HomeIowaPolk CountyWest Des Moines city
West Des Moines city, Iowa: commercial real estate data.
West Des Moines city is a Census city of 71,083 people across 47.49 square miles of land, lying across Polk County and Dallas County and Warren County. Median household income is $86,594, 57.4 percent of occupied homes are owned, and the SBA record carries 104 7(a) approvals to borrowers here worth $47.7 m.
78 sourced place values · tier FULL · 8 sections · underlined figures are computed by MMCG Analytics, not published by the agency
West Des Moines
What West Des Moines is
- Census place typecity
- Land area47.49 sq mi
- Water area0.98 sq mi
- Population per square mile of land1,497
- County holding the largest share of its areaPolk County, 54.2 percent
- Counties this place lies inPolk County 54.2 percent, Dallas County 40.2 percent, Warren County 4.1 percent
West Des Moines city 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.
West Des Moines
How many people live in West Des Moines
- Population71,083
- Median age36.0
- Population under 1814,955
- Share under 1821.0 percent
- Population 65 and over10,723
- Share 65 and over15.1 percent
- Households32,233
- Family households16,995
- Share of households that are families52.7 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
West Des Moines
Income and work in West Des Moines
- Median household income$86,594
- Per capita income$57,275
- Civilian labor force41,827
- Employed40,819
- Unemployed1,008 plus or minus 287
- Unemployment rate2.4 percent plus or minus 0.7
- Adults 25 and over49,548
- Adults 25 and over with a high school diploma or higher96.3 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher54.9 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree19.1 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
West Des Moines
Housing in West Des Moines
- Housing units34,006
- Occupied units32,233
- Vacant units1,773 plus or minus 471
- Vacancy rate5.2 percent plus or minus 1.4
- Owner occupied18,491
- Renter occupied13,742
- Ownership rate57.4 percent
- Median owner-occupied home value$309,000
- Median gross rent, monthly$1,237
- Annual rent as a share of median income17.1 percent
- Single family units19,583
- Share single family57.6 percent
- Units in buildings of two or more14,168
- Share in buildings of two or more41.7 percent
- Mobile homes255 plus or minus 112
- Median year structure built1994
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
West Des Moines
How West Des Moines gets to work
- Workers 16 and over who commute32,460
- Commuting under 15 minutes12,061
- Share commuting under 15 minutes37.2 percent
- Commuting 30 minutes or more3,908
- Share commuting 30 minutes or more12.0 percent
- Drove alone71.0 percent
- Carpooled6.8 percent
- Public transport0.6 percent plus or minus 0.3
- Walked0.8 percent plus or minus 0.4
- Worked from home19.1 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
West Des Moines
SBA loans in West Des Moines (7(a))
- Approvals104
- Gross approval$47,685,600
- Average approval$458,515
- Median approval$261,400
- Ninetieth percentile approval$1,043,000
- Largest approval$3,060,000
- Jobs supported1,378
- Jobs per approval13.3
- Loans with a final outcome14
- Paid in full14
- Charged off0
- Charge-off rate over resolved loans0.0 percent
- Median term120 months
- Share on real estate terms of 20 years or more3.8 percent
- Share to franchises25.0 percent
- Distinct lenders41
- Distinct industries by NAICS60
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
West Des Moines
SBA loans in West Des Moines (504)
- Approvals27
- Gross approval$21,844,000
- Average approval$809,037
- Median approval$493,000
- Largest approval$2,906,000
- Jobs supported493
- Loans with a final outcome8
- Charged off0
- Median term240 months
- Distinct CDCs5
US Small Business Administration, 504 FOIA release, FY2010 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Polk County, not West Des Moines
Polk County context, not West Des Moines figures
These are Polk County figures. There is no place level equivalent published for any of them, so they are shown as the county backdrop and never as West Des Moines measurements.
- Establishments in Polk County13,890
- Employment at those establishments, Polk County295,413
- Covered employment, Polk County317,845
- Average annual pay, Polk County$72,557
- Average weekly wage, Polk County$1,395
- Housing units permitted, Polk County2,949
- Of those, single family, Polk County2,295
- County product, 2024, Polk County$63,823,028,000
- County product change over the prior year, Polk County7.2 percent
- Average income of an arriving household, Polk County$63,088
Every figure in this section is published for Polk County as a whole and is not a measurement of West Des Moines. It is here because a county backdrop is what a credit committee reads a place against, and it is labelled so that it can never be quoted as the place's own.
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. US Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional, table CAGDP2, CAGDP2, through 2024. US Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income county migration flows, 2021 to 2022 filing years.
Coverage
What this page does not hold.
Every item below could be filled with a plausible figure. None of them is. On a page a lender may read, a number that cannot be traced is worse than an absence, so the absences are named.
- This place is not listed as a community in the FEMA Community Status Book, so no NFIP participation or CRS class is shown.
- Parcel level detail, zoning and flood zone at an address are resolved in the platform, not on this page.
SBA figures count approvals to borrowers whose address is in the place. They are not approvals for projects inside the place boundary: the tape records a borrower city and a project county, and those can differ.
Common questions
West Des Moines questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in West Des Moines, Iowa?
71,083, in 32,233 households. West Des Moines city covers 47.49 square miles of land, which is 1,497 people per square mile. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
What county is West Des Moines in?
West Des Moines lies in more than one. By area it is 54.2 percent in Polk County, 40.2 percent in Dallas County, 4.1 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 West Des Moines?
$86,594. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $309,000. Median gross rent is $1,237 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
How much SBA lending goes to West Des Moines businesses?
104 7(a) approvals totalling $47.7 m, across 41 lenders, median approval $261,400, plus 27 504 approvals worth $21.8 m. These count approvals to borrowers whose address is in West 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 West Des Moines borrowers get paid back?
Of the 14 loans that have reached a final outcome, 14 were paid in full and 0 charged off, a charge off rate of 0.0 percent. Loans still running are excluded because they have not yet succeeded or failed.
Are the county figures on this page West Des Moines figures?
No, and they are labelled 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 West Des Moines.
Is zoning published for West Des Moines?
Not yet. The zoning layer is in build. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning.