Des Moines: The Market Everyone Starts With, 11th on Yield
Program and regulatory figures verified October 7, 2026. Details change; confirm your scenario with us.
Almost every out-of-state Iowa enquiry we take starts in Des Moines. It is a reasonable place to buy and it is not where the yield is, and both of those are worth saying.
Where Des Moines actually ranks
Typical home value $294,192, typical asking rent $1,297, gross yield 5.29%. That is eleventh of the fifteen Iowa metros publishing both series for the month ending 31 August 2026.
| Market | Gross yield |
|---|---|
| Burlington | 8.25% |
| Sioux City | 6.99% |
| Davenport | 6.16% |
| Cedar Rapids | 6.11% |
| Waterloo | 6.07% |
| ★ Des Moines | ★ 5.29% |
| Ames | 4.81% |
| Spirit Lake | 4.20% |
The pattern across the state is consistent: the capital and the two university towns, Des Moines, Iowa City at 5.54%, Ames at 4.81%, all sit in the bottom five. All 15.
★ What the lower yield buys
Something real, and worth naming rather than dismissing.
Depth. Des Moines is the largest and most liquid market in Iowa. More tenants, shorter expected vacancy, more buyers when you sell, and more comparable sales when a property is appraised. Every one of those is a cost somewhere else in the state.
Value stability. Part of the reason the yield is lower is that values have held and grown. A ratio with a bigger denominator is the arithmetic of a market people want to be in.
So the honest framing is a trade rather than a mistake: Des Moines costs you roughly three points of gross yield against Burlington and gives you liquidity back.
How we would think about it
If this is your first Iowa property and you are managing from out of state, the depth argument is strong and 5.29% gross may well be the right call once vacancy and management are priced in, because the gross figures in the table do not include either.
If you already hold Iowa doors and have local management, the river towns and Sioux City are where the arithmetic improves. Burlington · Sioux City.
★ What we will not do is tell you the higher number is automatically better. Gross yield is a screen, and a screen that ignores vacancy and liquidity flatters small markets.
The Polk County tax line
Property tax is the largest deduction between 5.29% gross and what services debt, and a rental gets no help from the Iowa homestead credit. That requires an owner "occupying as a home on July 1" and for six months.
★ We publish no Iowa rollback percentage or effective rate; the assessor holds the figure for your parcel. The tax line.
The exit
Same statewide statute. A non-owner-occupied Des Moines rental sits on the two-month post-judgment delay under §654.21 with no post-sale redemption under §654.23. Detail.
Run the property
Address, rent, assessor's figure. We will show you the net rather than the screen.
Mike Certo, NMLS #260555. (480) 296-6513.
Frequently asked questions
What is the rental yield in Des Moines?
A gross yield of 5.29% for the month ending 31 August 2026, on a typical home value of $294,192 against typical asking rent of $1,297. That ranked eleventh of the fifteen Iowa metros publishing both series, behind Burlington at 8.25%, Sioux City at 6.99%, Davenport at 6.16%, Cedar Rapids at 6.11% and Waterloo at 6.07%.Should I buy a rental in Des Moines or a cheaper Iowa market?
It is a trade rather than an obvious answer. Des Moines costs roughly three points of gross yield against Burlington and gives back the state's deepest market: more tenants, shorter expected vacancy, more buyers on exit and more appraisal comparables. Gross yield excludes vacancy and management, so a screen that ranks small markets first flatters them.Why do Iowa's biggest markets have the lowest yields?
Because their values have grown faster than their rents. Des Moines at 5.29%, Iowa City at 5.54% and Ames at 4.81% all sit in the bottom five of fifteen Iowa metros, and all three are the capital or university towns where buyers compete. Gross yield is a ratio, so a stronger denominator lowers it.Mike Certo · NMLS #260555 · Cornerstone First Mortgage NMLS #173855 · Equal Housing Lender. Educational content about investment-property financing, not a loan commitment and not legal or tax advice. Iowa foreclosure procedure, redemption and deficiency rules are set by the Iowa Code and change; figures here carry the date we verified them against the code itself. Gross yield figures are a market indicator built from published typical values and typical asking rents, not a property-level underwrite: they exclude taxes, insurance, vacancy and management. Property classification and assessment are determined by the county assessor. All loans are subject to borrower, property and program qualification.