HomeIowaPolk CountyDes Moines
Des Moines, Iowa: commercial real estate data.
Des Moines is a Census city of 212,421 people across 88.16 square miles of land, lying across Polk County and Warren County. Median household income is $65,932, 60.5 percent of occupied homes are owned, and the SBA record carries 190 7(a) approvals to borrowers here worth $84.8 m since FY2020.
Underlined figures are computed by MMCG Analytics, not published by the agency.
Des Moines
What Des Moines is
- Census place typecity
- Land area88.16 sq mi
- Water area2.55 sq mi
- Population per square mile of land2,410
- County holding the largest share of its areaPolk County, 92.9 percent
- Counties this place lies inPolk County 92.9 percent, Warren County 7.1 percent
Des Moines crosses a county line. The split above is measured from the Census boundary of the place against the county boundaries, by area, so it says where the ground is and not where the town hall is.
US Census Bureau, cartographic boundary file, places, 2024 vintage. US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Des Moines
How many people live in Des Moines
- Population212,421
- Median age34.6
- Population under 1849,229
- Share under 1823.2 percent
- Population 65 and over27,045
- Share 65 and over12.7 percent
- Households90,105
- Family households48,036
- Share of households that are families53.3 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Des Moines
Income and work in Des Moines
- Median household income$65,932
- Per capita income$37,863
- Civilian labor force120,223
- Employed113,468
- Unemployed6,755
- Unemployment rate5.6 percent
- Adults 25 and over140,200
- Adults 25 and over with a high school diploma or higher87.0 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher29.7 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree9.3 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Des Moines
Housing in Des Moines
- Housing units97,604
- Occupied units90,105
- Vacant units7,499
- Vacancy rate7.7 percent
- Owner occupied54,506
- Renter occupied35,599
- Ownership rate60.5 percent
- Median owner-occupied home value$194,700
- Median gross rent, monthly$1,090
- Annual rent as a share of median income19.8 percent
- Single family units64,047
- Share single family65.6 percent
- Units in buildings of two or more30,928
- Share in buildings of two or more31.7 percent
- Mobile homes2,500
- Median year structure built1961
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Des Moines
How Des Moines gets to work
- Workers 16 and over who commute96,669
- Commuting under 15 minutes32,486
- Share commuting under 15 minutes33.6 percent
- Commuting 30 minutes or more16,449
- Share commuting 30 minutes or more17.0 percent
- Drove alone70.9 percent
- Carpooled11.0 percent
- Public transport0.8 percent plus or minus 0.2
- Walked2.4 percent
- Worked from home13.1 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Des Moines
SBA loans in Des Moines (7(a))
- Approvals190
- Gross approval$84,792,200
- Average approval$446,275
- Median approval$163,500
- Ninetieth percentile approval$1,073,980
- Largest approval$5,000,000
- Jobs supported1,916
- Jobs per approval10.1
- Loans with a final outcome43
- Paid in full38
- Charged off5
- Charge-off rate over resolved loans11.6 percent
- Median term120 months
- Share on real estate terms of 20 years or more11.1 percent
- Share to franchises6.8 percent
- Distinct lenders59
- Distinct industries by NAICS100
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Des Moines, in any county, FY2020 to FY2026.
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Des Moines
SBA loans in Des Moines (504)
- Approvals75
- Gross approval$47,908,000
- Average approval$638,773
- Median approval$309,000
- Largest approval$5,000,000
- Jobs supported765
- Loans with a final outcome31
- Charged off0
- Charge-off rate over resolved loans0.0 percent
- Median term240 months
- Distinct CDCs6
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Des Moines, in any county, FY2010 to FY2026.
US Small Business Administration, 504 FOIA release, FY2010 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Des Moines
Flood risk in Des Moines
- NFIP communityCity of Des Moines
- NFIP community number190227
- Participating in the NFIPYes
- Community Rating System classClass 5
- Currently effective map date02/01/19
The City of Des Moines participates in the National Flood Insurance Program as community 190227 and carries Community Rating System class 5, a flood insurance premium discount for policies written there.
Federal Emergency Management Agency, NFIP Community Status Book (OpenFEMA), as of 2026-09-26.
Polk County, not Des Moines
Polk County context, not Des Moines figures
- Establishments in Polk County13,890
- Covered employment, Polk County317,845
- Average annual pay, Polk County$72,557
- Housing units permitted, Polk County2,949
Every figure in this section is published for Polk County as a whole and is not a measurement of Des Moines.
US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages. US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual.
Coverage
What this page does not hold.
Parcel detail, zoning and the flood zone at an address are not on this page; they resolve at the address in the platform. How this page was built →
Common questions
Des Moines questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in Des Moines, Iowa?
212,421, in 90,105 households. Des Moines city covers 88.16 square miles of land, which is 2,410 people per square mile. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
What county is Des Moines in?
Des Moines lies in more than one. By area it is 92.9 percent in Polk County, 7.1 percent in Warren County. This page sits under Polk County because that county holds the largest share. The split is measured from the Census boundary of the place against the county boundaries.
What is the median household income in Des Moines?
$65,932. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $194,700. Median gross rent is $1,090 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
How much SBA lending goes to Des Moines businesses?
190 7(a) approvals totaling $84.8 m since FY2020, across 59 lenders, median approval $163,500, plus 75 504 approvals worth $47.9 m since FY2010. These count approvals to borrowers whose address is in Des Moines, not projects sited inside the place boundary, and they are approvals recorded in the release rather than loans disbursed.
Do SBA loans to Des Moines borrowers get paid back?
Of the 43 loans that have reached a final outcome, 38 were paid in full and 5 charged off, a charge off rate of 11.6 percent. Loans still running are excluded because they have not yet succeeded or failed.
Is Des Moines in the National Flood Insurance Program?
Yes. Des Moines appears in the FEMA Community Status Book as Des Moines, city of, community 190227, carrying Community Rating System class 5, which is a premium discount for exceeding the program minimum. Whether a specific parcel sits in a mapped special flood hazard area is an address level question the platform answers.
Are the county figures on this page Des Moines figures?
No, and they are labeled so. County Business Patterns, QCEW, the Building Permits Survey, BEA product and IRS migration are published for Polk County as a whole and there is no place level equivalent. They appear in one clearly marked section as context and are never presented as measurements of Des Moines.
Is zoning published for Des Moines?
No. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning.