Pottawattamie County, Iowa Housing Market

In Pottawattamie County, Iowa, the median home value is $195,700, with a median monthly rent of $1,018. This places Pottawattamie County at #1445 nationally out of 3134 counties by median home value, and #24 within Iowa.

Median Home Value $195,700
Median Rent $1,018/mo
Owner Occupancy 69.9%
Price/Rent Ratio 16.0

📈 Price Trend (2017 → 2024)

📊 Recent Market Momentum (FHFA HPI)

FHFA House Price Index — All-Transactions, Annual (2000 = 100) · Latest: 2025

💡 Year-over-Year Trend: Home prices in Pottawattamie County rose +5.5% year-over-year as of 2025. (Source: FHFA)

📍 Economic Snapshot

💼

Employment & Wages

36,115
jobs (private sector)
  • Avg weekly wage: $1,114
  • Establishments: 2,594
  • BLS QCEW, 2025
🏗️

Housing Supply

334
new units authorized (2025)
  • Single-family: 122
  • Multi-family: 212
  • U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey
🚚

Migration Patterns

+1368
net migration (filers, 2021-2022)
  • Inflow: 37,399 (avg $74,727)
  • Outflow: 36,031 (avg $75,568)
  • IRS Statistics of Income

📍 Sub-Market Activity

Top 8 active ZIP codes in Pottawattamie County · Latest: 2025

# ZIP Code HPI YoY Change Latest Year
1 51560 258.9 +21.71% 2025
2 51553 294.5 — 2025
3 51526 198.0 -7.60% 2025
4 51510 282.1 +9.45% 2025
5 51501 235.8 +8.06% 2025
6 51575 206.6 +3.06% 2025
7 51576 198.9 -3.13% 2024
8 51542 216.0 +10.63% 2022

Source: FHFA HPI for Five-Digit ZIP Codes (All-Transactions Index, 2000 = 100).
This product uses FHFA Data but is neither endorsed nor certified by FHFA.

How Pottawattamie County Compares

MetricPottawattamie CountyIowa AverageU.S. Average
Median Home Value $195,700 $171,037 $227,706
Median Gross Rent $1,018 $832 $968
Owner Occupancy Rate 69.9% 75.8% 73.3%
Price/Rent Ratio 16.0 17.0 18.7

Market Analysis

The median home value in Pottawattamie County is 14.4% above the Iowa state average and 14.1% below the U.S. national average. The median rent of $1,018/month is 22.4% above the state average.

With a price-to-rent ratio of 16.0, the buy-vs-rent decision in Pottawattamie County is balanced. Whether buying or renting makes more sense depends on your time horizon, down payment capacity, and local market conditions.

Pottawattamie County has an owner-occupancy rate of 69.9%, compared to 75.8% in Iowa and 73.3% nationally. This indicates a more renter-heavy market than the U.S. average.

Similar Counties by Home Value

CountyStateMedian Home ValueMedian Rent
Andrews County Texas $195,700 $1,305
LaPorte County Indiana $195,500 $976
Pennington County Minnesota $195,500 $862
Midland County Michigan $195,400 $1,016
Pierce County Nebraska $196,000 $884

Other Counties in Iowa

CountyMedian Home ValueMedian RentOwner Occ.
Iowa County $193,900 $686 76.6%
Grundy County $198,800 $774 84.5%
Black Hawk County $188,900 $989 66.2%
Washington County $203,900 $879 74.0%
Jasper County $186,300 $836 72.3%

Data Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 2024 5-Year Estimates (2017–2024). Variables: B25077 (Median Home Value), B25064 (Median Gross Rent), B25003 (Tenure). Data collected on 2026-10-14. The price-to-rent ratio is calculated as Median Home Value ÷ (Median Monthly Rent × 12).