawford County, IA6369.5325−1.5%#434 of 2,229
8Madison County, IA631014.9228+3.8%#446 of 2,229
9Plymouth County, IA631514.52270.0%#447 of 2,229
10Mills County, IA63916.7206+2.6%#454 of 2,229
17Wapello County, IA591913.6221−0.3%#609 of 2,229

Other business types in Wapello County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many real estate businesses are in Wapello County, IA?

Wapello County has 19 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 5 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts also show 49 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Wapello County, IA spend on rent and homeowner costs?

About $181.6M a year, or $12,972 per household. That is 22% below the U.S. average (an index of 78, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 19 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 2.2 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 13,997 households in Wapello County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Wapello County, IA compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?

Wapello County has 13.6 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 65% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 221, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Wapello County would have about 42, against 19 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,799 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.

How fast is Wapello County, IA growing?

Population estimates put Wapello County at 35,210 people in 2025, down 0.3% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 13,997 households. The median household income in Wapello County is $64,766 a year, 20% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 40.1% 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. Wapello County scores 59 for real estate businesses (upper middle), #609 of 2,229 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Wapello 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 Wapello County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Wapello 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 Wapello 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.