Available Listings Flourish As Spring Approaches, Market Remains Steady

March 20, 2023

Though winter weather continues to make an appearance across the metro, signs of spring are in the air: The housing market is blooming with listings and buyers are eagerly picking properties. 

The number of home sales in the Des Moines metro area rose 16% in February with 695 homes sold compared to the 596 sold in January. While the uptick is encouraging for 2023, it does represent a 21% decrease from the 882 homes sold in February 2022. 

Pending sales saw a 6% decrease from 1,104 in January to 1,032 pending sales in February. The decrease was wider year-over-year, with about 26% fewer pending sales last month compared to the 1,398 of February 2022. 

Active listings in the metro remained stable, with just 12 fewer homes listed in February compared to January. Despite the slight monthly decline in inventory, February’s 2,463 listings were nearly double - 47% - that of the same time last year when there were just 1,667 houses on the market. 

The median sale price of $245,000 represents a nearly 4% decrease from last month’s median price of $255,000. However, it is the exact opposite year-over-year, with February 2023 median sale prices increasing 4% compared to the $235,000 median price of February 2022. Last month, homes averaged 59 days on the market, an increase from both January 2023, which saw 52 days on market, and February 2022, which averaged 44 days on market. 

Of the properties sold in February, 440, or 63%, were financed conventionally. Cash purchase amounted to 18% of the sold properties and almost 10% were financed with an FHA Loan. 

“As we begin to enter the spring months, we are encouraged by the market for both buyers and sellers in the metro area. Though active listings fell slightly from last month, the inventory is  significantly higher than this time last year,” said Kim Bakey, DMAAR president. “Buyers are out there making good offers and they are being accepted, keeping both sales and pending sales steady. We anticipate this trend to continue as the weather warms and more residents begin spring shopping.” 

Additional statistics and information about the Des Moines area housing market are available at the DMAAR Housing Stats web page.

The Des Moines Area Association of REALTORS® is a professional association that represents more than 2,700 REALTOR® members. The association consists of Realtors® from the larger metro area, including but not limited to communities such as: Adel, Perry, Polk City, Newton, Knoxville, Indianola, Pella, Winterset. The mission of DMAAR is to be the voice of real estate in the Des Moines area.

The term REALTOR® is a registered trademark, which identifies real estate professionals who adhere to a strict Code of Ethics as members of the National Association of REALTORS®.