Iowa Rent Report – February 2020

• The average monthly rent in Des Moines was $902 in February, $7 more than one year prior.
• Johnston apartments are the most expensive in the state, renting for $1,143, while apartments in Urbandale have the cheapest rents, $851 per month. 
• The national average rent in February 2020 was $1,468, up 3.2% compared to the same time last year according to data from Yardi Matrix.

Renting in the largest city in Iowa

Apartments in Des Moines rented for $902 on average in February. Rents in the largest Iowa city saw a year-over-year increase of 0.8%, or $7, compared to this time last year and a month-over-month decrease of 0.2% ($2) compared to January.

Renting in Iowa in February 2020

The average rent in Iowa cities is lower than the national average rent. The fastest growing rents in February were in Council Bluffs, where rental apartment prices increased by 8.1% year-over-year, or $69. Urbandale apartments saw the second highest annual increase, jumping by 4.0%, making them $33 more expensive than last year. In Ankeny prices dropped by 2.6% ($29) since February last year.

Johnston apartments are the state’s most expensive for renters, with an average rent of $1,143, followed by apartments in Ankeny, where the average monthly rent is $1,079. On the other hand, the cheapest city to rent an apartment of the cities analyzed is Urbandale, with an average apartment rent of $851.

The February national average rent went up by 3.2% year-over-year

The average apartment rent was $1,468 in February, up $46 since last year, according to apartment data from Yardi Matrix. February apartment rents maintained the same pace as in January, rising by 3.2% year-over-year. Overall, rents are growing a bit slower than the same time last year, when they were rising at a 3.5% yearly rate.

To compare the rental market in Iowa with other cities in the U.S., you can also check our national February rent report.

Methodology

RentCafe.com is a nationwide apartment search website that enables renters to easily find apartments and houses for rent throughout the United States.

The data on average rents included in our reports comes directly from competitively-rented (market-rate) large-scale multifamily properties (50+ units in size), via telephone survey. The data is compiled and reported by our sister company Yardi Matrix, a business development and asset management tool for brokers, sponsors, banks and equity sources underwriting investments in the multifamily, office, industrial and self-storage sectors. Fully-affordable properties are not included in the survey and are not reported in rental rate averages. Local rent reports include only cities with a statistically-relevant stock of large-scale multifamily properties of 50+ units.