Sep 2026
$320K
-2.0% year-over-year
How it’s calculated
Rolling 3-month median sale price vs. same 3 months one year prior.
Iowa City, IA housing market
Iowa City, IA metro median sale price $320K in Sep 2026, down 2.0% year over year. Also days on market, price cuts, affordability and ZIP-code figures.
The median sale price in the Iowa City, IA metro is $320K as of Sep 2026, down 2.0% from a year earlier. The decline is steeper than in most of the 383 U.S. metros Pecan Street ranks on this measure. FHFA's repeat-sales index for the metro points the other way: up 3.0% through Q2 2026.
Iowa City has the highest median sale price of the eight Iowa metros Pecan Street tracks ($320K), ahead of Des Moines ($318K). On median days on market, Iowa City (62 days) ranks 2nd of the eight Iowa metros, between Des Moines (65 days) and Ames (54 days). Iowa City has the lowest share of listings with a price cut of the eight Iowa metros (20%); Cedar Rapids (36%) is next.
Listings spent a median 62 days on market in Sep 2026, more than in most of the 385 metros. 20% of active listings carry a price cut, 0.8 points fewer than a year earlier. That share is the 7th-lowest of the 385 metros.
At the 7.29% 30-year fixed rate with 20% down, principal and interest on a median-priced home come to $1,753 a month; at 28% of gross income, that takes about $75K a year. The median sale price equals about 16 years of HUD Fair Market Rent, a ratio down 4.8% from a year earlier. That ratio is higher than in most of the 373 metros. Active listings ask a median $192 per square foot, up 9.6% from a year earlier.
In seven of the eight ZIP codes in the table below, median list prices are higher than a year earlier; one is lower.
Headline
Oct 15, 2026
7.29%
30-year fixed
Where it comes from
National benchmark: Optimal Blue OBMMI 30-year conforming, via FRED. An average of rates borrowers have actually locked, updated daily.
The same rate appears on every market page.
Principal & interest
$1,753/mo
$75K/yr income needed
How it’s calculated
Payment — this market’s median sale price with 20% down, on a 30-year fixed loan at the rate shown. Principal and interest only — no property tax, insurance, PMI or HOA.
Income needed — that payment at 28% of gross income. A rule of thumb, not a lending decision.
How Iowa City compares to other U.S. metros
| Price cuts | ↓379th of 385 |
|---|---|
| Home-price growth | ↓345th of 383 |
| Price-to-rent | ↑143rd of 373 (top 39%) |
| Days on market | ↑149th of 385 (top 39%) |
Rank across the U.S. metros Pecan Street tracks, on market data alone — a higher rank means more of that measure (more price cuts, faster price growth, a wider asking-vs-sale gap, a higher price-to-rent ratio, or more days on market). The bar shows where this metro sits within that metric’s own cohort (left is more, right is less); ↑ and ↓ mark the positions furthest from the middle, and rows are ordered the same way. Metrics without data for this metro are omitted.
Affordability
| Price-to-rent ratio | ≈ 16 -4.8% YoY ↑143rd of 373 (top 39%) |
|---|---|
| Asking price / sq ft | $192 +9.6% YoY |
Price-to-rent divides the median sale price by the annual HUD Fair Market Rent (a 3-bedroom, 40th-percentile benchmark), so it is a directional rent-vs-buy read, not a cap rate; its year-over-year change is directional in the same way. Asking price per square foot is the median across active for-sale listings (Realtor.com), as of Sep 2026. The bar under a figure places this metro among the U.S. metros we track on that measure, highest first.
Market pressure
| Listings with a price cut | ≈ 20% -0.8 pts YoY ↓379th of 385 |
|---|
Price-cut share is the portion of active for-sale listings that have taken a price reduction (Realtor.com), as of Sep 2026. The bar under a figure places this metro among the U.S. metros we track on that measure, highest first.
Market facts
| ZIPs with listing data | 8 shown of 19 |
|---|---|
| MLS board of record | — |
| Price methodology | Redfin vs FHFA HPI |
| Data as of | Sep 2026 |
Recent signals
No signals flagged for this market right now.
Recent notable readings
- 611 active listings in September 2026: the fewest for any September in Realtor.com's Iowa City data since 2016. It is the only one of the 385 U.S. metros Pecan Street tracks to set that record.
- The FHFA house price index for the metro fell 2% from Q1 2008 to Q1 2011: the 30th-mildest bust of the 385 U.S. metros Pecan Street tracks with FHFA data; it has risen 80% since Q1 2011: the 32nd-smallest rebound of the 382 metros whose prices fell. Q2 2026 is its highest reading on record.
Readings from the latest data that sit at one end of the U.S. metros Pecan Street tracks, from the nightly cross-metro comparison. They are not signal alerts.
Price reconciliation
red · 5.0ppRedfin (metro) -2.0% | FHFA HPI · Q2 2026 +3.0% |
Year-over-year home-price change from two independent methods — Redfin (monthly sold price) and FHFA (quarterly repeat-sales index). When they diverge, the market is mid-shift; cite the figure with that in mind.
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Start free trialZIP-level data
| ZIP | Median list price | Active listings | New listings | Price reductions | Days on market | Home value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 52240 | $435K↑ | 84↓ | 28↓ | 16↓ | 51↑ | $278K↑ |
| 52241 | $389K↑ | 85↓ | 22↑ | 14↓ | 66↑ | $262K↑ |
| 52245 | $357K↑ | 69↓ | 34↓ | 16↓ | 55↑ | $325K↑ |
| 52246 | $332K↓ | 71↓ | 20↓ | 14↓ | 69↑ | $306K↑ |
| 52317 | $420K↑ | 121↓ | 32↓ | 12↓ | 71↑ | $311K↑ |
| 52333 | $498K↑ | 46↓ | 8↓ | 16↑ | 79↓ | $451K↑ |
| 52340 | $452K↑ | 52↓ | 10 | 4↓ | 120↑ | $348K↑ |
| 52353 | $235K↑ | 38↑ | 10↓ | 8↓ | 58↑ | $197K↑ |
ZIP figures from Realtor.com listing data; home value from Zillow ZHVI. ZIP codes shown have the most complete listing-data history and active for-sale inventory in this metro; the latest available month is shown per ZIP. Arrows show the direction of each figure against the same three months a year earlier; no arrow means the change rounds to zero or the comparison isn't available.