By Dar Danielson (Radio Iowa)

Home sales in the state were down nearly 12% in October compared to last year. Iowa Association of Realtors spokesperson Ashlee Kieler says it’s a seasonal drop.

“Really it’s very indicative of a typical housing cycle for us you know nationally and at the state level and the fall people are more settled you know school started now people are in the swing of things, so they’re not necessarily looking to uproot and move to new places,” she says. Kieler says the market didn’t come to a total standstill. “That doesn’t mean there aren’t people out there looking there definitely are and it’s starting to kind of stabilize you know with those interest rates and things,” Kieler says.

One of the issues has been having enough homes on the market for sale, something she says has been improving. “The inventories are ticking up little by little and so that gives some more opportunity and maybe will entice some people to get out there into the market too,” she says. Having more homes on the market creates movement that she says benefits everyone.

“Those people who are selling a lot of times they’re entering the market then too so that also gives them some opportunities out there,” Kieler says. The number of days homes were on the market increased year-over-year to 37 days compared to the 32 day average of October 2022.

Median sales prices increased 8% to $216,000.